When Vinu Abraham was growing up in India, he had to write letters and wait for a response in order to communicate with others. His friends could just pick up the phone and talk to each other. Born deaf at a time when limited communication technology was available to him, Abraham is now a communications technician at the Western Institute for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing (WIDHH) in Vancouver and an active member of the Deaf community.
Modern technology has changed the way people communicate with each other, and this is especially true for the Deaf and hard of hearing communities. Smartphones, Skype and Facetime offer tremendous opportunities for people who mainly communicate visually through sign language. Though technology helps, communication barriers still exist between Deaf and hearing people.
