Alexandra McKenzie

Environmental chemist. Deaf, sign language, and sustainability advocate. World wanderer. Curious bookworm. Coffee Addict.

[Alexandra McKenzie @FollowSignsAlex]

@boypublicist @sarahannjuckes I’m a disabled person starting on bookstagram and in the process of setting up my website for reviewing and would be interested in providing a #ownvoices review.

[Alexandra McKenzie @FollowSignsAlex]

@vanbadham Miss Fisher is also really fun and I enjoyed seeing Melbourne as it would have been in the 20s.

[Alexandra McKenzie @FollowSignsAlex]

@vanbadham Looking for Alibrandi (child of Mediterranean immigrants, I relate), Jack Irish (does Australian humour really well), offspring (Asher keddie and esp. Kat Stewart are just, wonderful) and mcleod’s daughters while OTT helped me appreciate Australian rural community’s hard work.

[Alexandra McKenzie @FollowSignsAlex]

@thatdeafgirlkj I once had someone find out I was deaf and fingerspell hi in asl despite the fact we live in Australia and he couldn’t understand why I blinked uncomprehendingly at him. Like I understand asl fingerspelling but the random spelling out of hi in the wrong language just threw me.

[Alexandra McKenzie @FollowSignsAlex]

@jarlath_dc @d240i @WhitneysWave @thatdeafgirlkj @esposito2024 CODA’s are part of our community and deserve to feel belonging and support from that community, as does any Deaf person regardless of their deafness circumstances. I feel there’s a lot of unnecessary division in our community which creates further barriers and issues.

[Alexandra McKenzie @FollowSignsAlex]

@jarlath_dc @d240i @WhitneysWave @thatdeafgirlkj @esposito2024 I have this opinion as a Deaf person, not as a CODA btw. In short, with CODAs there’s a lot of confusing overlap since they are in both worlds and a bilingual. There’s lines they need to respect, but also things that distinguish them from other hearing people significantly.

[Alexandra McKenzie @FollowSignsAlex]

@Writer_DG I check for updates on this about once a fortnight here and on the website. I usually don’t need to make it to the website because there’s usually one person who can’t do their due diligence and have forced you to answer this...again. You have the patience of a saint, Diana.

[Alexandra McKenzie @FollowSignsAlex]

@rikkipoynter @KidThorazine @Da_hop Exactly. So you choose a language the doctors are comfortable with at the expense of actually ensuring competent interpreters are arranged for Deaf people so they understand what it happening? You can’t get people to sign forms in a language they don’t understand.

[Alexandra McKenzie @FollowSignsAlex]

@doctormagnets @carlyfindlay @clairegcoleman Hot spot

[Alexandra McKenzie @FollowSignsAlex]

@rosemcgowan English and Australian people, dunno about Americans. It’s that little name we have to provide in our address to ensure our mail doesn’t end up on the other side of the city. Out of everything that’s been said lately, this is what you find notable?

[Alexandra McKenzie @FollowSignsAlex]

@rikkipoynter @Elli_Trans @HaileyAdamsXXX Agreed anyone can learn and benefit (except financially if they are not deaf or native). It’s kind of like flogging yourself as a French tutor after taking one semester of French. Chances are, most of what you’re teaching is wrong and you’re depriving qualified people of jobs.

[Alexandra McKenzie @FollowSignsAlex]

@KatieLinendoll @StephanieAbrams @JimCantore @JenCarfagno @AMHQ @weatherchannel I use Auslan, not ASL and I can still see that your signing capability is poor. You should not be appropriating sign language for likes while silencing Deaf people who respectfully correct you. It’s extremely poor form. Please don’t speak for us, you are not a good ally right now

[Alexandra McKenzie @FollowSignsAlex]

@ThomasFengAU @Jen_Hargrave *inherently. Also by this I mean, POC and other social discrimination factors are more likely to need to find another more tolerant country to move to. Privileged people (often white) are more likely to have a high powered job requiring them to move overseas.

[Alexandra McKenzie @FollowSignsAlex]

@ThomasFengAU @Jen_Hargrave Expats = relocated by a company to perform a specific job and you will leave when that job is finished;
Immigrants = move to a country to start your life there.
I don’t think the terms are inherited racist but the privilege involved in these situations is.

[Alexandra McKenzie @FollowSignsAlex]

@JellockMarianne @Writer_DG As a disabled person, it’s incredibly offensive to correct how someone chooses to describe or label their experience. There are words people use to describe themselves that I wouldn’t like for myself. But it’s not up to me to say they can’t refer to themselves that way. Not cool.

[Alexandra McKenzie @FollowSignsAlex]

@MagdaSzubanski It’s a cop out. You don’t know what’s someone else is dealing with and if healthcare is available for all then everyone has a say. It’s an argument they’ve come up with because they lack better insults.

[Alexandra McKenzie @FollowSignsAlex]

@MagdaSzubanski By that logic, all the smokers, drinkers, poor dieters, under-exercising, people who don’t get tests when they should (eg. Pap smears), stressed people, all the people for whatever reason do or don’t do things that will impact their health, can step out of convo?

[Alexandra McKenzie @FollowSignsAlex]

@beccamals This is basically child abuse. I would never have been able to live under these standards because I grew up oral but I’m still profoundly deaf. No lip reading, no processing. This is cruel.