Fw: [USA-L News] British Deaf Association in controversial posterdrive

[Professor Des Power]

It does! - and in my (southern) dialect of Auslan it means "lazy". :-) Im not
sure why you would have a hard time believing that? How could one hold up the
finger without movement - there is of course vertical movement of the arm and
hand as the sign is made - it couldnt be otherwise. I should add that vertical
movement of the sign with more intensity (as usual) intensifies the meaning of
the sign. Its becoming unfashionable (and isnt used where I now live in
Queensland - which is northern dialect). Its a bit too like what is (in
Australia - and I think elsewhere??) a very vulgar natural gesture telling the
viewer just what is thought of them and any proposal they may have made to the
user!!

Cheers

Des

Don & Theresa Grushkin wrote:

> The article below says the middle finger sign (I'm assuming they mean the
> middle finger) means "idle" in BSL.  I have a hard time believing just
> holding up the middle fnger means "idle".  I'm suspecting that there is some
> movement involved.  Can any of you BSL users out there help clarify this for
> me?
>
> Thanks,
> Don Grushkin
>
> ---------------------------------------------------------------------_->
>
>  From the newsroom of the Media Guardian, United Kingdom, Thursday, October
> 12, 2000 .....
>
> British Deaf Association in controversial poster drive
>
> By Claire Cozens
>
> Britain's deaf community is giving a one-fingered salute to the government
> in a controversial poster campaign designed to get British sign language
> officially recognised in Westminster.
>
> The British Deaf Association will today launch a poster drive featuring the
> rude hand gesture beside the line, "Westminster's attitude to recognising
> British sign language." The copy underneath explains that in British sign
> language the gesture means "idle".
>
> Jeff McWhinney, chief executive of the BDA, said: "The BDA has had to
> resort to shock tactics with this campaign to get politicians to sit up and
> take notice. The BDA is extremely concerned about the resistance of
> government to extending the same linguistic rights to deaf people as those
> enjoyed by the hearing population."
>
> The BDA is calling on the government to recognise British sign language
> under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. Countries
> that sign up to the charter are required to improve the access of minority
> language users to public services such as health, education and the justice
> system. They are also expected to promote the learning and study of
> minority languages.
>
> © Guardian Newspapers Limited 2000
>
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--
Professor Des Power, Director
Centre for Deafness Studies and Research, and
Language Australia, Centre for Deafness and Communication  Studies
Faculty of Education
Griffith University, QLD 4111
Australia

Tel:  (617) 3875 5654
Fax:  (617) 3875 5924
URL: http://www.edn.gu.edu.au/general/cdsr/home.htm