Folks, if someone says they’re deaf and you’re in a mask zone, be prepared to spend an extra minute writing down what you were going to say, talking into a phone (eg @mstranslator) or standing 6ft+ back, pulling down mask so folks can see/hear.

Whatever you do, don’t walk away.

You may giggle but today alone, it’s happened three times. I literally have my phone or notepad ready to go and folks turned away and walked.

I want to know what you said, I want to engage, I want to communicate. If you have a question, I want to answer.

I’m worth the wait!

Masks make life hard for deaf and hard of hearing. Learning some simple steps will help me and the 380+million deaf mask wearing folks out there.

Even if you don’t know someone today, you will tomorrow or the next.

Help us to feel connected in these disconnected times.

So, invest your time. Just a little. Consider it homework but the good kind.

First - have a read of this from @guardian..

https://amp.theguardian.com/society/2020/aug/20/deaf-people-mask-wearing-lipreading

Second? Watch the awesome Leah Katz Hernandez in Simple Things Count talk about deaf etiquette: https://m.youtube.com/watch?feature=youtu.be&v=nx5TMV3s5Cw

Heck, watch the whole series (7 in total), covering multiple others areas of disability, especially relevant are episodes from @emily_ladau and @JessicAccess https://news.microsoft.com/stories/simplethingscount/

The big lesson. If in doubt - ask. Verbally, in writing, into a phone.. via carrier pigeon even.

But never, never, walk away.