No.111 Family Thinking Symposium

On January 30, 2021, a symposium co-hosted by the Inagi City Association of the Hearing Impaired, IGB, SODA, and J-CODA was held at the Central Cultural Center Hall, and I was able to participate.
This time, in order to ensure thorough preventive measures against COVID-19, the venue was limited to 50 people, but it was simultaneously broadcast over the internet, and it was reported that about 250 people participated nationwide.

The Inagi City Association for the Hearing Impaired holds lectures and courses every year, and in the fiscal year 2020, we will be hosting this symposium.
IGB (NPO Information Gap Buster) is a non-profit organization based in Tokyo and Kanagawa that supports individuals who experience difficulties in communication. It promotes communication barrier-free initiatives where all people with various physical and mental characteristics and ways of thinking support each other in deepening mutual understanding.
The SODA (Siblings of Deaf Association) is an organization that supports those who have siblings with hearing disabilities. In families, parents' attention tends to be focused on the child with disabilities, and it seems that there are not a few cases where the healthy siblings feel lonely or have unique concerns about how to support their family.
J-CODA (Jay Koda) stands for Japan-Children of Deaf Adults and is a support organization for children with hearing-impaired parents. We hold regular events and study sessions as a place for CODAs to communicate with each other.
On the day, in the first part, we had speeches from Senator Eriko Imai, Kentaro Maruta from SODA, and Dai Igarashi from J-CODA, followed by a discussion with the participants in the second part.
Eriko Imai is a member of the singing unit SPEED and is currently a member of the House of Councillors, but she is participating as a parent of a child with hearing impairment. She is also proficient in sign language.

Listening to the three speakers, I realized that even as a parent, sibling, or child who is not a person with hearing disabilities, there have been experiences of discrimination and unseen struggles. I felt that a deeper understanding of disabilities is necessary.
The Inagi City Association for the Hearing Impaired held this symposium with the aim of alleviating the psychological burden on caregivers (those who provide care) in families with hearing-impaired children, considering the background that this burden has become a social issue. Various family members gathered to share their concerns.
Unlike the usual events, this was a large-scale event targeting a wide area, and I believe there were significant challenges in terms of venue setup and budget, especially with the premise of internet broadcasting. However, with the support of strong collaborators, it was a great relief to see it conclude successfully. I would like to express my gratitude and respect to all those involved.
The city will consider and support the new issue of communication problems in households with hearing-impaired children, in collaboration with the Association of the Hearing Impaired.