Deaf research scholar at St . Cloud State University
Xiaorong Zhou
By Fred Maahs , Jr .
I have had the pleasure of working with Xiaorong Zhou at St . Cloud State University over the past two years during my interactions with her colleagues , Dr . Kathryn Johnson and Dr . Amy Herbert Knopf . I was told by Dr . Johnson that Xiaorong was excellent in computer , design , and web site skills , and an outstanding research scholar .
She ' s bright . She ’ s talented . She ’ s funny . She ’ s shy . Oh , and she just happens to be Deaf
Please tell me about the place where you grew up I was born in a beautiful place called Wenzhou , where I have a lot of fond memories as a young girl . I used to visit many small stores with my Deaf sister , always being warmly welcomed by the shop owners , getting our hair braided , and giving us small treats . We then would go with many of our Deaf friends to visit old bridges that span small creeks and rivers , catch fishes as we go , and chat freely in Chinese Sign Language . There were once many ancient Chinese homes with large backyards where a lot of kids would play in and celebrate holidays together under the shades of the mandarin groves .
What was life like in China as a Deaf person ? Even while I grew up in a safe enough environment as a Deaf girl , there were still a lot of discrimination , oppression , and misconceptions about Deaf people in China , including poor families discarding Deaf girls in favor of boys . The hearing people in China often assumed that Deaf people were ready to steal things every time they walk into a shop to buy something . In addition , there was a serious lack of quality educational opportunities for Deaf people , causing them to end up working in a factory after graduating from high school ( if they got that far in school ). Today , Deaf people can work at the factory , as a teacher at school , at a local business , or for the government . Back then , many Deaf people would gather for community events , but nowadays , there are a lot fewer Deaf people attending community events .
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