
The dean of Extension and Community Affairs (Preac) from Unicamp, João Frederico da Costa Azevedo Meyer, gave up the microphone and addressed the audience in Libras, this Thursday morning (9), at the University's Convention Center. His speech was followed by the Portuguese translation of the Libras interpreter. “There are currently five million deaf people in Brazil, for whom translation always comes later”, explained the dean. The event marked the launch of the paradidactic film Dengue in Pounds, produced with the support of Preac and the Dean of Research (PRP).
With almost all of the dialogue in Libras, with subtitles in Portuguese, the film provides the main necessary information about the dangers of dengue, the symptoms of the disease and forms of prevention. The University's pioneering work was a partnership between the Center for Rehabilitation Studies and Research (Cepre), the Department of Human Development and Rehabilitation (DDHR), the Community Health Center (cecom) and Rádio e TV Unicamp (RTV).
In addition to direct insertion into the scope of public health, the film will help teach written Portuguese and Libras. Ivani Rodrigues Silva, professor at DDRH and researcher at Cepre, contextualized the release of the film in the trajectory followed by Libras at the University and in Brazilian society. She cited the first Libras course offered by Cepre, in 1989, and talked about the hard work of convincing families about using the language. “Often the family is afraid, they want their child to speak like the listeners in society. Our job is also to convince them that Libras is a real language and can be used on any occasion”, explained Ivani. “The video represents the visibility that Libras has gained in society and, also, the expansion of acceptance of deaf people as a subject.”
Professor Carmen Zink, from the Institute of Language Studies (IEL), Rôse Clélia Grion Trevisane, deputy coordinator of Cecom, and Angélica Bronzatto de Paiva e Silva, coordinator of Cepre.



