The CRTC has a proceeding (CRTC 2020-178) that is investigating the issues of wireless accessibility for all persons with disabilities in Canada, and that includes those who are Deaf, Deaf-Blind and Hard of Hearing (DDBHH).
Deaf Wireless Canada Consultative Committee – Comité pour les Services Sans fil des Sourds du Canada (DWCC-CSSSC), Canadian Association of the Deaf-Association des Sourds du Canada (CAD-ASC), and the Canadian National Society of the Deaf-Blind (CNSDB), are working together to ensure that current and future wireless plans are improved for choice, affordability and what is appropriate and accessible for DDBHH Canadians.
DDBHH Canadians use more data on their wireless phones due to using their smartphones for video with sign language communications, or especially for those who are Deaf-Blind, wayfinding (GPS) to find their way around. Video communications means more data over the wireless connections. As a result, data packages are expensive. This is unfair because those who use sign language with video communications need fair costs for data packages. It is their right to have fair wireless data packages with accessibility with sign language communication.
Thousands of DDBHH and their families, their colleagues, their co-workers and employers are impacted by these expensive wireless data packages.
We established 4 letter templates available on 4 separate web pages, for a simple “click & send” to all the important people in web forms, as seen at this includeme.ca website: https://www.include-
If you would like to use one of these forms, all that you need to do is just to put your name and address, and click all the checkboxes to decide who will receive this letter. These letters will be automatically emailed to all the people that you check off.
However, the CRTC needs to have a copy of these emails also submitted to the record of the specific proceeding (CRTC 2020-178). Please be sure to submit a copy of your letter to CRTC by linking to the CRTC 2020-178 webpage.
If you want visual video instructions for submitting your letter, please click on this video link: English Letters & Documents
The four letter webpage template links with 4 different choices of downloadable MS Word Doc letters are available in these links:
1 – Video Calling Wireless Accessibility
2 – Affordable Prices for Data Packages
3 – Equitable Access to Wireless Data
4 – A Support Letter from Non-Deaf Ally
Thank you for writing the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) and other decision makers. It is important to tell them that inexpensive, unlimited data accessibility plans with no limits are necessary for the Deaf, Deaf-Blind and Hard of Hearing community. It’s time for wireless services to become accessible! Thank you for helping to make this change.
