Since the beginning of the current Covid-19 pandemic, as many workspaces have moved virtual and wearing masks/face-coverings has become necessary and commonplace, unique challenges have been posed for the Deaf communities, many of which are often overlooked by hearing people.
Masks
Lip reading is not the only skill mask wearing affects. Facial expression, as well as hand movements, is very important in conveying mood, tone, connotation, etc. in American Sign Language. Face masks, which play a key role in preventing the spread of the Covid-19 virus, can hinder this.
"Mean percentage of correct assessment of the emotional states for faces with masks (blue) or without masks (red) on the face." Graph from Frontiersin.Org
A study conducted in September of 2020 found that participants could correctly identify the emotions of unmasked faces around 89.5% of the time. The recognition of emotions dropped for most expressions once the faces were masked. (1) A study conducted in December of 2020, by psychologist Ashley Ruba, found that children could identify the expressions of unmasked faces 66% of the time. When the faces were masked, children could identify anger only 27% of the time, sadness 28%, and fear 18%. (3)
It's difficult to think of a solution for this problem, given how important masks are in protecting against Covid-19. But virtual communication platforms such as Zoom do offer some support and help.
Virtual Communication/Zoom
I observed in my own experience learning ASL on Zoom that glitches and freezing screens can interrupt one's understandability. Zoom does not offer closed captioning, but suggests on their website that anyone in need of live transcription during a meeting should use a third-party captioning service or have a member of the meeting manually provide captions. (2)
Medical Treatment
In an Opinion Piece written for CNN, writer Sara Novic describes her experience receiving the Covid-19 vaccine as a Deaf person. All the instructions being given were spoken, and she had to use writing to communicate with those in charge, who had not been prepared for such a situation. Novic goes on to describe the overall inequities facing Deaf people in healthcare. Deaf people are more likely to avoid going to the doctor, because of a communication barrier. Increased risk of Covid-19 infection has been linked to lower socio-economic statuses, American Deaf and hard-of-hearing people living "below the poverty line at nearly double the rate of their hearing counterparts." (4) "For those with multiply marginalized identities, including Black, indigenous and people of color (BIPOC) or LGBTQ+ deaf people, these risks are even further amplified." (4) Novic pleads that vaccine programs "take concrete steps to make their public service announcements, registration and vaccination processes more accessible." (4)
As someone who recently received the Covid-19 vaccine myself, I can confirm that it is a process very reliant on verbal instruction, However, I did see these posters outside offering 'Video Remote Interpreting'
Sources:
Carbon, Claus-Christian. “Wearing Face Masks Strongly Confuses Counterparts in Reading Emotions.” Frontiers, Frontiers, 2 Sept. 2020, www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2020.566886/full .
“Closed Captioning and Live Transcription.” Zoom Help Center, https://support.zoom.us/hc/en-us/articles/207279736-Closed-Captioning?_ga=2.80421079.1345104533.1618683976-2003756924.1605301509
Hotz, Robert Lee. “Covid Face Masks Are Disrupting a Key Tool of Human Communications, New Research Shows.” The Wall Street Journal, Dow Jones & Company, 18 Jan. 2021, www.wsj.com/articles/covid-face-masks-are-disrupting-a-key-tool-of-human-communications-new-research-shows-11610989200?st=qtwxawyak2cmnf4&reflink=article_email_share .
Novic, Opinion by Sara. “Opinion: I Was Fortunate to Get My Vaccination, but the Hurdles Are Too Great for Many Other Deaf People.” CNN, Cable News Network, 13 Apr. 2021, www.cnn.com/2021/04/13/opinions/deaf-americans-vaccine-hesitancy-health-care-equity-novic/index.html .
Ruba, Ashley L., and Seth D. Pollak. “Children's Emotion Inferences from Masked Faces: Implications for Social Interactions during COVID-19.” PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0243708