An Essay

by Terry Giansanti

March 6, 1988 was the day that forever changed the way every deaf person viewed themselves. As the press releases announcing the Board of Trustees' choice of Elisabeth Zinser to be Gallaudet University's 7th president were dumped unceremoniously in front of the Field House, something special was ignited inside the heart of every single deaf person all over the world. Something magical, something unique, something that cannot be put into words. That kind of energy pulled the whole deaf world together to stand up for the respect we have long deserved.

Deaf people are not easily identifiable. If their hands are not in use, they can walk the street without getting any special recognition. Deaf people come from all races of life and all kinds of backgrounds. The deaf world is a microcosm of the whole world, with the only difference being our ability to see more with our eyes and hear less with our ears.

Would the Deaf President Now movement have been as successful if every deaf person belonged to the same race, heritage, nationality, and background? Not in a million years. What made this movement very special was the diversity amongst ourselves and how we bonded together for a singular cause. The community that was created during that week changed the face of deafness forever.

I was fortunate to be there during DPN. I remember expressing my support for a deaf president on behalf of Kendall School to 2,000 people during the rally on March 1st. The strange thing was that while I was signing, I felt like the entire deaf world was watching, not just these 2,000 people.

DPN was a chaotic event at times, and it required every possible person to oil the huge engine of change and make it hum. Bridgetta Bourne-Firl, one of the four student leaders, summed it up best: "What really hit me was how everybody came together to contribute. There were students that were from deaf families and fluent in ASL working with slow-signing students from oral backgrounds. African-Americans, Asians, Hispanics, Caucasians, and everybody else removed whatever prejudices and beliefs they had for that week and identified with each other only as deaf people. That was the great thing."

Dr. I. King Jordan said, "We should indeed be fortunate that the Board's original choice was Elisabeth Zinser. If they had picked a deaf president in the first place, this movement wouldn't have happened and we would have never been heard by the world."

Jordan is right, but only partly. We also wouldn't be celebrating DPN as a catalyst for improved community relations in the deaf world. DPN was the glue that brought together deaf people from all walks of life and united them. Now, every deaf person can stand with pride, knowing that the support of the whole deaf world, in its wealth and cornucopia of diversity, will always stand strongly beside them!