Gallaudet and the protests

I tried to understand the motives behind the protest, but the reasons just seemed kinda bogus to me. "She's cold and distant." Or, "she doesn't have good management skills." Or, "the board was not inclusive enough in its search." None of these seem like reasons to camp out for weeks.

To me, it seems like there were two more likely reasons:

* protesting just for the sake of protesting, which college students have been known to do;

* objection to the fact that she wasn't raised with ASL but learned it as an adult instead. To me, this smacks of extreme elitism and predjudice.

In my opinion, the motives were probably a combination of those two things.

It would have been very interesting to see a poll of the full student body and faculty, to see how representative these very vocal protesters were.

Originally posted by They call me Doctor Doom.:
I tried to understand the motives behind the protest, but the reasons just seemed kinda bogus to me. "She's cold and distant." Or, "she doesn't have good management skills." Or, "the board was not inclusive enough in its search."

first "reason": yeah, weak, get over it.
second: completely valid objection. she was hired to manage the school.
third: implication is preferencial treatment, insider job, etc… again, valid in my books (if in fact true, of course)

It would have been very interesting to see a poll of the full student body and faculty, to see how representative these very vocal protesters were.

would only reveal the same as at any other protest. were all protesters at the battle in seattle (or quebec city, etc) the violent anarchists we saw on TV? or even representative of the population of those cities, or the country?

Originally posted by sweetcell:
were all protesters at the battle in seattle (or quebec city, etc) the violent anarchists we saw on TV? or even representative of the population of those cities, or the country?

yes, no and no.

Originally posted by pdx pollard:
how can you possibly be so sure its not a possibility, you can see it with some skepticism sure but to compare it to the theory that ufos are time machines is ludicrous

If it is heating up a bit it's due more to solar flare activity than to Al Gore.

Increased solar radiation could be a good thing for Canadian farmers, btw.

I honestly don't think they laid down the law and made it clear they weren't going to change their decision.

To me this was just news for the sake of it being news. Let the lady do her job and if she messes up then there is a reason.

They kept saying she is part deaf which is not a reason to fire. You cannot fire based on bias. I wonder if they will cave in for everything. Sometimes you have to lay down the law.

Originally posted by sweetcell:

Originally posted by They call me Doctor Doom.:
I tried to understand the motives behind the protest, but the reasons just seemed kinda bogus to me. "She's cold and distant." Or, "she doesn't have good management skills." Or, "the board was not inclusive enough in its search."

first "reason": yeah, weak, get over it.
second: completely valid objection. she was hired to manage the school.
third: implication is preferencial treatment, insider job, etc… again, valid in my books (if in fact true, of course)

It would have been very interesting to see a poll of the full student body and faculty, to see how representative these very vocal protesters were.

would only reveal the same as at any other protest. were all protesters at the battle in seattle (or quebec city, etc) the violent anarchists we saw on TV? or even representative of the population of those cities, or the country?

Actually several polls were done last year prior to announcing JK as president-elect. Polls were given to the undergraduate, graduate and faculty and all of the rolls had an overwhelming percentage of "no" to JK as president.

The issue never was and still is not whether or not Jane is Deaf enough. Like I said before, our current president was not born Deaf. He didn't learn ASL until he was 23, and what 40+ years later his ASL is not any better than Jane's..but the community still loves him. So focusing on the "Deaf enough" issue really is not fair.


Believe me, no one was protesting for the sake of protesting. This interrupted our education and our lives, no one wanted it come come to that. But (pardon the pun) when people turn a Deaf ear, things have to be done to ensure you're heard.

If you are really interested in the reasons behind the protest, the thoughts and feelings of other students, faculty, and alum check out

www.ridorlive.com
www.elisawrites.com
www.deafdc.com
www.deafread.com

I understand that from the outside looking in, it's hard to understand whats going on at Gallaudet and why…but a protest, especially one as long as this one was–was not something anyone wanted. No one wanted to interrupt our education, close our school down, or have students starve themselves, get run over, or thrown in jail–but it happened, and it happened because Gallaudet is a basically the center of the Deaf community–it is a very loved and cherished place and everyone just wants whats best for the school and its future.

The fact that hundreds of current students were willing and preparing to withdraw from Gally, potential students were turning down admissions, and Deaf people all over the world were supporting this cause, shows that the issue is not merely about being 'Deaf enough'. And the protests were not just a temper tantrum—we've got better things to do than that :-)

Hey missnatasha…thanks for providing some much needed info. I, too, was having trouble understanding what the hubbub was all about. The media (print and TV) did a terrible job reporting this story. I did hear or read somewhere about how Fernandez got the job (flawed search) and how the majority of faculty voted against her, but it seemed that what was broadcast most often was basically pictures and blurbs of students that closed a campus. No further explanation. Perhaps, the faculty and/or board along with the student reps. will make an effort to bring to light the multiple reasons behind the protest, the no confidence votes, and the final ouster…That would do a lot to help remove the image that the students wanted her out because she wasn't "deaf enough".