Honor disabilities-rights pioneers by shattering more glass ceilings
Thirty years ago, an unusual protest took place in Washington, D.C., that gave voice to a historically oppressed group. At Gallaudet University, deaf students demanded that a future president at the college be just like them. In other words, deaf.
Throughout its storied history, presidents at Gallaudet, the world’s only university for the deaf and hard of hearing, could hear and were never fluent in American Sign Language. The student’s “Deaf President Now” protest was short, powerful and successful.
At the time, I was a junior attending Western Washington University in Bellingham. Having been raised in rural Lewis County, my life up to that point was one of assimilation. Because of my moderate hearing loss, I learned how to speak first as my primary language. I was outfitted with hearing aids and, with help from a speech-teacher, learned to take auditory cues and process information. I graduated from Chehalis High, attended Centralia College and transferred to WWU.