By Maggie Macintosh, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Winnipeg Free Press Manitoba’s deaf community is demanding the province take action to combat audism — discrimination against people who are deaf or hard of hearing — after the minister in charge of accessibility was caught complaining about an ASL interpreter on a hot mic. “When leaders diminish the importance of authentic accessibility, it sends a message that deaf Manitobans can be overlooked,” Andrew Stadnicki wrote in a letter to Families Minister Nahanni Fontaine over the weekend. “That attitude becomes policy, shapes budgets, dictates who gets hired, and ultimately keeps deaf people from becoming professionals, decision-makers, or role models.” Stadnicki’s three-page letter has been making the rounds on social media and was shared by others who, like him, are deaf or identify as…
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