America's Pandemic Response Is Creating Major Hurdles for Many Deaf People

After more than five months of the coronavirus pandemic in the United States, White House briefings and press conferences still lack an American Sign Language interpreter. On Monday, a week after President Trump resumed his daily briefings, the National Association of the Deaf filed a lawsuit against the White House arguing that the continued refusal to include an interpreter violates the Americans With Disabilities Act. "All 50 states' governors have provided in-frame American Sign Language ('ASL') interpretation during public briefings regarding the pandemic," the lawsuit notes. "President Trump, however, does not. He now stands alone in holding televised briefings regarding the Covid-19 pandemic without ever having provided any ASL Interpretation."