I have been introduced to the Deaf Community since I was a kid, because my younger sister Zeina was born with hard to hear problems. She could not hear me, and I always had difficulties in communicating with her, we could not even play together because Zeina had her own friends, MUTE like her.
I decided to do my best to help my sister Zeina and her friends, so I joined one of the charities in my home country – Lebanon, as a volunteer. I learned the sign Language and had lots of friends from the MUTE Community.
Having had the opportunity to be an activist in helping Deaf people since the year 2000, I have realized that the more the world is advanced, the more life is difficult for Deaf people. In fact, unlike Deaf people in developed countries like the USA, Deaf people in developing and least developed countries, including my country Lebanon, especially girls and women, have NO life.
To be deaf means no education, no employment, no entertainment, and no one understands them in hospitals or even at governmental institutions. The big fact is that Deaf People are second-class or even lower-class citizens. Furthermore, Deaf People are not granted necessary access to public places, simply because no one can understand them!
There are a lot of organizations and charities worldwide working on providing services and advice for the Deaf and their families. In my opinion, this is not enough there is more that needs to be done. Deaf People deserve full and effective participation in society on an equal basis with others.
I joined the RASIT MUTE International Program with the aim of helping support the Deaf, including my sister Zeina, empowerment programs in Lebanon. Through its visionary expertise and strategic plan, RASIT works towards a direct impact on drawing a new future for the Deaf Community.
My sister Zeina, like her Deaf fellows, has been dreaming of watching movies and plays in the theater like everyone else. I always worked hard to make Zeina's dreams come true, except for this one, which I could not do.
The Big Surprise for the deaf community in Lebanon was when HRH Princess Dr. Nisreen El-Hashemite coordinated with the renowned Lebanese Actor George Khabbaz to host 50 deaf people to enjoy watching his Play "We are not different". This activity aimed to attract the public's attention to the equal rights of DEAF people. Through the activity, RASIT also aimed to bring awareness to the Lebanese as well as Arab society on the entitlement of Deaf people to enjoy movies and plays like their hearing peers.
George Khabbaz, who is a civil activist, accepted the idea of hosting Deaf people and being seated with the rest of the audience. At the beginning and before the show started, the audience was surprised and amazed at the presence of the deaf, and started asking: How will they hear?
The Play began, and Bilal Ezzo, a member of the Mute International Program in Lebanon, started to translate the dialogue and songs into sign language: the language that relies on the movement of the hands and lips.
This is the first event of its kind in Lebanon. Deaf people are socially engaged with the public without any barriers. It is a simple right for the deaf to enjoy life like everyone else. All it takes are considerate people, like HRH Princess Dr. Nisreen El-Hashemite and Mr. George Khabbaz, and an organization like RASIT to create such community engagement activities.
THANK YOU, Your Royal Highness, for thinking the unthinkable!