3rd Session, 43rd Legislature

This HTML version is provided for ease of use and is based on the bilingual version that was distributed in the Legislature after First Reading.

Bill 6

THE SIGN LANGUAGES RECOGNITION ACT

(Assented to                                         )

WHEREAS sign languages are distinct languages that are integral to the culture of the Deaf community;

AND WHEREAS for many members of the Deaf community, a sign language is their first language;

AND WHEREAS people also learn sign languages to communicate with members of the Deaf community, including family, friends, colleagues and students;

AND WHEREAS sign languages are an element of deaf-blind accessibility supports that are used by the Deaf-Blind community in Manitoba;

AND WHEREAS in 1988 the Legislative Assembly recognized American Sign Language as the language of deaf persons in Manitoba;

AND WHEREAS other sign languages, including Quebec Sign Language, Indigenous sign languages and tactile sign languages, are also the languages of the Deaf and Deaf-Blind communities in Manitoba;

AND WHEREAS other jurisdictions, including the federal government, have recognized sign languages as the primary languages for communication by deaf persons;

THEREFORE HIS MAJESTY, by and with the advice and consent of the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba, enacts as follows:

Recognition of sign languages

1   Sign languages, including American Sign Language, Quebec Sign Language, Indigenous sign languages and tactile sign languages, are recognized as the primary languages for communication by the Deaf and Deaf-Blind communities in Manitoba.

C.C.S.M. reference

2   This Act may be referred to as chapter S128 of the Continuing Consolidation of the Statutes of Manitoba.

Coming into force

3   This Act comes into force on the day it receives royal assent.