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[ Applause ]
>> Rosemary Diaz: Thank you all. Thank you all for coming this evening. I really appreciate
that again, and again, I do want to recognize a few people. Our department chair, Dr. Brian
Berrett [applause]. There are several faculty here from our department as well; Dr. Fran
Pomaville, Nan Barker, Dr. Paul Ogden, Patty Parker, and Trisha Houston. I Also see Kathy
Yoshida. Did I get everyone? Sorry, I can't see everybody, and oh, hi, Dr. Christine Maul
. Thank you so much for coming and being here. Oh, and also, way over there, hi, one more,
sorry I forgot to mention, Cynthia Cavascos. Is that the right spelling? Good, yeah, thank
you. Also, the pastor from the Fresno Deaf Church is here, and that is Keith Catron.
The Director of the Hard of Hearing Service Center, Michelle Bronson. It's nice to see
so many different people who are involved in the deaf community be here with us tonight,
so thank you all for coming. I want to thank Hannah as well. Where did Hannah go? I do
want to thank Hannah. There she is. She was inspired, and did not want to keep that to
herself. She wanted to share that inspiration, and she did that through the nomination; to
be able to have you experience a little bit of what she experienced. Thank you, Brianne
as well for the many, many meetings, and all of the work that went into the preparation
for this evening. When Brianne and I met, she told me this whole concept of Fresno State
talks came from the ideas of just a few students; a few students who wanted to recognize the
professors who inspired them, and spread that inspiration, and that's a beautiful concept.
So, I applaud the students on the committee for your dream and your vision, and for making
this happen. When Brianne shared that with me, immediately, my mind jumped back to 1988.
Gallaudet University in Washington, DC. It's the only liberal arts university in the world
designed for deaf people, and that same idea, a few students with a dream set out to change
the world. For the 124 years of Gallaudet's history, it had been run by hearing presidents.
It's a deaf university with deaf students, deaf instructors, who use sign language to
teach the students, deaf organizations, deaf sports, but run by a hearing president for
124 years since its inception in 1864. In 1988, the students decided it was time for
a change. They began the movement that became a world changer. They locked down the campus.
They closed the gates. No one could get it. No one could get out. They were ready to tell
the world. Look at us. We're deaf, and we can do anything. We're here to send the message
loud and clear. The world looks at us, and we're showing the world that after being told
we can't for so many years, it's time to show that we can, and that moment in 1988, that
week of March 6 to March 6, 1988, changed the fate of deaf people. We will never again
go back to the time of being run by a hearing president. We have deaf presidents now at
Gallaudet University. Two years prior to 1988, a significant event took place. A movie was
released entitled "Children of a Lesser God". Marlee Matlin won best actress Oscar for her
role in 1986. People watched that movie, and it was the first time that a deaf character
portrayed by a deaf actress was seen on the big screen. That led to people being interested
in American Sign Language. After the movie was released, and Marlee Matlin won her award,
people began to take more notice of sign language and its beauty. ASO classes around the United
States exploded with students signing up, and teachers asking, why the sudden interest
in American Sign Language? All because of "Children of a Lesser God". The media plays
a significant role in people's perceptions and in people's interest. So, in 1986, people
were already talking about American Sign Language; already interested in, had already been exposed
to it, and then two years later, 1988, the movement at Gallaudet University, the stage
had been set. People were primed and ready. That seed had been planted. It should have
been a University problem, a University issue within the confines of Washington, DC, but
because of the media attention on that movie, and the movie had been translated into 22
languages, it became a worldwide event. The world moved in support of the students, and
said, you're right. It is time for a change. The things that have been happening for the
past 124 years cannot continue to happen. Deaf people began to show the world what we
can do; not what we can't do. The deaf community sees things from a different perspective.
It is interesting that hearing people often see us as disabled, but we as deaf people
see ourselves as a cultural and linguistic minority. Opposite points of view, talking
about the same group of people. Again, American Sign Language opened that door, gave people
that interest, and led to much more. American Sign Language, ASL, is what I call the gateway
into the deaf world. Again, people see ASL. They see someone signing at a restaurant,
or they see someone at a coffee shop; they go into a store and see someone signing, and
they're fascinated by it. They want to know what that is. Typically, they don't realize
that with that language comes a culture. Culture and language are meshed together. When you
learn the language, it leads to learning the culture. You must learn the culture behind
the language. And, people are inspired by that. It is a beautiful rich language culture
with history, values, traditions. Throughout history, people did not see if that way. People
commonly look at deaf people as disabled. They looked at the things they couldn't do.
They believed that we couldn't work. They believed that we can't drive. They believe
that we can't cook. They believe that we can't have families; we can't have children. They
think that we can't own our own homes. There's all these things that history has says, that
people have said, that we cannot do, that feeds into this perception. But, I have some
news for you. It's not true. So, let me share a little bit about myself.
[ Pause ]
That's me driving. I can drive [laughter]. It's a Honda. I love it. I cook. I make tortillas;
homemade tortillas. It's a little tricky, but I do. I own my own home. I have my own
small business. I am a Mary Kay representative. I'm not trying to sell Mary Kay, but I do
have my own little business [laughter]. I can work. That's my point. I can work, that's
my point. I have a family. I have my beautiful daughter with me tonight. And, of course,
she wants to say hi. And, I ride a bicycle! Imagine that. It's a little silly, but it's
true. It's, this is, my point is to show you that we can do anything. We have no limitations.
A lot of people think that we can't do things, and that message has been spread out through
history. And people think that. And, we want to dispel that message, and get rid of that
myth and misconception that people have. Here in America, we have 42 million deaf or hard
of hearing people; 42 million. That's a lot. So, the chance of you running into a deaf
person is pretty good. That's why it's so important for you all to become allies. I
need you. We need you to become allies to the deaf community. I am blessed to live in
the year 2014, because society was not always so accepting of deaf people. How I know this
is if you look at the media; if you look at movies, films, television shows, there's more
deaf actors and actresses. More deaf produces, deaf directors, who are involved in the media.
There are more TV shows that have deaf characters; which is wonderful; more television shows
portray ASL. Of course, a popular TV show that we have right now is "Switched at Birth".
It's on ABC Family Channel, and it's a wonderful show. It's a great depiction of deaf people
and how the media can influence society, because if it's acceptable in the media on television,
then typically society agrees with them. And, history has shown that over and over and over
again. Unfortunately, society hasn't always been accepting of deaf people. Again, remember
I had said previously that you can have one thing that two people see completely differently.
For example, Alexander Graham Bell. Americans, of course, in American history, we look up
to Alexander Graham Bell. He's respected, honored, revered, because he invented the
telephone. Right, back in the day, that's what the telephone looked like. In history
books, it's printed Alexander Graham Bell, a great man, admired by many people. Americans
depend on him. He invented the telephone. He was talented, genius, had all these inventions.
But, ironically, the deaf community does not look up to Alexander Graham Bell. He is not
respected in our community. He is not honored. Alexander Graham Bell worked very diligently
to try and destroy deaf people. Many don't realize that he actually had a deaf mother.
His wife was also deaf. And, they both did not sign. They used speech and lip reading.
As his mother got older, she used the manual alphabet; the ABCs, when she could not understand
how to lip read. Signing was forbidden in that home. Alexander Graham Bell believed
that speech was superior to sign language. He worked very hard using his money, his power,
his influence. Traveled the world lecturing, convincing people that speech was far better
than sign language. But even more than that, Alexander Graham Bell wanted to convince people,
tried to convince people, that deaf people should not marry. He said it was not a good
idea, because if a deaf person met and married another deaf person, they would create more
deaf people, and he did not want that. To him, being deaf was a tragedy, and he worked
very hard at trying to make sure that the deaf community was destroyed. But, there was
resistance from the deaf community, and he tried over and over again to pass several
laws, and failed. However, a lot of damage was already done. This led to people believing
that deaf people can't do this, should not do this, should not exist, and that led to
the oppression of deaf people, which is very hard for us to overcome. To this day, we are
still fighting that oppression. Again, America looks at Alexander Graham Bell as a wonderful
man, and the deaf community looks as him as not. But, I am very grateful that someone
invented the telephone, because it's communication, right? You guys cannot live without your phones.
I know you all have your cell phones. You're texting all the time. So, the fact that the
phone was invented, I am very grateful for. In 1964, TTYs were invented, which is the
teletypewriter, a device that deaf people use to talk on the phone. You would have to
put a regular telephone on a device where you type, and you could talk to another deaf
person who had that device or go through an operator, and talk to someone who was hearing
through that device. And, then in 2000, video phones were invented, which was a wonderful
invention. I could use my natural language, American Sign Language, and make calls that
way. The challenge with the video relay service is that the interpreter that appears on the
screen, so I can see an interpreter and the interpreter can see me, when the interpreter
pops up on the screen, they see me, and I can communicate with them, just like this
picture here. So, they're using sign language, I'm using sign language, and they call the
hearing person, so whether it's the doctor or my boyfriend, or ordering pizza, whatever
that is, they make that telephone call. I make the phone call through the, and so it's
a three way conversation; kind of like we're doing tonight, but the interpreter is on a
screen. Now, the interpreter that I get on screen could male, could be female. They could
have a low-pitched voice, a high-pitched voice. They could have an accent. They could talk
very fast. I never know who I'm going to get when I call video relay service. So, I don't
know who it would be. So, one well-known way to communicate that people do every day is
gesturing. So, imagine this for a moment. I'm driving, and I get to a red light, and
I see another car pull up next to me, kind of waving at me, and I reluctantly look over,
and there's a sign. And, there's a gentleman holding up a sign with his number, and he
gestures, call me. And, he's really cute, so I'm like sure, why not? So, I put down
his number. He doesn't know I'm deaf though, right? We're talking through the cars. So,
of course, I drive off, I get home, and I call him through video relay service. So,
let's say my interpreter's sounds like [laughter], so this is what my voice sounds like through
the interpreter.
>> Don't mean to destroy you.
>> Rosemary Diaz: So, picture that as my voice, and I'm calling this guy, and remember, he's
really cute. So, I make the call. And, I tell the interpreter to dial a number. The cute
guy says, hello. Hi, remember me. I was stopped at the red light next to you, and you held
your sign, and like told me to call you? I'm calling you. Now, he hears.
>> Don't mean to destroy you. [laughter]
>> Rosemary Diaz: Um, oh my gosh, I'm so stupid. I'm so stupid. Why did I give this girl my
number? Um, who is this? Oh, sorry, excuse me, I'm deaf, and I'm talking to you through
a sign language interpreter. That's the voice you're hearing. Oh, you're death. No, no,
no, no, no, deaf, with an F. Not death with a TH, deaf with an F. I can't hear you, so
I'm deaf. That's why the interpreter is making the call for me, because I'm deaf. Oh, you're
deaf. Oh, okay, I remember, I remember you, it's fine. I'm deaf, is that okay? Yes, it's
okay, you're beautiful. Awwwww, thank you. So, we hang up the call, and let's say we
decide to meet up, and we date. And, we start dating officially, and I call him again, and
I get the same VRS interpreter. So, I make the call again. Hi, sweetie, I'm just calling
to tell you how much I love you [laughter]. And it sounds like.
>> I love you.
>> Rosemary Diaz: Oh, I love you too. So, the next time a guy pulls up to me and gestures,
call me, I think, oh, let's text. [laughter] I'm sure you all agree. [pause] Two different
languages, American Sign Language and English. Very different languages. How the languages
are structured are very different, even though you can accomplish the same meaning. The grammar,
the structure, the syntax. Everything about the languages is different. And, you, as allies
now, when you meet a deaf person, you might not be sure to communicate, what to do. And,
there are lots of options available. If there's an interpreter there, by all means, ask the
interpreter, hey, do you mind interpreting something for me for a minute? And, then approach
the deaf person. Have a conversation, with the help of the interpreter. If there's no
interpreter, it means you have to be a little more assertive. Walk up to a deaf person.
Develop the rapport on your own. You can write notes back and forth. You can gesture. If
the deaf person is comfortable with lip reading and speech reading, he or she will show you
that by their body language and there use of their own voice and eye contact with you.
The important thing for you as allies now to remember is to respect the culture and
respect the language. Don't ask, can you lip read me? Can you talk? That's not okay. That
goes back to that old perception of, well, speech is clearly better than sign language.
Let the deaf person show you his or her preference, and then you work to accommodate that. If
the deaf person has an interpreter standing there, by all means, work with the interpreter.
If the deaf person pulls out a pen and a paper, do likewise, and write notes back and forth.
If the deaf person and uses his or her own voice and attempts to lip read, fine, do it
that way. The important thing is to meet the deaf person where they are, and show by your
allied behavior that you have a good attitude, that you are ready and willing to work to
accommodate the communication needs. Show that you have that fabulous respect. As an
ally, you don't have to know American Sign Language. You have to show that you are willing
to work with and accommodate the needs of the communication to both people's satisfaction.
If you don't know what to do, ask the deaf person. Is this working? Is this not working?
Are you comfortable? How do you want to handle this communication? Deaf people are more than
happy to work with you, and it's okay to make mistakes. If something doesn't work, try it
again. You're learning their culture and their language, and they're learning their culture
and you're language, and you need to find a common ground. I want to introduce my hero.
His name is George W. Veditz. In 1913, so 101 years ago, George Veditz was alive and
well, and brilliant, and he saw a new technology, being the film camera, being brought into
the world. At the same time, he saw experts in American Sign Language, who were getting
older and would soon not be on earth anymore. And, he worked with the technology in order
to preserve their American Sign Language, and their stories and their experiences, to
preserve our history. And, he used this new technology, the film camera to record people
telling stories, and record [inaudible]. In 1880, prior to 1913, there was an International
Congress that worked on issues related to education of the deaf that banned the use
of sign language in all schools. That was in 1880, so 1913, 33 years later, George Veditz
was working hard to get the word out. Don't be discouraged. They told us we couldn't use
sign language in our schools, but we need to fight back. We need to preserve American
Sign Language, and we have to work hard to protect our beautiful language and our beautiful
history. He said, our beautiful sign language is the noblest gift God has given to deaf
people. I love his use of the word noblest. Noble relates to nobility, kings and queens.
It's a word of honor, and George Veditz chose that word and this message to give to the
deaf audience, but God made us. God loves us. God thinks we are beautiful, and our language
is beautiful. It is a gift that he has given us. He sees deaf people as kings, as royalty.
What an inspiration message, especially coming after the decision of 1880 to ban sign language
in the schools. It gave deaf people hope. It gave them a renewed sense of pride in their
culture. It gave them pride in their language. It gave them pride in their history. It changed
the world. I ask you as allies now. You need to see deaf people as God sees deaf people,
as nobility, as peers, as equals. Look at the beautiful deaf culture. Look at the beautiful
people that God made. God loves deaf people. God loves hearing people. You need to love
deaf people. See deaf people as humans. We're all made by the same God, and there's no difference
between you and me. People do not hate by instinct. People learn how to hate from other
people. They are not born with the ability to hate. Unfortunately, in the world today,
there are many, many isms; many systems of oppression. Here's some examples that you've
all heard of; racism, discriminating against someone because of the color of their skin.
Ageism, discrimination based on age; be it old or young. Sexism, discrimination against
a person because of their gender. Ableism; discriminating against someone because of
what I think they can't do. And, most people don't know this word of the century here,
audism. Audism is discrimination against someone because they are deaf; thinking I'm better
than that person because I can hear and they can't. It's audism with D, not autism with
a T. Make sure you take note of that. The word audism was coined in 1975 by Dr. Tom
Humphries. He saw all of the challenges, the everyday discrimination that deaf people face;
the history of oppression, and came up with this term to define it. And, again, we go
back to hate is not something that people are born with. Have you seen this, I love
this quote. It's true. "Do unto others, what you would have them do under you." It's the
simple Golden Rule. You want me to respect you, respect me back. Do you want me to be
nice to you? Be nice to me. Do you want me to work to accommodate your communication
needs? Do the same for me. And, it's important to teach our children, to teach our friends,
to teach our coworkers that same philosophy; that same approach, to see each other as equals.
All people, all children have the same need. We need to find a place where we belong. All
children, all people, need to experience love. It doesn't matter if we're deaf or hearing,
we're all the same. There are different religions, different skin colors, different ages, different
genders, differences of all kinds in the world that we see every day, and there are deaf
people. You and I are no different. I love going to the movies. I love watching movies.
How I watch a movie is through captioned glasses. So, I have these glasses that I put on, and
I can read what the people are saying. There's this little, basically the words come up on
these glasses. It's very cool. I can watch the whole movie with these glasses on, and
understand everything that people are saying; if there's a dog barking or the phone ringing,
it's all done through captioning, so I read what the movie is being said. It's a wonderful
experience. You guys like to go to the movies? I like to go to the movies. We are the same.
How we watch those movies might be different, but we are the same. I love being a mom. My
daughter, who again is here [laughter]. She loves being a daughter, so. When she was a
baby, when she would cry, I would know that, because lights would flash, and that would
indicate that she was crying, and I would tend to her just like any other mother would.
Those of you who love being parents, that's the same as me. I love it. It's no different.
How we know our child is crying might be different, but we, ourselves, are not different. I love
to worship God. I love going to church. My pastor is deaf. He preaches in ASL. The songs,
worship is done in American Sign Language. Those of you who love God and go to church
and love to worship, are the same as me. How you do and how I do it might be different,
but we are no different. We are the same. I'm a teacher here at Fresno State, obviously.
I've been here for seven years, and students sometimes will come up to me after class and
say, oh, I saw a deaf person at a restaurant, or I saw a deaf person on a TV show, and they'll
tell me things about deaf people or deaf-related issues, which is great. I love that. I love
learning from students. But recently, I had a student come up to me and say, I hey, I
just went to this new restaurant, and the food was delicious; and left. And, I was waiting
for, you know, and I saw a deaf person or there was a deaf person working there. And
they said, that they went to this restaurant and left. And, I loved it, because that meant
they saw me as a person, as a peer. You don't have to just talk about deaf things with me
[laughter]. If you go to a great restaurant, tell me, recommend a restaurant, because I'll
want to go. I get hungry! That was the first time that had happened in seven years. I mean,
the person was thrilled to tell me, and I was so excited, because I'm assuming what
they would tell other teachers, they told me. They saw me no differently, and I loved
it, and thanked that person. We are no different. I ask you as allies to look at where you work,
look at where you learn, look at where you go and play. See how you can open doors and
include your deaf friends, your deaf peers, your deaf coworkers, other deaf people in
the community. We are no different, and we want to be included in everything that you
do. Focus on what we can do. Through history, deaf people have been excellent problem-solvers.
The Deaf President Now Movement is a great example of how deaf people solved a problem,
and still to this day, we hold that skill. If you don't know how to include a deaf person,
ask us. Nothing about us without us. Include us, ask us. We want to make the world a better
place, and this will be done through us being allies. Again, focus on what we can do. And
here are some examples. Oh, my gosh. This is the first player in history. I don't care
which team you're routing for. It doesn't matter. He's deaf! And, the Seahawks won the
Super Bowl. He was the first player in the NFL, and the first one to be on a team to
win the Super Bowl. The first deaf pilot. Wow. A lifeguard; a deaf lifeguard that saved
over 907 lives. She's pretty muscular; I'm not [laughter]. Do you guys remember the TV
show, "Gladiator, American Gladiator"? She was deaf. Professional dancer. I don't really
dance, but she won awards. She won the governor's award. Motocross champion. UFC fighter. Oh,
a chef; an excellent chef, who does all sorts of things when he cooks. Focus on what we
can do, which is anything.
[ Silence ]
[ Music ]
One, two. One, two. Me and all my friends We're all misunderstood They say we stand
for nothing and There's no way we ever could Now we see everything is going wrong With
the world and those who lead it We just feel like we don't have the means To rise above and beat it So we
keep waiting (waiting) Waiting on the world to change We keep on waiting (waiting) Waiting
on the world to change It's hard to beat the system When we're standing at a distance So
we keep waiting (waiting) Waiting on the world to change Now if we had the power To bring
our neighbors home from war They would a never missed a Christmas No more ribbons on the
door When you trust your television What you get is what you got 'cause when they own the
information ooohhh, They can bend it all they want! That's why we're waiting (waiting) Waiting
on the world to change We keep on waiting (waiting) Waiting on the world to change It's
not that we don't care We just know that the fight ain't fair So we keep on waiting (waiting)
Waiting on the world to change
[ Music ]
We're still waiting (waiting) Waiting on the world to change We keep on waiting (waiting)
Waiting on the world to change One day our generation Is gonna rule the population So
we keep on waiting (waiting) Waiting on the world to change Now we keep on waiting (waiting)
Waiting on the world to change We keep on waiting (waiting) Waiting on the world to
change Waiting on the world to change Waiting on the world to change Waiting on the world
to change.
[ Silence ]
>> Rosemary Diaz: Until the day that a deaf person goes into a store, and is not asked
to leave, because she is deaf. Until the day a deaf person is in a coffee shop, and the
employee doesn't hand the coffee to another woman, and says, do you mind giving it to
that deaf lady, because I don't want to touch her. Until the day that a mother and a son
see a deaf person on the street, and the mother doesn't say to the son, don't go near her,
deaf people are God's mistake. Until the day that those things don't happen anymore, my
work, your work, our work is not finished. There's still an opportunity for us to change
the world. We have two choices. We can sit back and wait for the world to change, or
we can roll up our sleeves and get out there, and change the world. It's our choice. When
you meet a deaf person, you don't think, oh, they're deaf; I need to go in another direction.
Meet them, gesture, write, finger spell, learn a sign or two, ask them questions, get to
know them. Get to know them as a person. Find a way to make that connection. Become an ally.
Change the world. You are our future. We don't want to go backwards. We don't want those
incidences to happen again. [Pause] Look at us the way God looks at us, as humans, as
beautiful creations. Look at us, and treat us with respect. Have a good attitude. You
can build bridges with your open mind, with your heart, with your attitude. I'm grateful
to the students who came up with the concept of Fresno State talks. Because of those students,
I'm here today. I'm grateful to the students at Gallaudet University you fought so hard,
and said now is the time for change. Because of them, I'm here today. I'm thankful to Hannah,
because of your part, because of the inspiration you felt, because of the message you wanted
to share with other people, to give other people the opportunity to experience a little
bit of what you've experienced, I'm here. That's why I'm here in front of you today,
to celebrate the beautiful culture and the beautiful language of deaf people. That's
why you're all here tonight to celebrate with me. I look forward to the day when someone
says, not, oh, I met a really cool deaf person, but just I met a really cool person. The fact
that they were deaf was incidental. I am a world changer, are you? I think that you are,
and that you will become world changers; that you'll become allies to the deaf community.
Thank you. [Applause]