Deaf President Now

Deaf President Now (DPN) was a student protest at Gallaudet University, the liberal arts university for the deaf in Washington, DC, pushing for the selection of a deaf university president. The university, established by an act of Congress in 1864 to serve the deaf, had always been led by a hearing president. The DPN protesters believed that the lack of a Deaf president suggested the belief that a non-hearing person was not competent to administer a university, as well as that Deaf people were, at large, incapable of controlling their own fates.

DPN took place over an eight day period between March 6 and March 13, 1988. Because it received national media attention for the entire duration of the protest, the event is considered a watershed moment that raised awareness of Deaf culture. On the fourth day of the protest, Ted Koppel on ABC's Nightline interviewed some of the major actors in the clash. Parallels were drawn between DPN and the American Civil Rights Movement.

Origins

Deaf students at Gallaudet began campaigning for a Deaf president when Jerry C. Lee, who had been president since 1984, resigned in 1987 to work for Bassett Furniture Company (1). Students supporting the selection of a Deaf president participated in a large rally on March 1.

For the rally, Gallaudet alumnus John Yeh printed flyers that read:

"It's time! In 1842, a Roman Catholic became president of the University of Notre Dame. In 1875, a woman became president of Wellesley College. In 1886, a jew became president of Yeshiva University. In 1926, a black person became president of Howard University. AND in 1988, the Gallaudet University presidency belongs to a deaf person."

Yeh underwrote a good deal of the costs of the rally, including the thousands of yellow-and-blue buttons that read "Deaf President Now." Many other alumni participated in the events as well. A candlelight vigil occurred on March 5. The board of trustees considered three finalists: Elisabeth Ann Zinser, Vice-Chancellor for Academic Affairs at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro; I. King Jordan, Gallaudet's Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, who had been deaf at age 21 due to a motorcycle accident; and Harvey Corson, president of a Louisiana residential school, who had been born deaf.

On March 6, 1988, the board announced the selection of Zinser — the sole hearing candidate among several qualified deaf applicants. Further causing astonishment and outrage, Zinser had little experience with deaf education and no sign language skills at all.

Protest

Monday March 7, 1988

Students gained control of the campus. They barricaded the campus gates using heavy-duty bicycle locks and hot-wired school buses, moved them in front of the gates and let the air out of the tires. The locked gates kept people from coming onto University grounds, while also forcing the Board of Trustees to come and receive their 4 demands. The Board ignored the demands, and following an unsuccessful student/Board discussion, the supporters of DPN took their first march to the capitol. "We want a Deaf President Now!" they shouted as they marched through Washington D.C.(2) The protest was led for the most part by four student leaders: Bridgetta Bourne, Jerry Covell, Greg Hlibok, and Tim Rarus, along with other students and protesters. The protesters issued four demands, which were supported by faculty and staff:

That Zinser must resign and a deaf person must be selected as president;
That Jane Bassett Spilman, chair of the board of trustees (who, it was alleged, announced the board's choice with the comment that "the deaf are not yet ready to function in the hearing world") resign immediately;
That the board of trustees, at that time composed of 17 hearing members and four deaf, be reconstituted with a 51% majority of deaf members;
That there be no reprisals against any students or staff members involved in the protest.

Tuesday March 8, 1988

Students continued to rally on Gallaudet's campus, burning stuffed representations of Zinser and Spilman's bodies, illustrating the seriousness of the protest and its demands. The mass of people continued to grow, while the protest for a Deaf President persisted. Supporters of DPN found themselves spread throughout the D.C. area, all over the GU campus, and standing firm on the capitol. (3)

Wednesday March 9, 1988

In light of spring break, the students refused to allow Gallaudet to reopen; they argued that they wouldn't open the gates until they were given a Deaf President first. Consequently, the students decided to stay at school during the spring recess explaining simply, "We want a Deaf President Now!" That day, Zinser spoke in support of the board, "It is the role of the Board to choose a president and to replace a president," stirring outrage in the protesters because she basically stated that she wasn't planning on resigning. The board keep saying, "Someday there will be a Deaf president," but the students fired back, "Why not NOW! We want a Deaf President Now!" Later that evening, Greg Hlibok one of the student leaders of the protest was featured on NBC's Nightly News in an interview with a reporter and Marlee Matlin explaining the reasoning behind the protest and the importance of hiring a Deaf President. (4)

Thursday March 10, 1988

Students met president Zinser and commented on how nice, concerned, kind and sincere she appeared to be and how much she was willing to work with the students and the protest at large. She openly agreed to the second and fourth demands of the students, but that wasn't enough for the protesters who were going to continue to fight for a Deaf President because they wanted to improve Gallaudet as a representative for other schools. They believed that Gallaudet needed to stand as a role model for Deaf people and other Deaf schools, but that couldn't be achieved without a Deaf President. With the stamina of the protest rising, the buses remained blocking the entrances of the campus, and the shouts of "Deaf President Now!" only grew. Furthermore, in the interpreter/communication center, hearing protest workers received endless phone calls from businesses, friends and anonymous donations of money, food and paint to help aid the protest. Other help outside the Deaf Community came from worker unions like the American Postal Workers Union. During this day, Moe Biller, the president of the American Postal Workers Union shared his support for the movement. Lastly, one of the most important turn of events was delivered in I. King Jordan's speech where he proclaimed, 'I only have anger towards the decision of the board. We need to focus the world's attention on the larger issue. The four demands are justified.'(5)

Friday March 11, 1988

Zinser announced her resignation from the presidency and excitement and feelings of success permeated throughout Gallaudet and quickly spread through the nation. The protesters had won and 2500 people marched capitol hill one last time holding a banner that read, "We still have a dream!" They waved flags, held signs, and shouted for their monumental achievement. Later, Greg Hlibok was named Person of the Week by a nightly report show and expressed his gratitude towards the supporters, all the hard work and excitement in achieving the ultimate goal. (6)

Sunday March 13, 1988

The four demands set by the students were met and I. King Jordan was selected as the new Deaf President of Gallaudet University. Additionally, Phil Bravin was appointed chairperson of the Board because Spilman resigned. The students, faculty and staff celebrated in the field house on Gallaudet's campus - they had finally won. Upon taking his position as President, I. King Jordan stated, "One can seize an idea with such force that it becomes a reality." (7)

Reactions

Students, Faculty and Staff at Gallaudet felt that hearing people prevent Deaf people from getting what they want, and bring Deaf people down. Students' statements declared, "When Deaf people prepare to succeed, hearing people bring them down." (8) Hearing people were afraid that Deaf people can't do it, which was one of the community's greatest insults.

The Deaf Community was just as ready for a Deaf president of their only Deaf university as the students, faculty and staff at GU. The endless support from the community perpetuated the burning fire and passion to achieve their goal.

The larger world played an interesting role in this protest because it was the only protest and big thing going on in the world at the time. The protest received international attention and from that worldwide recognition, the larger sphere advocated for a Deaf president, too. (9)

Why this Protest was Successful

Not only did the protesters exhaust themselves and their available resources in support of this movement, many others were involved in aiding the eventual success of DPN. First, any protest is successful only if its demands are satisfied (20). Second, a supportive political and cultural climate is a basic precondition for the success of any type of collective action (12). From the changes in the climate post Civil Rights Movement, many people from the 60s were working in newspaper companies during DPN, thus the coverage of DPN was given to those who understood the nature of the cause. Furthermore, the frame of the civil rights movement was extended to Deaf people, meaning the frame of the basic cause was extended from CRM to DPN (12). Third, an effective protest with valuable protesters must utilize mobilization. The protest gathered various people: students, faculty, staff, interpreters, local Deaf community activists, government support, and public support both nationally and internationally (13). Fourth, the involvement of the media was a huge help because it can really shape a culture's reaction to a problem that is not directly experienced, so positive media coverage is important when publicizing important events like DPN to rally supporters and help spread the word. Thus, the combination of leadership, resources, outside support, and the physical environment were conducive to producing a successful protest. DPN was deemed one of the most successful protests in the world.

Other reasons why this protest was successful include the lack of expedience on part of the elite sources, the peaceful means of protest organized into events by students, the assimilation of elites into the protest movement, the narrow focus of the movement and the ideological assumptions of disability within society (14). If the protest had been organized by a massive body other than students, it would have immediately received more scrutiny by the public and seen as an inherently more negative cause. Also, elite values (those of the majority) matter most due to constant penetration into society, meaning their ideals permeate more than that of the minority but in this case the majority agreed with the sought values of the minority. In addition, the narrow focus of the movement allowed the protest to stay centered on one goal: putting a Deaf president into office.

Why this protest was controversial

This protest was extremely successful in that it met the number one goal: putting a Deaf president in office. However, many people struggled with this. People held the belief that naming a hearing person as president of a Deaf University would be the same as naming a white person president of a predominantly African American University, deeming those actions as paternalistic and unacceptable. Along these same lines, chairwoman Spilman was chastized for saying, "Deaf people are not ready to function in a hearing world."

But on the other hand, the students at Gallaudet were scrutinized for disliking Elisabeth A. Zinser based solely on her hearing ability, and not whether she was capable of getting the job done. Some newspapers wondered if she shouldn't be president of a Deaf university based on that fact that she can hear and cannot sign; would that be the same as rejecting a Deaf person as president of a hearing university? No, the difference here dwindles down to something very simple and unique, Deaf Culture. Zinser could not sign and had minimal exposure to Deaf people and their Culture, and as such was justifiably removed from her post as the president of Galludet University.

Resolution

On March 13, 1988, the Board of Trustees met for nine hours. Philip Bravin, the new (deaf) chair of the board, announced that Spilman had resigned, and that I. King Jordan, the deaf dean of the School of Arts and Sciences at Gallaudet, had been elected President. Furthermore, all four demands of the protesters were met. The protest brought people from all back grounds together - Gallaudet students, faculty and staff, the government, local citizens of Washington D.C., and drew in an international supporting crowd. This movement succeeded more than just naming a Deaf President of Gallaudet University, for a fraction of a time it brought the world together and billions of eyes were finally opened to see that ASL is a language, Deaf people have a Deaf Culture and are proud to be a part of that culture, and "Deaf people can do everything except hear." -I. King Jordan

References

1. Christiansen, John B. & Barnartt, Sharon N. "Deaf President Now!: The 1988 revolution at Gallaudet University". Gallaudet University Press, Washington D.C., 1995, (23).
2. Deaf Mosaic: Gallaudet University's Television Program, 1988.
10. Christiansen, John B. & Barnartt, Sharon N. "Deaf President Now!: The 1988 revolution at Gallaudet University". Gallaudet University Press, Washington D.C., 1995, (167).
11. Ibid, page 168
12. Kensicki, Linda J. "Deaf president Now: positive framing of a social movement within a hegemonic political environment," Journal of Communication Inquiry. April 2001, 147-166.
13. Ibid Christiansen & Barnartt, page 195.
14. Kensicki, Linda J. "Deaf president Now: positive framing of a social movement within a hegemonic political environment," Journal of Communication Inquiry. April 2001, 147-166.
Sacks, Oliver. Seeing Voices: A journey into the world of the deaf. Harper Perennial, 1989. ISBN 0-06-097347-1.
Shapiro, Joseph P. No Pity: People with Disabilities Forging a New Civil Rights Movement. Random House, 1993.
Gannon, Jack R. "The Week the World Heard Gallaudet". Gallaudet University Press, 1989. ISBN 0-930323-54-8. Excerpts on Google Books
Christiansen, John B., and Sharon N. Barnartt. Deaf President Now: The 1988 Revolution at Gallaudet University. Washington, DC: Gallaudet University Press, 1995. Excerpts on Google Books
Deaf President Now contemporaneous letters and press releases, February-March 1988. (Download PDF file: http://saveourdeafschools.org/dpn.pdf)

External links

Deaf President Now anniversary A day-by-day overview of the Deaf President Now movement, from Gallaudet University
"At Gallaudet, a Turn Inward Opens New Worlds", April 30, 2006 All Things Considered