Deaf MPs: How Heike Heubach will change the Bundestag

Accessibility in the Bundestag
Heike Heubach is the first deaf MP. What does this mean for parliamentary operations?

Heike Heubach becomes the first deaf member of the Bundestag. What drives the SPD politician – and how she will change parliamentary operations.

Only the SPD politician herself knows what point Heike Heubach will make in her first speech. But it can already be said with some certainty: It will be a speech that has never been given before under the glass dome of the Reichstag. Which will change the Bundestag – and the way parliament operates.

Heubach, 44, is the first deaf member of the Bundestag. The Social Democrat from Bavaria replaces SPD politician Uli Grötsch, who was elected federal police commissioner last Thursday. In the 2021 federal election, Heubach ran in the Augsburg-Land constituency, but narrowly missed entering parliament. A small setback, if any, because Heubach’s career is on a steep upward trajectory.

The trained industrial clerk only joined the SPD in November 2019, and in 2020 she stood for election for the first time. Heubach did not become a city councilor in her town of Stadtbergen (around 15,000 inhabitants). But the mother of two adult daughters persevered. “If you don’t fight, you’ve already lost,” she quotes Bertolt Brecht on her Facebook profile. When they ran for the 2021 federal election, the Social Democrats were still polling at 14 percent – now the SPD is the chancellor. And Heubach still enters parliament. Their first meeting in the Bundestag is likely to be on Wednesday.

How does that concrete look?

Bundestag President Bärbel Bas speaks of a “strong signal” for inclusion – so far the Bundestag has been noticed for its lack of diversity. Heubach should be able to carry out her mandate in a largely barrier-free manner, assured party colleague Bas. How does that concrete look?

The Bundestag administration, which is responsible for parliamentary operations, says it has been preparing for the new MP for a long time. Heubach should have a permanent place in the SPD faction bloc – even this small detail is a novelty. The seating arrangement for the various parliamentary groups in the Bundestag has been fixed, but not for the MPs themselves. The background to the premiere is the sign language interpreters who will sit in front of Heubach: to interpret the plenary proceedings, but also to answer questions or short interventions from Heubach into the microphone.

Sign language interpreters are also used when Heubach gives a speech to the plenary session. There is a permanent place with a microphone next to the stenographers in the plenary hall. The interpreters will sit facing the lectern and verbally translate Heubach’s speech – which she will give in sign language. If there are heckles from the ranks of representatives, SPD politician Heubach will translate these into sign language.

In addition, technical measures have been taken in her parliamentary office to ensure accessibility. For example, lamps were installed to indicate upcoming votes – as an alternative to the signal tone. Depending on the SPD politician’s specific needs, there will be further solutions and measures, the Bundestag administration said.

“Heike Heubach is deaf, but above all she has her own views”

The fact that Heubach is deaf can probably be traced back to a middle ear infection in early childhood. Although she leads a relatively normal life, like many other deaf people, she is no stranger to the struggle for participation.

When the Social Democrat ran for the city council election, she went from door to door with comrades in tow, she once told the “Augsburger Allgemeine.” To introduce yourself to the citizens, a short video was played. Then there was time for questions. “Unfortunately I didn’t have an interpreter,” Heubach told the newspaper. Party colleagues or sometimes their daughters, both of whom are hearing, helped with the translation.

She had interpreters with her for her street campaign for the 2021 federal election, but she had to wait around a year until they were approved for the election campaign, she told the “Süddeutsche Zeitung” at the time. Both the provision and the assumption of costs, for example by the health insurance company, are often carried out according to individual needs – often a tough and laborious process. Although she is also politically committed to inclusion, her number one issue is climate protection. The SPD politician is also committed to affordable housing and wants to advance digitalization.

Heubach is a committed politician and an asset to the parliamentary group and the Bundestag, emphasizes Katja Mast, First Parliamentary Managing Director of the SPD parliamentary group. “It’s important to me: Heike Heubach is deaf, but above all she has her own views, political goals and values ​​that she stands for, just like all other MPs,” Mast told the star. Mast is pleased that the SPD parliamentary group will become more diverse. “It’s going to be really good – and we’re looking forward to Heike Heubach.”