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Burger King breaking silence to celebrate National American Sign Language Day

The Burger King brand's King will break his "silence."

April 15, 2016

The Burger King brand's King will break his "silence," according to a company press release. With approximately 1 million people in the United States that are functionally deaf, the King is breaking his "silence" to raise awareness and chat with the American Sign Language community using ASL.

Today is the 199-year anniversary of "National American Sign Language Day," a day of observance celebrating American Sign Language. The King will bring speakers and non-speakers of ASL together and will give fans the opportunity to help create the "official sign for the Whopper sandwich."

"The Burger King brand is built not only on including everyone, but celebrating everyone," said Fernando Machado, senior vice president of global brand management, Burger King brand. "National ASL Day felt like a perfect opportunity for the King to extend our brand mantra and engage with the ASL community on such a great day."

As part of the initiative, Burger King restaurants will release an online film. The Burger King McLamore Foundation will also make a scholarship donation benefiting deserving students dedicating their studies to ASL language and interpretations.