USU deaf panel speaks out

On Wednesday, Oct. 2 at 7:30 p.m., Utah State University American Sign Language (ASL) Club hosted a Deaf Panel in the Jon M. Huntsman School of Business to bring awareness to the often overlooked culture of Deaf people.

Led by USU ASL Club president Jojo Savea, the Deaf Panel created a platform for the five panel members to share their insights into the Deaf community. Audience members sent in questions that the panel answered via a phone application called “Poll Everywhere.”

The Deaf Panel members were Christina Call, Meseret Ricks, Itzel Garcia, Hunter Madsen and Brachen Alder.

“I love being in the silent world,” Call said. Born and raised in California, she came to Utah for work after graduating from Gallaudet University. “As a deaf woman, I have to prove my abilities. It can be challenging, but I do my best.” She enjoys being different, especially because she can communicate underwater.

When Ricks moved to the United States from Ethiopia, she didn’t know a language. She eventually learned sign language with her sister, who is also deaf.

“I love the humor, joking and dramatic expressions that comes from knowing sign language. Other people’s expressions are so boring when they talk,” Ricks said. When her siblings argued when she was younger, Ricks sometimes took out her hearing aid, so she couldn’t hear them anymore.

Garcia, a senior at USU majoring in linguistics, said she loves being deaf because she can sign through windows without having to go into a building to talk to people. “We’ve all struggled. It’s okay to ask questions and to show your skill in signing,” Garcia said. “Just don’t stare. We’re human, too.”

“I remember wanting to join a band to play the trumpet. People told me, ‘You can’t do that.’ So I did it to prove people wrong and overcome barriers,” Madsen said. He used ASL in Washington while serving as a missionary for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Madsen said, “There should be closed captions in movies, so more people would understand Deaf culture.”

Alder loves how tight-knit the Deaf community is. According to him, if everyone was the same in the world, life would be bland and boring. “Communicate with Deaf people. Keep them in the loop. If you reversed the roles, and you were in a room full of Deaf people, you would feel distanced,” Alder said.

He is the only panel member who is married. “I feel bad for my wife and daughter. If my daughter is crying, I can’t hear it. I get a good night’s sleep, though,” Alder said.

Audience members started to leave around 9:00 p.m. That’s when Savea brought the panel to a close.

According to Savea, “Not a lot of people know about ASL, which provided a great opportunity to have the Deaf Panel.” She also created the event since September is National Deaf Awareness Month. Savea said, “I love to walk around campus and see people signing, along with seeing the diversity in the Deaf community.”

When Savea was a freshman, she wasn’t happy with the USU ASL Club. According to her, the club only had two to three events per year. Now the club has meetings every Wednesday. Savea said instead of only five to seven people showing up, at least 30 people come to activities.

The purpose of the USU ASL Club, according to the “Our Mission” page on the club’s website, is “to improve sign language skills and deaf awareness to any person in our local community.”

Savea’s roommate, Julianne Kidd, said, “I support them. Being Jojo’s roommate has shown me a different world to experience. It’s fun to see how many came to the event.” She said she loved the diversity of the panelists.

“I thought they were great,” Stefanie Burns said, who works for USU. “I enjoyed learning what it feels like to be deaf.”