So Expressive!

Lydia Callis, signed language interpreter for New York City’s Mayor Bloomberg, is getting a lot of attention these days for her interpreting during Hurricane Sandy.

She’s been spoofed on Chelsea Handler’s show, she has Tumblrs dedicated to her, and she’s even been named “Hot Slut of the Day” by Dlisted.

Why all the attention? Is it because she’s an attractive woman doing something “exotic” with her hands? Or is it just because her facial expressions are markedly different from those of American English spoken discourse?

Would a male sign language interpreter get all of this attention?

I wonder.

Annette Baier

We are very sad to report that Annette Baier has died. We’d love to hear remembrances of her in comments.