Equality

by Therese J. Casterline, RMR, CSR

In 1994, I first began providing CART services to the deaf and hard-of-hearing community.

My services over the years since then have included:

• Providing realtime for a public forum on the pros and cons of cochlear implants, which was also filmed for television.
• Providing realtime for the National Cochlear Implant convention, both seminars and the keynote speaker address at their dinner event.
• Providing realtime for the National SHHH (Self-Help for Hard-of-Hearing) convention, seminars on various aspects of coping with hearing loss.
• Providing realtime for local meetings of the Goodrich Center for the Deaf in Fort Worth, Texas.
• Providing realtime for local meeting of the Deaf Action Center in Dallas, Texas.
• Providing realtime for a deaf person at Deloitte & Touche's annual meeting in Dallas, Texas.

My experience in providing realtime for persons who are deaf or hard-of-hearing has been the most rewarding aspect of my reporting career. Just as preparing a transcript of a court proceeding is so essential to the legal process, CART services are of equal importance to those who are deprived of the hearing that the rest of Americans enjoy.

It is every American's right to due process, trial by jury and the other rights guaranteed by the Constitution. It is the duty of our local, state and national governments to ensure that every American enjoys these rights and is treated equally.

So, too, is it the duty of our local, state and national governments to ensure the rights of those Americans who are disabled. Under the Americans with Disabilities Act, all Americans are now entitled to equal treatment and equal enjoyment of life.

Nothing gives me more pride than providing a necessary service such as CART. The appreciation I receive from the deaf community is evidence of how necessary these services truly are. I look forward to the day when all deaf persons can "hear" again.