I first met Ryan Commerson in 1997 at the Deaf Sports Festival in Council Bluffs, Iowa. We met by chance; he was sitting behind me on the bleachers with his parents. We've been friends ever since.

Ryan, now 30, is on a hunger strike in efforts to bring attention to the problems that exist in deaf education, particularly in Michigan. His blog has a variety of opinions from both sides of the issue. Parents and Deaf people alike are debating each other, engaging in some very insightful dialogue.

The reason I'm so in awe of what Ryan is doing is because Ryan's standing up for what he believes, and because he's calling attention to a problem that exists. To me, it doesn't matter if he succeeds in getting his demands met or not. What matters is that he's actually doing something to challenge the system. Many feel his actions may be too strong. I say, "So what?" The point is that Ryan is taking action...and bringing attention to a problem that exists at many schools, whether administrators acknowledge it or not. I should know; as an educated professional, I've encountered many examples of blatant disrespect at Deaf schools. I'll share two.

I attended a sports banquet where my husband was a speaker. I was placed at a table near the front, where two interpreters and a teacher also sat. This teacher had been at the school for decades, and was considered by many an important part of the school. He was a good signer, and was actively involved with many committees.

I started chatting with the interpreters, who were not yet on duty. The teacher eventually joined in and was quite talkative. The problem was I couldn't understand what he was saying, because he didn't sign a single thing, even though he knew I was Deaf. Why did he do that? I have no idea, but I felt incredibly degraded and shut out - at a Deaf school, of all places. The interpreters were visibly uncomfortable, too. The circumstances prevented me from asking him to sign, so I sat there quietly, feeling alone. When I mentioned this experience to other staff, they all said, "Nothing new, that's how he is. He always looks down on Deaf." I was startled by their responses, because they seemed resigned to that. And this man had been shaping young Deaf people's minds for decades? The irony is that he was also the Deaf Studies teacher that year.

Another time, I was sub-teaching and took students to a computer lab. There were two other (hearing) teachers there with their classes. The teachers were fully aware that everyone else, including me, in that lab were Deaf; they proceeded to chat socially for a full five minutes without signing. I observed a student going up to one of the teachers to ask a question. After a while, she gave up because she couldn't figure out an appropriate time to interrupt the two teachers, since she couldn't tell what the teachers were speaking about. As she walked back to her seat, two other students rolled their eyes, saying, "Nothing new! Never sign!"

I was seated in the back, behind the students. Disturbed by this scene, I discreetly waved at one of the teachers, making sure that the students couldn't see me. I asked, "Could you please sign when you speak?" The teacher immediately blew up and screamed as she signed (with a very red face), "Well, I don't make a habit out of it!"

I sat there, astounded; every head in the room whipped towards her in alarm. She, too, seemed startled at her own reaction and was breathing heavily. I quickly said, "We'll talk later today, it's fine, don't worry."

That afternoon, she apologized and explained that she was initially offended but then realized I had done nothing wrong. I told her it was okay, and to consider it forgotten. The next day, I found out that she had asked several teachers if I was hard of hearing and whether I had eavesdropped on her conversation or not. She also told the principal that I had waved in front of everyone and "commanded" her to stop speaking - the opposite of what had happened. Fortunately, I knew I had truth on my side. I told the principal that this teacher, a first-year teacher, might benefit from cultural sensitivity training and that teachers be encouraged to sign at all times. The twist? This school has a union rule that says teachers must be allowed to speak without signing if they wish to do so. Go figure.

So, if these teachers didn't respect communication needs and obviously couldn't understand the crux of why it was so important to use ASL in these everyday situations, how the hell do we address deaf education problems at schools everywhere? I don't know. Maybe dialogue is the best way; maybe peaceful protests and hunger strikes are the way. Either way, Ryan Commerson needs to be applauded for his actions - whether we agree with him or not.

Update: As this article went to press, Ryan Commerson ended his hunger strike. To read the latest, please go to his blog at http://starvingforaccess.blog.com/.

© Copyrighted material, used by permission. This article can not be copied, reproduced, or redistributed without the express written consent of the author. Author's views not necessarily those of i711.com.

View Comments  |  Add Comment  |   Email this Article