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By Gregory J. Rummo How many famous deaf people can you name? Take a moment to make a mental list of deaf people you have seen on television or read about in a history book, then come back and finish this article. How did you do? If you are good, you might have gotten four or five. Seven or more? Go to the head of the class. Most people to whom I have posed this question can name Helen Keller, the woman who overcame the limitations of deafness and blindness resulting from a childhood illness to graduate from Radcliff College with honors in 1904 and then go on to write seven books and lecture all over the world. You might have remembered Ludwig van Beethoven, who despite losing his hearing late in life continued to compose what many believe to be some of the greatest music ever written. Marlee Matlin, the deaf actress whose starring role in "Children of a Lesser God," (for which she won an academy award) led to roles in twelve additional movies and numerous appearances on TV shows including a two-year starring role in "Reasonable Doubts." Heather Whitestone, crowned "Miss America" in 1994 is yet another highly visible deaf women with whom most people can identify. And viewers of Public Television will recognize the name Linda Bove as the deaf woman who often appears along with Bert, Ernie and the other characters on "Sesame Street." If you're really good, you might have gotten Lou Ferigno, the weight lifter who starred in "The Incredible Hulk," and Kenny Walker who played football for the Denver Broncos. But Laurent Clerc, the "Apostle of the Deaf in the New World," who together with Thomas Gallaudet, founded the American School for the Deaf in 1816? Have you heard of him? March 13 marks the beginning of Deaf History Month, which extends into April, and comes to a close on April 15. No, it's not a typo. You read it correctly. When I first heard these dates associated with Deaf History 'Month,' I laughed. "I can understand that, and I did the same thing at first," says Clifton resident Mary Anne Kowalczyk, an advocate for the deaf and the president of The Communication Connection. But the dates are important to Deaf History so the deaf community has made an exception." Deaf History month begins by commemorating the March 13, 1988 victory of the Deaf President Now movement; when students at Gallaudet University in Washington, D.C. staged a near riot, demanding a deaf president for the university. April 8 is also an important date. It marks the signing of the charter for Gallaudet University by president Abraham Lincoln in 1864. Deaf History Month ends on April 15, the day The American School for the Deaf in Hartford, Connecticut opened its doors back in 1817. Reprinted from THE DAILY RECORD, April 7, 2000, with permission of the author. Author of The View From the Grass Roots, Gregory J. Rummo is a syndicated columnist for The New Jersey Herald, The Weekly News, The Herald News and The Daily Record. His commentaries also appear on the websites of The American Family Association and World Net Daily. You can read all of Mr. Rummo's columns on The Live Wire, www.GregRummo.com. |
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