Join us to learn strategies for optimizing access for Deaf survivors. In this webinar, Aracelia Aguilar and Brian Berlinski from DeafHope will share about the lived experience of Deaf survivors. You will learn specific strategies to implement in your advocacy work that creates meaningful access.

Through this webinar, participants will be able to:

1. Identify key differences between a medical and cultural framing of being Deaf

2. Give specific examples of systemic barriers experienced by Deaf survivors

3. Describe strategies for effective communication with Deaf survivors

Presenters

Brian Berlinski works as an Empowerment Director at DeafHope, a nonprofit organization that provides services to Deaf survivors of interpersonal and systemic violence. Brian received his B.A. in Fine Arts from Rochester Institute of Technology, and his M.S. in Art Therapy from Nazareth College. Brian is a published author of a book on art therapy with Deaf children, and he has co-authored a journal article on the use of forensic drawings. At DeafHope, Brian provided art therapy to youths who have been affected by violence in the family. In addition to public presentations and trainings, Brian has provided culturally affirmative, trauma-informed services to survivors. Brian has taught American Sign Language and Interpreting Preparation Program courses at a local community college. He has also worked for over ten years as a mindset strategist, providing coaching support to individuals, intimate partners, families, educators, and nonprofit teams. Through the integration of the arts and the tools of mindset transformation with his daily commitment to doing anti-violence and anti-oppression work, Brian delivers on the collective vision of a world that is generative and equitable for all people.