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05/08/2023

Fake Sign Language is Spreading on TikTok

Deaf people are worried

Anthony Eagle, Jr. is big on TikTok. He boasts over 850,000 followers, many of whom love the way he performs sign language renditions of songs. There’s just one problem — the sign language is sometimes wrong.

When Eagle, 39, of Winston-Salem, N.C., signs the song, “Love the Way You Lie,” his rendition is riddled with mistakes, like signing the word “lie” with two hands in the wrong position. To a deaf person who uses sign language, it looks like gibberish.

The Washington Post asked Sheena Lyles, 37, of Baltimore, a deaf comedian on TikTok, to demonstrate several sign language mistakes made on social media. Here she shows the right way to sign “lie,” as well as the wrong way used by Eagle in his video.

Please select this link to read the complete article from The Washington Post.

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