Deaf411 Reports on “Deaf-Friendly” Cities in the U.S.
Deaf411, a deaf marketing and public relations company, recently completed the "Deaf-Friendly Cities in the U.S." project, which lists 20 cities culled from four regions throughout the country. A full report of the results from the 15-month survey is available online at www.deaf411online.com.
Deaf411 launched the survey online in April 2008, and since then more than 3700 people have participated in an online survey that attempts to find out what is important to deaf people. The results split the U.S. into four regions (West, East, South, and Midwest) and lists five cites in each region, one of which is given an in-depth write-up.
According to a signed and captioned video on Deaf411's Web site, the impetus for the report was the need for the key information that a deaf person needs to know about a particular city. Using a checklist format, the report indicates which services each city does and does not offer, comparing them by region. The checklist contains 18 specific services (i.e. "deaf day school," "deaf phone book," etc.), divided among five categories (education, recreation, accessibility, community and resources).
In-depth reports are available for Seattle, WA, Austin, TX, Olathe, KS, and Boston, MA. To view these reports, as well as information on the other 16 cities, you just need to sign up at www.deaf411online.com (don't worry; it's free and just requires your name and email).
The report also offers pictorial examples of deaf accessibility, statistical information on how the deaf community stacks u with other communities, a list of resources, and more.
Although, as the video suggests, the report "is not a definitive answer as to which cities are most deaf-friendly," it's certainly a good way to start spreading information and getting people (and cities through the country) thinking about the issue.