Deaf President Now The Deaf President Now movement occurred in March of 1988 at Gallaudet University for the deaf and hard of hearing. The university had only ever had hearing presidents in the past and there were two deaf candidates and one hearing. “Today it seems routine that a deaf man leads the pioneering university for the deaf and hard of hearing in the nation’s capital. But a quarter-century ago at Gallaudet University, that notion was revolutionary.” (Anderson, 2013, p. 1). The entire student body collectively agreed that having a deaf president would be the most fitting choice for their university. When the one hearing candidate was elected, the students began a protest that would not end until a deaf president was elected. The entirety of the protester’s demands were as follows. The immediate resignation of the elected president and replacement of a deaf president. The immediate resignation of Jane Bassett Spilman, chair of the Board of Trustees, who apparently used offensive ableist language. 51% of the Board of Trustees must be deaf, giving them the majority. No punishments for the students or faculty members involved in the protest. …show more content…
This movement was incredibly important not just for the university, but for the deaf community as a whole.
“’DPN has opened all sorts of doors,’ said T. Alan Hurwitz, Gallaudet’s president since 2010. ‘It was certainly a breakthrough for the deaf community.’” (Anderson, 2013, p. 6). Gallaudet stood as a role model to all other deaf schools and to deaf people, showing that they could accomplish anything hearing people could. As it says on Gallaudet’s official website, “Deaf President Now (DPN) has become synonymous with self-determination and empowerment for deaf and hard of hearing people everywhere.” As I. King Jordan said in simpler terms, “Deaf people can do anything hearing people can do, except
hear.” Watching these videos really did impact my view of deaf people and deaf culture. Deaf people were and still are sometimes seen as second-class citizens. There are not nearly as many accommodations for deaf people in our society as there should be. There were even less so before widespread technology and social media that relies heavily on seeing rather than listening was implemented in daily life. It really was inspiring to see the determination and dedication that the protesters put into their cause that they believed in totally and fully. It was heartening to see how much support the protest gained from people around the country, not just from other students and staff. Watching the interview gave me a much better inside look onto the protester’s motivation and what exactly they were fighting for. As Gregory Hlibok said in the interview, the success of the movement was immediately inspiring to so many people. “You really can't imagine the euphoria that existed. There were a lot of young children actually who came to be a part of the protest who then started to say I want to be a doctor, I want to be a lawyer. The opportunities that they saw just broadened almost instantly, and it was an immediate positive impact on campus.” The symbolism of the protest was critical, as said by Fred Weiner “It represented how deaf people could in fact succeed.” It’s difficult for me to directly relate to this particular struggle, since I am in no way hearing impaired, but I can definitely understand what it is like to be marginalized. The audacity that this protest had and the strength behind the overall message is absolutely incredible. There are so many civil rights movements that could learn something from the passion that these protesters had. Though I hope there need not be cause for any more protests such as this in the deaf community, I know that if there is then justice will served hastily and with great consideration.
...eople of all over were coming together and making a difference, including in the hearing world too. The hearing president resigned, so a deaf president was elected for the university. Deaf pride surged through the entire world as the deaf community had been noticed, and acknowledged, worldwide.
Alice Cogswell Changed the World for Deaf People - New England Historical Society. (2013). Retrieved September 19, 2016, from http://www.newenglandhistoricalsociety.com/alice-cogswell-changed-world-deaf-people/
In the following chapters, there is an extensive amount of knowledge to learn about how Deaf culture is involved in our modern world. The pages assigned give us an outlook of how Deaf people are treated in our daily life, and how we should learn from it. Its gives a clear line between what are myths and what are facts, to those who are curious about the Deaf community or have specific questions. This book has definitely taught me new things that I could put to good use in the near future. In specific chapters, my mind really opened up to new ideas and made me think hard about questions, like “why don’t some Deaf people trust hearing people,” or “do we need another ‘Deaf president now’ revolution?” I realized many new things in the course of reading this book, and have recommended this to my family.
What I found most interesting about Jarashow’s presentation were the two opposing views: Deaf culture versus medical professionals. Within the Deaf culture, they want to preserve their language and identity. The Deaf community wants to flourish and grow and do not view being deaf as a disability or being wrong. Jarashow stated that the medical field labels Deaf people as having a handicap or being disabled because they cannot hear. Those who are Deaf feel as though medical professionals are trying to eliminate them and relate it to eugenics. It is perceived that those in that field are trying to fix those who are Deaf and eliminate them by making them conform to a hearing world. Those within the Deaf community seem to be unhappy with devices such
Throughout the ITP program and the lower level ASL classes the name Gallaudet is driven into our heads. We know of the University named after him and how he was the man to bring education to the Deaf in America. What was not before mentioned is that there were two Gallaudets. The first thing I learned from this book is the importance of Thomas Hopkins Gallaudet and his son Edward Miner Gallaudet. I fact I had believed for some time now that E.M. Gallaudet was this extraordinary man that everyone loved and the named a university after him. It is unfortunate that this was not made clearer in the past. Now all I see is a man who took the only path that he knew how to take.
Marika Kovac-Houlihan’s TED Talk hurt me. Hearing her stories first hand truly reveals the discrimination Deaf people face. It’s an easy to listen and understand the definition of discrimination but to experience it or witness is different. Kovac-Houlihan’s intention was for the audience to be stunned by her experiences, I imagine most of those people feel the same way I currently do. Her understanding was that most hearing people see Deaf people as disable or inferior, not every hearing person thinks that way, but most do. Kovac-Houlihan believes hearing people’s assumption is “that a deaf person may be isolated, uneducated or without language” (2:29 Kovac-Houlihan). I slightly disagree with her, but there are exceptions to every rule, one individual does not always impact the thoughts of the mob. I choose this video because of my reaction to Kovac-Houlihan’s primary discussion topics: the phonocentric ideology, loss of identity, and the divide between hearing and Deaf
Mark Drolsbaugh, the author of Deaf Again, was born to deaf parents at a time when the deaf population didn’t have and weren’t given the same availability to communication assistance as they have today. He was born hearing and seemed to have perfect hearing up until the first grade when he started having trouble understanding what was being said but was too young to understand what was happening. (Drolsbaugh 8).
Even though the school has been through tough situations, Gallaudet University is still standing strong. Deaf people dream about going to school there and are honored to have a way for them to get a good education even though they have a disability. Many students go on to have good jobs, and they change the deaf community. They inspire younger deaf people, and prove to the world that even though they cannot normal people they can still make a difference. Normal is overrated, anyways.
The Gallaudet School for the Deaf is a school where deaf and hard of hearing people can go to collage and get a degree. This school has been around for more than 100 years and has quite a history. Through the years, it has been recognized by Presidents and dignitaries.
Jankowski, Katherine A. (1997). Deaf Empowerment: Emergence, Strugge, and Rhetoric. Gallaudet University Press, Washington DC.
...people making decisions for the deaf community. The past resulted in the strengthening of unity in the culture. “They claim the right to “personal diversity”, which is “something to be cherished rather than fixed and erased” (Tucker, 1997).
Deaf President Now is the protest movement that happened in 1988. This protest was labeled as the “ Civil Rights Movement of the Deaf.” The DPN movement was and still is a huge monumental mark at Gaulladet. Leaders and supporters of the Deaf community urged the Board Of Trustees to elect the first deaf president.What really enraged the students is the message behind the board’s selection “ no deaf person was qualified enough to head their own school.” Spilman also stated “Deaf people aren’t able to function in a hearing world.” On March 6,1988 is when it all began.
The documentary of “Through Deaf Eyes” has open my eyes to the deaf culture. The movie has made it “click” that deaf people are just that people and individuals like me. Deaf community has its struggles just like everyone else. They struggle with growing into who they are as a person, harmful situations, and feeling a sense of belonging. They just speak a different language like Italians and Hispanics. Communicating with a different language does not make them lesser than a hearing person. When able to learn to communicate, the deaf are able to learn and gain knowledge just like a hearing person. The only difference is they have to learn more and work harder to achieve their goals and gain knowledge, which a hearing person learns just by hearing their surroundings.
The deaf community does not see their hearing impairment as a disability but as a culture which includes a history of discrimination, racial prejudice, and segregation. According to an online transcript,“Through Deaf Eyes” (Weta and Florentine films/Hott productions Inc., 2007) there are thirty-five million Americans that are hard of hearing. Out of the thirty-five million an estimated 300,000 people are completely deaf. There are ninety percent of deaf people who have hearing parents (Halpern, C., 1996). Also, most deaf parents have hearing children. With this being the exemplification, deaf people communicate on a more intimate and significant level with hearing people all their lives. “Deaf people can be found in every ethnic group, every region, and every economic class” (Weta and Florentine films/Hott productions Inc., 2007). The deaf culture and hard of hearing have plenty of arguments and divisions with living in a hearing world without sound however, that absence will be a starting point of an identity within their culture as well as the hearing culture (Weta and Florentine films/Hott productions Inc., 2007).
Hearing people can have a place in the Deaf community. Each minority group tends to welcome genuine allies and the Deaf community is no exception. But it is important for people who hear to remember our role as allies. We join the community to show our support, not to lead. We can help educate other hearing people, but we are not missionaries to bring Deaf people into the mainstream. Deaf people are the appropriate leaders of their own civil rights movement and teachers of their children. Our role is not to give Deaf people a voice; it is to make sure that the voice already present is heard. And we can do that. We can teach other hearing people to listen.