English transcript
Peter Jackson is the CEO/Company Secretary of the British Deaf History Association.
He has had a lifelong interest in both Deaf history and criminology. He is the author of numerous Deaf history and Deaf crime books.
He has been involved with the British Deaf History Society since 1997 and has been the Chief Executive since 2007. Since 2010 he has also been the President of Deaf History International.
Q: Should we still have a Deaf history museum now that there are far fewer physical museums than virtual museums?
P: That’s right, there are. But firstly, there are many artefacts of Deaf culture, such as equipment, paintings, and sign language collectibles, and we have to keep them for future generations, or for people who are researching and need to know what was happening back in 2000 or 1950, or whenever. I feel that it is important for Deaf people as well, for them to have pride in their heritage. If they have pride in their heritage, they will know more about what happened in the Deaf community in days gone by.
Q: Why do you think the Deaf history museum is important?
P: I feel it is important to have a physical museum, although we don’t always have enough room, or space. So it’s about combining both a physical space, where people can look around and enjoy actually seeing the artefacts, and online resources, where people can sometimes view artefacts virtually and see what they are…yes, both are important, I think.