DHN's video: LEAD-K: Language Activism Pictures -- Fighting For Deaf Children

Three women tell us about LEAD-K, an organization working towards getting all Deaf children Kindergarten ready. They share the personal stories that led them to join the cause. Their fight? To start using English AND ASL when teaching Deaf children instead of English OR ASL. Coming up we look at people who've successfully grown up with English and ASL, as well as those who grew up oral and look back wishing they had ASL. Let's Connect: Website: http://www.WatchDHN.com/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/WatchDHN Twitter: @DHN_News Instagram: @DHNnews Transcript: For most babies, they're given access to language the second they're born-- but for Deaf kids this is rarely the case. One organization is now working hard to try and change that. Roz: "LEAD-K is here to make kids kindergarten ready." Roz: “Why is it that so many kids fail to achieve equality? We keep trying to teach them with a variety of methods but, they're remaining at a disadvantage." Roz Rosen is one of the many people who's involved with LEAD-K: That's Language Equality and Acquisition for Deaf Kids. Roz: "It’s group of people who worked together to come up with the idea and identify what is truly wrong with the education system as it stands." They are working across the country to promote the need -- for both American Sign Language and English for all Deaf kids -- to ensure that Deaf children are meeting language benchmarks just like hearing kids. Roz: "They're falling behind because the parents -- they don’t know someone or a doctor tells them that, 'Oh it’s normal for Deaf kids to fall behind. They'll catch up later.' They're wrong! Now is the time." But the idea of being Kindergarten ready is not just a goal in the Deaf community. (applause) President Obama: "Study after study shows that the earlier a child begins learning, the better he or she does down the road." President Barack Obama has laid out his plan to increase early childhood education. Roz: "Right now we're seeing the national goal of getting all kids, whether they be deaf or hearing, kindergarten ready." LEAD-K is now bringing attention to the cause by working with visual mediums and famous actors across the country. Deanne: "We really need to change how deaf kids are receiving their education." Deanne Bray is an actress who was born Deaf into a hearing family. She says that her father’s commitment to having her learn both American Sign Language and English is the main reason that she's been so successful in life. Deanne: "I can’t imagine my life without ASL -- reading and writing too -- but my English improved because of my knowledge of ASL. I took all of that and applied it to English to better understand the language." As with many Deaf people, Deanne grew up and had to focus on developing sound and speech as well. Deanne: "It’s perfectly okay to pursue speech therapy and focus on acquiring sound and speech but don’t be picking one or the other. Why is there an 'or?' Get rid of it and put in an 'and.' What’s wrong with having ASL and English?" Many people outside of the Deaf community look at ASL as just a signed version of English. Deanne: "What many people fail to realize is that ASL itself is not a tool -- it’s a need." That is why LEAD-K chose to use pictures in order to represent their movement. Clare: "We wanted people to see the sign for 'ball' but then see 'bounce' -- a way to see more than the words, but see sentences and meaning involved in our language." Clare Cassidy is the lead photographer on the campaign and she too has a personal commitment to this cause. Clare: "They forced my older brother to grow up oral. The doctors told my parents that if he signed instead of spoke it would cause mental retardation." But when she and her twin sister were born her parents' perspective had changed. Clare: "My mother was out of her element. By 8 she could see my brother had no language -- the damage was done. She didn’t want to see that happen again with the two of us." You can support LEAD-K by getting involved or visiting their website at ASL4DeafKids.org. They have a calendar of when their photo shoots are available on their site. Clare: "We wanted to get people to be in the photos and use that as a way to help fund LEAD-K." Stay with us over the next 5 weeks as we continue the DHN Stands for Deaf Children's Right to Language Access arc. We will release stories around LEAD-K and ASL for Deaf Kids as part of our commitment to language access for all Deaf Kids.