I am a…… Success!
I am an Oral success. At around two and a half years old, I started talking. I started to learn to read at four years old. Today I can (if I so choose), order a hamburger at McDonald’s without having to repeat myself. I can speak to family, friends, and strangers, and they can understand me [...]
HB 1367 – The Distrust Runs Deep on Both Sides?
As a critical reader of media, I find myself left with a lot of questions after reading the article entitled “Deep Division on Deafness” in journalgazette.net (based in Fort Wayne, Indiana) regarding HB 1367. These questions are not meant to point out fault in the story itself, but to bring these questions before the [...]
Deaf Film Festival Coming Soon to Seattle, Washington!
Seattle, WA- The first Seattle Deaf Film Festival is coming soon! Deaf Spotlight, an organization that focuses on Deaf culture, cinema, performing arts and visual arts, is proud to present the Seattle Deaf Film Festival. The festival promises a full weekend of films on, about, and for Deaf community. This three day [...]
Sign Language Interpreters in Mainstream Classrooms: Heartbroken and Gagged
I am sure that most readers are well aware, that the entire “system” for educating hard of hearing and deaf children in mainstream settings is generally a mess, the kids are suffering, and no one person or entity is really in control. Included in this “system” is the entire state of affairs with regards [...]
The Artist and Silence
Last week I went to see a silent movie. Well, truth be told, most movies I watch are “silent” – at least for me. I’d rather watch a captioned flick on my Macbook than watch a movie with hearing aid sound and floating captions on a weird bendy pipe arm, but that’s just me. [...]
On Emotions and the Classroom—A Forbidden Combination?
After vehemently protesting a classmate’s opining on how Latin@s*–“illegal” ones, to be exact—have more language rights than Deaf U.S. citizens do, based on the availability of the “press 2 for español” telephone option. The professor emailed me later in the day, urging me to remove emotions from classroom discussions. When I name [...]
Local Media Covers Indiana’s HB1367 Controversy
Because Indiana’s HB1367 controversy is being closely followed by many in the Deaf Community, DeafEcho.com would like to provide this link to a local news story on the topic. Further updates on DeafEcho.com will follow as the story develops.
FCC “Lock-In” Plan: Hurting Deaf Consumers
Let me get this out in the open: I am not much of a “phone person.” I never really developed the habit, as I could not really use the phone well, beyond a small circle of familiar persons. When I was thirteen, I was introduced to the TTY, and this was a minor miracle, as [...]
HB 1207 – A New Concern on the Horizon for the Indiana School for the Deaf?
You read that correctly. This article does not concern HB 1367, the bill that is causing so much controversy and uproar in the deaf community of Indiana (and the wider national deaf community). Deaf Echo has recently come across information on a new bill that may have serious ramifications for the Indiana School for [...]
Deaf Resource Availability for the Urban-ly Challenged
I was born in a small town. And I live in a small town. Oh those small communities.* Okay, so my town may not be Mayberry; we do actually have modern conveniences like electricity and cable TV. But how do you find the best resources when the nearest deaf “person” is your neighbor’s 15-year-old dog? [...]