JAKARTA – There is one thing that attracts visitors’ attention at the Jakarta Humanity Festival (Jakhumfest) 2023 besides workshop booths, talk shows, and music concerts, namely sign language interpreters. These sign language interpreters, who wear all-black clothes, are always present at every talk show session, even during music concerts.
It is known that Dompet Dhuafa collaborates with Silang.id to present sign language interpreters at every session of the Jakhumfest 2023 event. This is done so that people with deaf disabilities can enjoy and get new insights from the Jakhumfest 2023 event.
Nadya became one of the sign language interpreters from Silang.id who translated talk show segments and stand-up comedy on the main stage of Pos Bloc, Jakarta. She then recounted her journey from the beginning of her foray into the world of sign language until now he became a sign language interpreter Silang.id.
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Nadya’s journey as a sign language interpreter began in 2018. At that time, Nadya was still a female college student. A strong impulse from the heart to become someone who benefits others made Nadya register herself as a volunteer at a campus institution, the Center for Disability Services Studies. Although initially, it was just a whim, Nadya has continued her role as a sign language interpreter until now.
“At first, I just joined the list on a whim, and it turned out to be accepted. I ended up learning sign language a lot and diving into the world of disability there,” Nadya said in an interview.
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For Nadya, being involved in sign language gave her many lessons and self-development. One of them is improved communication skills, even expanding. This is because Nadya communicates with those who can hear and those who are deaf.
“The advantage is for me, so we can communicate and communicate more broadly, unlimited. It doesn’t have to be the same as people who can hear, but we can also hear deaf people. In fact, sometimes it is their voices (deaf friends) that we need to improve ourselves,” explained Nadya.
Furthermore, Nadya also talked about her ups and downs during her time as a volunteer and working as a sign language interpreter. For Nadya, meeting many deaf friends became a joyful thing. The meeting also made his sign language skills even more developed.
“If you are happy, it is clear because you meet many deaf friends, it means that we can hone our sign language skills. Just like learning English, the more we do, practice, the more proficient we are,” she said.
While grieving, Nadya still often experiences misunderstandings when communicating. But this miscommunication does not occur when Nadya communicates with deaf friends, it does happen when she communicates with hearing friends or people who can hear and communicate as usual. In fact, it was her deaf friends who gave Nadya feedback, which later made her more proficient in sign language.
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“The grief is that sometimes there may still be a miscommunication with the committee (in the event). If there is no communication with deaf friends, if I have words I don’t understand, they even help fix it. So actively fix each other.”
“The miscommunication is the same as my friends, I think maybe the reason is that the organizers of the event don’t know what the deaf world is all about and whether providing sign language interpreters has become an accessibility for people with disabilities, it’s not necessarily,” explained Nadya.
Nadya revealed that since she was a child, she has enjoyed volunteering to help others for free. It then pushed her into the world of disability; unexpectedly, she felt comfortable in it. Nadya is also determined to continue to be in this circle and develop herself to help her wider disability friends.
“If I like volunteering from a young age, so when I entered the service study centre on campus it was also on a whim and I wanted to help, it’s that simple, just want to help.”
“Finally, when I entered the workforce, I went to Silang and worked at the National Commission on Disabilities (KND). That then became my comfort point,” concluded Nadya. (Dompet Dhuafa/Ronna)