Sign Language Interpreter At Nelson Mandela's Funeral Just Made Shit Up The Whole Time
Daily Mail - South Africa’s deaf federation has confirmed that an interpreter using sign language during the Mandela memorial was a ‘fake’. The man, who signed for a portion of the televised event at Johannesburg’s FNB Stadium was simply making up his own signs, according to the Deaf Federation of South Africa. The unidentified man seen around the world on television next to leaders like U.S. President Barack Obama ‘was moving his hands around but there was no meaning in what he used his hands for,’ said Bruno Druchen, the federation’s national director. Three sign language experts said the man was not signing in South African or American sign languages. South African sign language covers all of the country’s 11 official languages, according to the federation. South African parliament member Wilma Newhoudt-Druchen, a member of the ruling party who is deaf and who is married to Druchen, also said the man communicated nothing with his hand and arm movements. Nicole Du Toit, an official sign language interpreter who also watched the broadcast, said in a telephone interview that the man on stage purporting to sign was an embarrassment. ‘It was horrible, an absolute circus, really, really bad,’ she said. ‘Only he can understand those gestures.’ Braam Jordaan, a deaf South African and board member of the World Deaf Federation, said he believes the interpreter was making up signs as he went along. ‘The structure of his hand, facial expressions and the body movements did not follow what the speaker was saying’, Mr Jordaan told the SBS news website. ‘I was really upset and humiliated’, he told the SBS news website, ‘He made up his own signs. ‘What happened at the memorial service is truly disgraceful thing to see – it should not happen at all. ‘What happened today will be forever aligned with Nelson Mandela & Deaf Community, thanks to this fake interpreter.’
Snake it till you make it. You know the theme, folks – nobody is above MailTime. Not priests, not soldiers, not professional athletes, and apparently not sign language interpreters at the funeral of one of the greatest peacemakers of all time.
The best part is, if theres one thing you can fake, its sign language. I feel like all they ever do is touch their mouths, then do like a big wave motion forward and touch their hand. Over and over and over again. Touching your mouth, and then touching your hand literally means anything and everything you want it to mean. Everyone watching on TV probably has the ability to hear and can’t tell the difference, and anyone who’s actually deaf isn’t gonna say a word. Am I right???
The only people who are gonna know the difference are the King and Queen of the sign language world. Thats right I’m talkin about Mayor Bloomberg’s Interpreter and that bro from the Super Bowl last year:
Two greatest signers of all time. That dude at Mandela’s funeral goes to bed at night dreaming to sign like these two. They’re probably his idols. And then he gets on the big stage at Madiba’s funeral and totally chokes. Shits the bed and makes everything up as he goes. It ain’t easy signing at one of the most important funerals of all time. There’s some serious pressure that goes along with that. I guess what they say is true – not everybody is cut out to be a big time sign language interpreter