The United Nations protects the human rights and promotes equality of deaf people and their signed languages under the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) as follows:
Article 2 (Definition): "'Language' includes spoken and signed languages..."
Article 9 (Accessibility): "...to provide professional sign language interpreters..."
Article 21 (Freedom of expression and opinion, and access to information): "...recognizing and promoting the use of sign languages."
Article 24 (Education): "facilitating the learning of sign language and the promotion of the linguistic identity of the Deaf community;"
Article 30 (Participation in cultural life, recreation, leisure and sport): "...persons with disabilities shall be entitiled... to recognition and support... including sign languages and Deaf culture."
Sign Bilingualism is a human right. http://youtu.be/2wSY5WlbOnk
United Nations. "Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities." United Nations. http://www.un.org/disabilities/convention/conventionfull.shtml
United Nations. "Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities." World Federation of the Deaf. http://wfdeaf.org/human-rights/crpd
United Nations Human Rights Council. http://www.ohchr.org/EN/HRBodies/HRC/Pages/HRCIndex.aspx
You may also be interested in Liisa Kauppinen: an U.N. awaredee; World Federation of the Deaf who works with U.N.
Human rights of Deaf people and languages.
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