Wearing a mask during the pandemic protects many of the general population against the threats that the coronavirus presents. But like the vaccines, face masks have also incurred negative impressions from many groups in several countries.
Alongside the health benefits and protection they promote, there are still a few exceptions that were debated over the course of strict quarantine protocol and lockdown mandates. With that said, there were accounts that were seemingly overlooked by national health officials regarding the effects of masks on individuals with special needs, especially those who rely on lip-reading. The use of masks makes communication more challenging for them.
How Face Masks Concerns People with Auditory Challenges
A Lufthansa stewardess (R) has her temperature taken by having a thermometer put in her ear at Hong Kong's Chek Lap Kok airport to test for signs of a killer pneumonia, 17 April 2003. Those passengers found to have high temperatures would be examined at their own expense and if found to have the disease known as Severe Acute Respiratory Sydrome (SARS) would be barred from travelling.
One example is Brad Kirby, a law enforcement official that is based in North Carolina. Kirby, according to a report by The Blaze, has a hearing impairment. His insights regarding the implementation of the mask mandates during the pandemic are not as contented as the rest of the people.
In an article published in the Federalist, titled "For Deaf People Like Me, Mask Mandates Impose Never-Ending Isolation," Kirby presented most of his experiences as an individual with hearing difficulties throughout the pandemic and under the strict implementation of wearing face masks.
According to Kirby, there was a lot of negative occurrences where the situation inflicted him with negative emotions that obviously outcast persons with hearing disability every day. Among those emotions that the law official stated were ignored, embarrassed, sidelines, and dismissed.
The case of Kirby is among the most common disability regarding hearing function under congenital birth defects. This illness is much more problematic than the average hearing loss during aging. The congenital birth defect requires the patient to endure any difficulties of deafness on a daily basis since birth, restricting them from utilizing any hearing aid technology and pushing them to move forward by photographic communication such as lip-reading or sign language.
Mandatory Face Masks 'Legal Discrimination' and Rich in Loopholes
Kirby experienced a lot of worse misfortunes as a deaf person during his lifetime. There are important sounds that he can not hear, speaking people that he does not understand, and hearing aids unfitting for his condition. With that said, the mask mandate during the COVID-19 pandemic worsened Kirby's nightmares, as wearing the protection significantly limited his auditory functions.
Wearing a face mask hinders Kirby from doing his job as a law enforcer properly. It also inflicts pain to some parts of his ears where hearing aids are being attached. Adding all of this with his mild PTSD diagnosis makes it almost impossible for Kirby to communicate, considering that masks also block the lips and facial expressions of the people he interacts with. Negative impressions are also being relayed to him by many when he asks people to pull down their masks for a while during conversations. What's most embarrassing is that his family sees through these encounters when they are with him outside on a casual day.
With that said, he approached the American Civil Liberties Union regarding the matter in hopes of ending the discrimination he was battling during the pandemic. Despite the efforts of the national and united health agencies to protect the global population against the coronavirus, Kirby still believes that there is 'legal discrimination' and certain loopholes regarding the mandates, such as face masks that restrict him and other groups with hearing disabilities.
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