A collaboration between the AT&T telecommunications company and Gallaudet University in Washington, DC has resulted in development of a new 5G network connected football sport helmet. The helmet enables Deaf athletes to communicate with each other in American Sign Language (ASL) using an augmented reality screen built inside the helmet. The Gallaudet University Bison football team players, which competes in Division III, have long faced challenges against teams with hearing athletes, such as crowd noise and inability to hear whistles, signaling the end of a play. On October 5th, the Bisons stepped out onto their football home field and wore the helmet for the first time during their football game against Hilbert College.

A Deaf woman named Sarah Sunny made history by becoming the first Deaf female lawyer in the Supreme Court of India. Sunny, who is 27 years old, has been practicing law for the past two years, advocating for the rights of Deaf people in Bengaluru to help them gain access to education, employment and healthcare. Sunny is part of the Human Rights Law Network which has supported her in her advocacy. To ensure Sunny is able to access information at her workplace, the Supreme Court has appointed an Indian sign language interpreter for the first time in history. This is a step forward in making the Indian legal system more inclusive for the Deaf community.

Chelsea Reinschmidt is an international student from the USA, who may be the first Deaf student studying at the Master of Sciences in Occupational Therapy program at Brighton University in England. Prior to starting the program, Reinschmidt said she informed the university that she would need interpreters in all of her classes. After she was accepted, she was later required to withdraw from her Masters programme after the university realized they could not fund the cost of sign language interpreters. Reinschmidt was devastated by the news because she already paid more than $10,000 USD for fights, accommodation, and visa costs. Reinschmidt had the goal of becoming a trained occupational therapist in the UK. She has submitted a formal complaint to the university for breaching its duty to adapt to Deaf students since all university courses require accessibility for disabilities, including international students, under the Equality Act.

During International Week of the Deaf, an important holiday for Deaf people in September, the Vaata festival was held in Estonia. This year’s theme was based on the courage to be different. There were many lectures about feminism, LGBT, mental health, immigration from Ukraine, life in deaf and hearing worlds and translations. The end of the festival was a big party to celebrate. This festival is held every 2 years. This was the third time.

Due to the political situation in the world, Turkey has refused to issue residency permits to Russian immigrants, including Deaf people. Some Russian immigrants have even bought an apartment within the Turkish state a long time ago. Many tried to get the residency permit with the help of a lawyer, but to no avail. Russian immigrants have been forced to leave Turkey.