“Classroom learning is only one part of learning about American Sign Language (ASL),” Citrus College Professor Irene Robles said. “In the course, we learn about all aspects of ASL as receiving and exchanging messages with an emphasis on applying appropriate facial and body grammar. By sending students out to events to interact in the deaf community students are able to engage and apply components of ASL in genuine experiences.”
Robles is deaf and teaches American Sign Language I and II. Every semester she requires her students to attend a deaf/ASL awareness event to become more immersed in the deaf community.
One of the events Robles announced this semester was the Deaf Women’s Herstory Month panel to bring more awareness to deaf culture and Deaf History month, which is March 13-April 15.
“This hands-on experience captures what cannot be conveyed in an ASL book or research article,” Robles said. “Diversity within the deaf community and authentic ASL in action helps students to really grasp the deaf culture.”
Deaf Women of Color and Deaf Women United celebrated Deaf Women’s Herstory Month with a Q&A panel focusing on the trials of being deaf and how they were impacted during the pandemic.
“By attending events like this, students get to see and meet professionals, individuals, and families who are deaf, deaf blind and hard-of-hearing,” Robles said. “Diversity within the deaf culture is revealed as these community events transpire.”
ASL student Mandy Perea said the obstacles the deaf community has to face should be an unexpectedly enlightening experience to everyone who is not hearing impaired.
“It was extremely eye-opening to realize how much of the world is dependent on hearing,” Perea said. “At the end of the day, the more people who are exposed to the challenges of certain communities, the more we can be allies to those who need to create a more accessible world for themselves.”
This panel of women discussed how their identities as deaf women, and with deaf culture, was equivalent to their other identities.
Rosavetta Jackson is from Georgia and is an eighth-generation multiracial deaf woman, and she is the first black deaf woman to be appointed as director of the outreach department of Deaf Women United.
“I am Black, Latino Mexican, and also Native American,” Jackson signed. “I have so many different cultural connections that are a part of me. I often bordered the fence of who I was as a person. It took me a few years. Growing up I wasn’t Black enough, Mexican enough, Native American enough. As I got older, I decided it was up to me to reclaim my identity.”
Jackson said growing up as a deaf multiracial woman was difficult. Her struggles with her identity defined who she was in her upbringing.
“I tried so hard to fit in and I really didn’t fit in with any culture except deaf,” Jackson signed. “Currently with my leadership roles, I am able to expose and explain to all of these multi-racial children that they are enough.”
Many of the other panelists had similar experiences growing up. Alicia Wooten was a student at Gallaudet University, the first university in America for the deaf. She studied immunology, biology, pneumonia, HIV and many other clinical diseases.
“With everything happening this year and last year I really had to unpack,” Wooten signed. “What are my boundaries? What are my experiences as a person of color but also as a white woman? My mother moved here from Japan in her 20s. Her culture is a very big part of me. I am Japanese American, and I am a woman who is deaf.”
Britny Bensman also felt a disconnection growing up and discovering her identity. She said she still feels it now as an adult, especially since she works in the healthcare industry as a registered nurse.
“When I mention to my patients that I am deaf, they don’t know what to do and say to me,” Bensman signed. “When I say I am hard of hearing, they relate to that better because they think I am losing my hearing. The reaction I get when I say ‘I am deaf’ or ‘I am hard of hearing’ is so different. I identify as a deaf woman, but it is a very sticky situation being in healthcare.”
Bensman said people see deafness as a disability, but it’s not. It may be hard to get necessary resources, but those are barriers not disabilities.
“The more personal anecdotes I hear from deaf people, the more charged I am to be an ally for the deaf community,” Perea said.
The panelists all said COVID-19 directly affected the deaf community because initially resources were limited. The lack of information readily available to the deaf community made word of mouth from neighbors and family their main source of information.
Ivy Velez is from Puerto Rico and works for the State of California Department of Developmental Services. She dealt with the barriers COVID-19 put onto the deaf community head on.
“I realized I had access to things because of my contacts, but as a deaf community there was a lack of information,” Velez signed. “We were starting all over again.”
The deaf community was not prepared for the lack of communication when the pandemic hit.
“I just graduated nursing school December 2019,” Bensman signed. “I passed my boards and got a job in February 2020, then in March everything shut down. I could no longer read patients’ lips with masks on. It was really tough. I was struggling and very frustrated, and my coworkers had to take over.”
Velez said she saw deaf workers and the deaf community heavily impacted due to their lack of resources.
“Some don’t have internet,” Velez signed. “They needed to get their information through grassroots, or people needed to stop by and check on them to update them.”
All of the panelists said the extra strain the deaf community has had to endure throughout the pandemic has greatly affected mental health.
ASL students attending events such as this one makes for an important experience, Perea said.
“Hearing people can never truly understand what it is like to experience the world as a deaf or hard of hearing person,” Perea said. “It greatly helps to understand sign language when you learn about the people who have had to advocate for its existence. Viewing the ways in which deaf people have had to innovate, advocate, and problem-solve within a world that was made for hearing people is inspiring and humbling.”
Despite all the trials and advocating deaf people have had to endure during the pandemic, the panelists all agreed that remembering to practice self-care was a crucial factor. They provided one another with tips on how to care for themselves.
Wooten is a science teacher, and she said the science behind mental health and a lack of rest can greatly impact a person.
“If we don’t pay attention to our bodies, we can become physically ill,” Wooten signed. “It’s important to be aware of that. We’re on technology so much and that glare on the eyes can impact our sleep. … Everybody needs to find that one thing where they can really just let go.”
Most of the panelists said they are tending to plants, getting outside and prioritizing themselves. They also all provided tips on how deaf women can empower each other.
Mayra Castrejon is from Mexico, lives in Wisconsin and is the president for Deaf Women of Color. She stressed the importance of women needing other women.
“Women say we’re better than you or better than you,” Castrejon signed. “Respect each other, empower each other, uplift each other and unify. What’s the point of being better? We need to help each other.”
All the women agreed that they need to do better by one another, especially deaf women.
“It’s not a competition,” Wooten signed. “We often forget that because we want to be successful. Remember the important goal of why we’re all doing this. Our community.”
Panelists shared their Facebook and Instagram pages, as well as companies they have started.
“It’s really cool for people to connect others to resources,” Wooten signed. “We know a lot of people in our communities. We need to network with each other and pass that info along to others who need those resources.”
Perea said learning ASL is a wonderful experience, especially getting to learn about the history of deaf culture and the community of people behind it.
“It is one thing to learn such a unique language such as ASL but it’s another thing to be directly exposed to the culture surrounding the language,” Perea said. “Many deaf or hard of hearing people have not always had the privilege to learn it.”
Robles said when people attend events like this, everyone gets to know the deaf community and gets to immerse themselves into deaf culture.
“I am deaf and a native signer, so I have been to these deaf community events my whole life,” Robles said. “Without a doubt, I can confirm that these events are the best places where I see individuals engage and learn from each other.”
