Contact us by email at interpreting@alsglobal.net or via phone at 1-800-951-5020 for a free estimate on our ASL and CART services.

Trusted CART & ASL Services in New Bedford, MA

American Language Services has been helping businesses and other entities reach the deaf and hard of hearing community for more than 35 years. While in-person interpreting, at one time, was the only option, recent technological advances opened the door to other options. Since we offer full-service Video Remote Interpreting (VRI), this article will be comparing Virtual American Sign Language (ASL) interpreting with Communication Access Real-Time Translation (AKA- Closed Captioning & Real Time Subtitling) known as CART.

 Please note that according to the American Disability Act (ADA) that deaf and hard of hearing community have the legal right to receive full access through the use of ASL and or CART services. The ADA prohibits discrimination against individuals with disabilities and providing ASL interpreters for deaf individuals complies with federal law and promotes equal accessibility.

Some interesting Facts About the City of New Bedford

  • New Bedford is a city in Bristol CountyMassachusettsUnited States.
  • As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 95,072, making it the sixth-largest city in Massachusetts.
  • New Bedford is nicknamed “The Whaling City” because during the 19th century, the city was one of the most important, if not the most important, whaling ports in the world, along with Nantucket, Massachusetts and New London, Connecticut.
  • The city, along with Fall River and Taunton, make up the three largest cities in the South Coast region of Massachusetts.
  • The Greater Providence-Fall River-New Bedford area is home to the largest Portuguese-American community in the United States.
  • Before the 17th century, the Wampanoag, who had settlements throughout southeastern Massachusetts and Rhode Island, including Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket, were the only inhabitants of the lands along the Acushnet River.
  • Their population is believed to have been about 12,000.
  • While exploring New EnglandBartholomew Gosnold landed on Cuttyhunk Island on May 15, 1602. From there, he explored Cape Cod and the neighboring areas, including the site of present-day New Bedford. However, rather than settle the area, he returned to England at the request of his crew.
  • Europeans first settled New Bedford in 1652.
  • English Plymouth Colony settlers purchased the land from chief Massasoit of the Wampanoag tribe.
  • Whether the transfer of the land was legitimately done has been the subject of intense controversy.
  • Like other native tribes, the Wampanoags did not share the settlers’ concepts of private property. The tribe may have believed they were granting usage rights to the land, not giving it up permanently.
  • The name was suggested by the Russell family, who were prominent citizens of the community. The Dukes of Bedford, a leading English aristocratic house, also bore the surname, Russell. (Bedford, Massachusetts had already been incorporated by 1787; hence “New” Bedford.)
  • The late-18th century was a time of growth for the town.
  • New Bedford’s first newspaper, The Medley (also known as New Bedford Marine Journal), was founded in 1792.
  • On June 12, 1792, the town set up its first post office. William Tobey was its first postmaster.
  • The construction of a bridge (originally a toll bridge) between New Bedford and present-day Fairhaven in 1796 also spurred growth. (Fairhaven separated from New Bedford in 1812, forming an independent town that included both present-day Fairhaven and present-day Acushnet.)
  • In 1847 the town of New Bedford officially became a city.
  • Abraham Hathaway Howland was elected its first mayor.
  • At approximately the same time, New Bedford began to supplant Nantucket as the nation’s preeminent whaling port, thanks to its deeper harbor and location on the mainland.
  • Whaling dominated the economy of the city for much of the century. Many families of the city were involved with it as crew and officers of ships.
  • In 1847, the New Bedford Horticultural Society was begun by James Arnold.
  • The Ash Street Jail, which houses inmates from Bristol County, is in New Bedford. It opened in 1829 and is the oldest continuously operating jail in the United States.
  • Fort Taber and Fort Rodman (also called the “Fort at Clark’s Point”) were built during the American Civil War and are now in Fort Taber Park. Both forts are often called Fort Taber, including in some references.
  • New Bedford has had a sporadic history of successful musicians. During the 1970s, the Tavares, a soul music group made up of five brothers from New Bedford, became a chart topping success with such songs as “Heaven Must Be Missing an Angel” and “More Than a Woman”.
  • In 1999, the pop group LFO (Lyte Funky Ones), whose group member Harold “Devin” Lima is from New Bedford, had a hit single with their song “Summer Girls”. Have Heart, a Straight edge hardcore band, were formed in New Bedford in 2002, before breaking up in 2009.
  • New Bedford natives Hector Barros and Scott Ross were members of the hip-hop group Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch, led by actor Mark Wahlberg. They achieved success with their 1991 single, Good Vibrations, which reached number one in the U.S., Sweden, and Switzerland.
  • Josh Newton from the band Every Time I Die was born in New Bedford.
  • In 2002, the movie Passionada was filmed in New Bedford, making it the first film to be shot in the city in 45 years.
  • Previously, film director John Huston shot a scene for the movie adaptation of Moby-Dick in front of Seamen’s Bethel in 1956. However, all other exterior shots for New Bedford in the film were shot in Youghal instead.
  • The 2011 movie Whaling City, about the fight of an independent fisherman to save his boat and his way of life, is set in New Bedford and was filmed there.
  • New Bedford was the town where 100 brides in the 1968-70 TV series Here Come the Brides came from prior to their arrival in 1860’s Seattle, Washington. The television series only lasted 2 seasons and all the locations in the series were shot in Burbank, California.
  • A character named New Bedford appeared on a Family Guy episode (in 2006) as a friend of another girl named Dakota.
  • The fictional town of Quahog, Rhode Island is “situated” near New Bedford.
  • Family Guy episode “Lottery Fever” Peter mentions New Bedford while looking at a whale painting
  • Quinn Sullivan (born March 26, 1999) is a blues guitarist from New Bedford. Quinn has performed on stage with Buddy Guy and B.B. King and has played in venues such as the Beacon Theatre in New York City, the Orpheum Theatre in Boston, Buddy Guy’s Legends in Chicago, and on The Oprah Winfrey ShowNBC‘s The Today ShowLollapalooza and Jimmy Kimmel Live!. In April 2013 he played at Madison Square Garden with his mentor Buddy Guy during the first night of the 2013 Crossroads Guitar Festival.
  • New Bedford is the home of the New Bedford Whaling Museum, the centerpiece of the New Bedford Whaling National Historical Park. It is the country’s largest museum about whaling and the history of interaction between humans and whales. 

Reference Source: Kiddle

New Bedford ASL & CART Language Interpreters

American Language Services is known for our high-quality, In-person and Virtual interpreters, as well as the outstanding client services we provide. We work in 200+ languages including Legal and Medical Certified and Qualified.  ASL and CART are the fastest growing languages in New Bedford today a language interpreter can be a very underestimated professional in the world today. There are over 100 languages spoken in the New Bedford Metro area alone. Many of us know one language, and we specialize in one field of study. Our New Bedford Interpreters are fluent in English and at least one other language, and they are knowledgeable in a wide range of specialized fields including legal, medical, technical, manufacturing, and engineering.

A brief history of ASL Interpreting in New Bedford

Most people know that ASL stands for American Sign Language. But not everyone knows that it is a distinct language—not simply an offshoot of American English. Though its beginnings are murky, many believe that ASL originated from a merger of French Sign Language (SLF) and local U.S. sign languages. While ASL and SLF are distinct languages, there are still some similarities between their signs.

What actually is ASL?   ASL a complete, natural language that has the same linguistic properties as spoken languages with grammar however that differs from English. ASL is expressed by movements of the hands and face.  ASL is a language completely separate and distinct from English. It contains all the fundamental features of language, with its own rules for pronunciation, word formation, and word order.  Because of the physical nature of ASL, a two-person team of ASL interpreters is required for assignments longer than 1 hour in duration.

The National Center for Health Statistics claims that 28 million Americans have some degree of hearing loss, though only between two and eight percent of them are natural ASL speakers.  Helping these select individuals translate the audible into the understandable is the job of an ASL interpreter.  If you have ever been to a play, a concert or watched a government briefing, you have probably seen an ASL interpreter signing just out of view.  An interesting side note is that Statista estimates that there are currently around 60,000 active ASL interpreters in the USA.

The Benefits of ASL Interpreting in New Bedford

When it comes to communicating with hard-of-hearing or deaf audiences, there are a few reasons you might want to opt for a New Bedford ASL interpreter over CART services. These include:

  • A More Personal Connection: A real person has several advantages over a computer screen. First, human interpreters have an easier time conveying emotion. Second, they are better equipped to point out speakers and assist with pronunciation issues. Finally, an interpreter gives a deaf or hard of hearing person a chance to bond with another person.
  • Enhanced Speed: Skilled interpreters can hold pace with even the fastest speakers. Lack of delay makes it easier for deaf and hard of hearing individuals to keep up with the conversation.
  • Cost Effective:  While costs range by the type of ASL you need (Legal, medical, business, etc.) and when the assignment is scheduled, the cost off ASL, across the board, is less money than CART.

What Is CART?

While the majority of people know what American Sign Language is, the same cannot be said for Communication Access Real-Time Translation. Often referred to as CART, this communication method for the deaf and hard of hearing is best described as subtitling for live discussions. Unlike ASL, which relies on a professional interpreter, CART services are provided by a well-trained stenographer or transcriptionist. They transcribe anything said and then broadcast the resulting text to a phone, computer, or TV screen.

CART is often seen as a cost-effective and efficient way to ensure everybody can follow along. While often used to help deaf students in the classroom, CART captioning benefits anyone that can read.  Much like ASL interpreting, it can be done both onsite with a physical transcriptionist or remotely with an offsite one.

Why You Should Consider CART for the New Bedford Market

Communication Access Real-Time Translation is growing in popularity due to the following characteristics:

  • It Serves a Wider Array of Deaf People: If you do a little math, you will realize that 65 percent of hard-of-hearing people in the USA do not speak ASL fluently. CART makes it so these people can join in on the conversation as well.
  • CART Makes It Scalable: While people in the front rows can easily make out what an interpreter is signing, it gets harder as the distance increases. Since captions can be beamed to multiple screens simultaneously, they do not have to factor speaker distance into the equation.
  • The Text Provides a Written Record: Having a transcript of everything your professor said would be a godsend come finals. Having a record of a meeting can also provide clarity to all those involved as well. The physical nature of CART recording makes that possible. This ability is one reason so many college students opt for CART over traditional ASL interpreting. 

About American Language Services

Founded in 1985, American Language Services was there to help pioneer the rise in remote ASL interpreting options. Our dedication to quality and client satisfaction in interpreting allowed us to shift from a one-woman agency into one of the most successful language agencies in the world. Our language experts provide ASL & CART interpreting services to people all around the world. Because of our 24/7 availability, you’ll never have to worry about us not being available, on off times, for an assignment.

AML-Global has some of the most impressive linguistic talents in the world. These highly skilled language professionals are recruited, screened, and tested to ensure high-quality work.

Contact us by email at interpreting@alsglobal.net or via phone at 1-800-951-5020 for a free estimate on our ASL and CART services.

WE ACCEPT ALL MAJOR CREDIT CARDS

Quick Quote