Uploaded September 2024 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Find out more at https://gupress.gallaudet.edu/internationalperspectives
"From a Bumpy Road to a Smoother Highway: The Past, Present, and Future of Sign Language Interpreting in Mexico" | Chapter summary in Mexican Sign Language (LSM)
Chapter authors: Sergio Peña, Alejandra Álvarez, and José Luís Magaña-Cabrera
From “International Perspectives on Sign Language Translator and Interpreter Education”
Edited by Jemina Napier, Stacey Webb, and Robert Adam
Published by Gallaudet University Press
**This video may not be repurposed or incorporated into other works in any way without the express written consent of the signer and the chapter authors.**
Visual description: A woman wearing a black shirt signs in Mexican Sign Language (LSM) in front of a grey background.
Transcript:
Mexico has always been a country of many languages and cultures, among which, of course, is Mexican Sign Language (LSM) and the deaf community. The deaf community has, over time, been strengthening its identity and fighting for its language to be recognized and for more participation in society. Alongside this community, sign language interpreters have gradually gone from being the relatives or friends of deaf people, who volunteered as personal "favors" and interpreted as needed, to people who aspire to be trained professionally and to be certified — who seek to train as interpreters providing a qualified rendition in LSM.
Given that in Mexico, we still do not have formal higher education training in sign language interpreting, in this chapter, we will briefly guide you through the history of sign language interpreting in our country. You will learn about the Escuela Nacional de Sordomudos (National School for the Deaf and Dumb), the first associations of deaf people, and religious groups that included people who took on the role (an undefined one) as the first sign language interpreters.
We will learn about some of the laws and political changes that gave the deaf community and their language more visibility within our country, and which in turn required more sign language interpretation services; this required new attempts to train interpreters in Mexico. You will see how interpreters from other countries had to step in and help us out with this.
We will talk about the first attempts to professionalize interpreters by different educational institutions in the country, the creation of the first certifications for interpreters, as well as the publications that Mexican interpreters have written on the subject and how all this has contributed to the development and training of interpreters, not only in the country but also for Spanish-speaking countries.
You will see clearly how the deaf community influenced the advances that have been made in the field of interpreting. The many struggles the profession has had for interpreters to be visible, providing language accessibility for the deaf community will be noted. Professionalism and work ethics are also discussed as the deaf community comes to understand that the interpreter’s role and how the community can use them are an empowering language tool.
Finally, we will look at the impact COVID had on the field, what adjustments had to be made, and the silver lining that came with the pandemic.
There’s a lot to be done in the field of interpreting in our country, as well as in the region, but knowing the past and the present will help us make a better future for our profession. Please join us in our journey and get a taste of who the LSM interpreters are in our country.
Find out more at https://gupress.gallaudet.edu/internationalperspectives
"From a Bumpy Road to a Smoother Highway: The Past, Present, and Future of Sign Language Interpreting in Mexico" | Chapter summary in Mexican Sign Language (LSM)
Chapter authors: Sergio Peña, Alejandra Álvarez, and José Luís Magaña-Cabrera
From “International Perspectives on Sign Language Translator and Interpreter Education”
Edited by Jemina Napier, Stacey Webb, and Robert Adam
Published by Gallaudet University Press
**This video may not be repurposed or incorporated into other works in any way without the express written consent of the signer and the chapter authors.**
Visual description: A woman wearing a black shirt signs in Mexican Sign Language (LSM) in front of a grey background.
Transcript:
Mexico has always been a country of many languages and cultures, among which, of course, is Mexican Sign Language (LSM) and the deaf community. The deaf community has, over time, been strengthening its identity and fighting for its language to be recognized and for more participation in society. Alongside this community, sign language interpreters have gradually gone from being the relatives or friends of deaf people, who volunteered as personal "favors" and interpreted as needed, to people who aspire to be trained professionally and to be certified — who seek to train as interpreters providing a qualified rendition in LSM.
Given that in Mexico, we still do not have formal higher education training in sign language interpreting, in this chapter, we will briefly guide you through the history of sign language interpreting in our country. You will learn about the Escuela Nacional de Sordomudos (National School for the Deaf and Dumb), the first associations of deaf people, and religious groups that included people who took on the role (an undefined one) as the first sign language interpreters.
We will learn about some of the laws and political changes that gave the deaf community and their language more visibility within our country, and which in turn required more sign language interpretation services; this required new attempts to train interpreters in Mexico. You will see how interpreters from other countries had to step in and help us out with this.
We will talk about the first attempts to professionalize interpreters by different educational institutions in the country, the creation of the first certifications for interpreters, as well as the publications that Mexican interpreters have written on the subject and how all this has contributed to the development and training of interpreters, not only in the country but also for Spanish-speaking countries.
You will see clearly how the deaf community influenced the advances that have been made in the field of interpreting. The many struggles the profession has had for interpreters to be visible, providing language accessibility for the deaf community will be noted. Professionalism and work ethics are also discussed as the deaf community comes to understand that the interpreter’s role and how the community can use them are an empowering language tool.
Finally, we will look at the impact COVID had on the field, what adjustments had to be made, and the silver lining that came with the pandemic.
There’s a lot to be done in the field of interpreting in our country, as well as in the region, but knowing the past and the present will help us make a better future for our profession. Please join us in our journey and get a taste of who the LSM interpreters are in our country.
