Last week’s post was an open letter to video conferencing companies like Zoom and Google, asking them to provide free auto captioning for people with hearing loss during this time of physical distancing. In most cases, auto captioning is available on these platforms, but it is hidden behind a paywall for premium paid accounts. There was so much support from readers, I started a petition on Change.org to capture the response.
The results have been tremendous. As of this writing, 8,000 people have signed the petition, and the number continues to grow. I have begun sharing the petition with the companies. If you have not signed already, will you help me to show more support by signing and sharing the petition? Together we can make change happen!
SIGN OUR PETITION ON CHANGE.ORG
Free Captions Are a Universal Need
Signers of the petition come from all over the United States as well as many places around the world. Countries represented include Canada, Australia, England, Scotland, Mexico, South Africa, Brazil, Philippines, Trinidad & Tobago, Greece, New Zealand, and Hong Kong. Captioning is a universal need for people with hearing loss across the globe.
Signers Are Passionate About the Need for Communication Access
When people sign the petition, they have the opportunity to share why they signed. Reading through the reasons has been inspiring and further demonstrates how important this issue is to the hearing loss community.
Each comment shows the passionate desire people have to connect with one another. While auto captioning is far from perfect and not applicable in many situations, free auto captioning on video conferencing platforms could go a long way towards providing better communication for people with hearing loss during this challenging time.
Below I share some of the comments.
Your title says it all – Captions are our ramps. Would anyone even think to charge a person to use a ramp? Hopefully, hearing people who make these decisions will “get it.”
The support for the petition shows many people do understand. Hopefully it will have an impact. Thank you for sharing your thoughts.
I signed it and shared it with my hearing loss support group.
Many thanks!
So important!
Thanks for your comment.
Shari- You are the best! Thank you so much for taking this on. With much appreciation and enormous gratitude.
Thanks for your support!
You’re a great advocate Shari. Thank you so much!
Thanks for your comment.
Captions should be on everything and easy to access.
Yes! Thanks for sharing your thoughts.
Quelle énergie, merci a vous pour vos actions.!
Qu’il est bon de se sentir compris et entendu, la cause des sourds est internationale.
Je partage votre article comme je le fais souvent tant vous êtes pertinente sur le sujet. Bonne chance pour la vie a NY en ce moment
Merci!