Liz Scully

Liz has over two decades of experience as an interpreter and trainer working in the Deaf and Deafblind communities and has interpreted in 24 countries over 5 continents. Liz’s thesis for her MSc in Deaf Studies, from the University of Bristol, explored how to be a good hearing citizen in the Deaf community.  Liz has worked in a variety of predominantly Deaf situations. In 1996 Liz authored a curriculum for an ASL/English Interpreter Training Program at Cambrian College, Sudbury, in which she taught.  From 2005 - 2007, Liz taught in the interpreter tract of the BSc offered by the Centre for Deaf Studies at the University of Bristol, England.  Liz holds the national Certificate of Interpretation (COI) from the Association of Visual Language Interpreters of Canada (AVLIC) and is a member of the World Association of Sign Language Interpreters (WASLI) Deafblind Interpreting Committee.

Exploring the Concepts of non-Deaf and Deaf Space as Occupied by Deaf and non-Deaf Sign Language Interpreters.

A new line of thought is developing around the place of Deaf people in the world.  The idea is one of Deaf space and draws from the discipline of human geography (Mathews, 2006, Gulliver, 2009).   Space can be thought of as both internal (perceived) and external (environmental) (Robins & Aksoy, 2001). Deaf space is created when Deaf people come together to communicate.  It is closely linked with Deaf cultural identity.  Deaf knowledge produces Deaf space and in turn, Deaf knowledge flourishes within these settings.
What then, are the implications of this for a bilingual person, such as an interpreter, in and out of Deaf space?
This paper will explore the perspectives of Deaf and non-deaf interpreters when in hearing and Deaf spaces.  The implications of being in one’s own space and that of another culture will be analyzed.  Perceptions, from within and external to the spaces will be described.  Elements including the power base, ownership of the message and efficiency of interpretation will be contrasted in a matrix format.  Cultural aspects such as socialization among interpreters when in and out of their “home” environment will be discussed.  Comparison will be made of the expectations of others on Deaf and non-deaf interpreters depending on the space in which they are working. Data was initially gathered through case studies and is being expanded through ethnographic research methods.