Media: Collage: Yaakov Schwartz. Images: Wires and courtesy
The Times of Israel
By TOI STAFF
31 December 2021, 12:38 pm
The Times of Israel reported that when their reporters were asked which of their pieces were most important or most moving, one reporter pointed to:
Israel’s first deaf MK fights for disability rights
Amy Spiro
When Yamina MK Shirly Pinto was sworn into the Knesset on June 16, she made history as she joined an already historically diverse governing coalition. Pinto is Israel’s first-ever deaf member of Knesset, and one who has made fighting for the rights of Israelis with disabilities a fundamental cornerstone of her political agenda.
While it may seem to be a consensus issue — her maiden speech in sign language received bipartisan applause — Pinto has made it clear that Israel has a long way to go when it comes to equal rights for those with disabilities.
Media: Yamina MK Shirly Pinto brings her new baby to the Knesset on December 15, 2021. (Noam Moskowitz/Knesset)
When I sat down with her in July, weeks after her inauguration and amid a series of exhausting all-night parliamentary sessions, Pinto — currently also the youngest member of Knesset — made it clear she is up for the battle. We discussed how the Knesset had to make unprecedented changes to accommodate her, how hearing-impaired Israelis have to be warned of rocket sirens and how, above all, she wants to make the world a more welcoming place for her own deaf children.
Six months into the job, with a newborn baby, Pinto undoubtedly has her hands full. But she has given hope and inspiration to children, teens and adults around Israel who can now see Pinto — neither because of nor despite her politics — as a role model.
Source: www.timesofisrael.com/its-been-a-year-toi-writers-share-stories-of-war-redemption-and-vaccines/
