Saturday 21 April 2012

Sad passing of UK's first deaf MP

Yesterday, the first deaf MP Lord Jack Ashley passed away at the age of 89 years old..

http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/mobileweb/2012/04/21/lord-ashley-of-stoke-dead-disabled-rights-campaigner_n_1442469.html?1335006271

courtesy of the huffington post website
Disabled rights campaigner Lord Ashley of Stoke, the first deaf MP, has died aged 89, it was announced on Saturday.
The Labour peer passed away last night after a short illness, according to his family.
BBC presenter Andrew Marr, who is married to the peer's columnist daughter Jackie Ashley, said: "Lord Ashley of Stoke, the former Labour MP Jack Ashley, died last night, April 20, after a short illness at the age of 89."
Jack Ashley won the seat of Stoke-on-Trent South in 1966, but lost his hearing less than two years later after an unsuccessful ear operation.
He recalled in his autobiography that the last voice he heard was that of the late rugby commentator Eddie Waring.
After initially fearing he would be forced to give up politics, Ashley learned to lip-read.
Other MPs, including political foes such as Prime Minister Edward Heath, turned towards him during Commons debates so he could get a clear view of their mouths.
Lord Ashley also worked hard to modulate his speaking voice, which he could no longer hear.
However, his deafness never affected his combative attitude.
"Early on when I first lost my hearing, I think people were a little fearful about attacking me. But as I re-established my confidence, that soon fell away," he said.
As his fame as an advocate for disabled rights grew, Lord Ashley became president of the Royal National Institute for the Deaf.
He also played a major role in the campaign for better compensation for children disabled by the drug Thalidomide, which was given to mothers to treat morning sickness during the 1950s and 1960s.
In 1993, a year after he was made a life peer, Ashley's hearing was partially restored by a cochlea implant, an electronic device which stimulates the nerves in the inner ear.
Lord Ashley worked in a factory after leaving school at 14, becoming a shop steward and a local councillor.
He studied at Oxford and Cambridge on scholarships, and worked as a producer for the BBC before entering parliament.
Andrew Marr added: "The campaigner for the rights of the disabled, who had been the first ever deaf MP, won major victories for the victims of the drug Thalidomide, for victims of army bullying, and for victims of domestic violence.
"He is survived by his three daughters, Jackie Ashley, Jane Ashley, and Caroline Ashley."
Jackie Ashley paid tribute to her father on Twitter:
Ed Miliband led the tributes from politicians and peers:

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