Deaf awareness week gives students new perspectives

Every year the last week in the month of September is recognized as Deaf Awareness Week or the International Week of the Deaf. Deaf organizations worldwide hold activities and campaigns to educate people about deafness.

Schools, especially colleges and universities, are expected to and almost always have some type of activities planned for this week. Utah State University participated in Deaf Awareness activities as well during this week.

A pizza party was held Tuesday in the Communicative Disorders building.

At the party, information about the Student Association of American Instructors of the Deaf (SAAID) organization and the planned activities for Deaf Awareness Week were presented.

Friday, there was a movie shown about a court case of deaf mother involved in a custody battle.

Michael Jordan, a senior majoring in Deaf Education, is the president of SAAID at USU.

“The purpose of Deaf Awareness Week is to draw attention to people that are deaf, their accomplishments and their issues in society,” Jordan said.

The members of SAAID were actively participating in the week’s activities.

There was a table set up in the Taggart Student Center displaying different tools deaf people use to accommodate their daily lives.

“Thanks to technological advances, there are devices that prove helpful to the deaf, such as special doorbells, alarm clocks and telephone aids,” Jordan said.

On display was the TTY, a typewriter connected to a telephone so deaf people can communicate via telephone, and a vibrating alarm clock known as the “Shake Awake.”

There was a special doorbell on display which uses a flashing light as a signal once the doorbell has been struck.

Jordan said of the displays, “We just want to let people know and help them realize that deaf people have the ability to function and communicate if we let them.

“We that are not deaf should allow them to communicate in their own ways and not try to force them to communicate as we [hearing people] do.

“The deaf have a language and do not need to be ‘fixed’ or ‘integrated’ into society, they just need to be provided with the same opportunities and respect as everyone else.”