A Note from the President
By Samuel J. Supalla
I begin this President's Note with the
artwork shown here. What is so special about
this? The slogan, ASL First has a very clear and
socially impactful meaning. I believe ASL First
represents a long-awaited social awareness
about deaf people's language. Let me expand.
The slogan came from the deaf community that
responded to a recent dispute related to LEAD-K.
LEAD-K is a campaign group that provides
leadership in the introduction and passing of state
bills for the language assessment with deaf
children around the country, but its focus on ASL
seems to have been diluted. This situation
inspired a deaf artist by the name of Nancy
Rourke to produce the artwork. Please see the
following links for more information regarding the
dispute:
https://www.facebook.com/TheDailyMoth/videos/2244057662332317/
https://www.facebook.com/deafpeopleunited/photos/pcb.22153062820452
35/2215305865378610/?type=3&theater
https://www.facebook.com/168758442874/videos/357520798339731/
The ASL First slogan represents a voice
for the American deaf community as it defines its
“Reproduced with permission from Nancy Rourke”
relationship between ASL and English as two
____
languages. Prior to ASL First, ASL and English had been described as 'equal'. As the primary
stakeholders of ASL, deaf people seem to have begun to understand that there is more to the equation
and note the significance of ASL being a signed language whereas English is not.
ASL First reinforces the concept of linguistic accessibility, which is central to SASL's mission.
Deaf Americans must have access to learning and using ASL. Deaf people cannot hear English; thus
they rely on vision for learning and using language. This also impacts the issue of English literacy. For
example, learning English literacy must be made viable via ASL and a reading methodology must be
considered as part of this picture.
With ASL First, research and scholarship can follow through the development of a socially
beneficial agenda. By this, I mean that scientific inquiry with ASL at the forefront is critical, and
researchers and scholars have a social responsibility to see that the welfare of deaf people's lives
improves as well. The ASL First framework can contribute towards creating stronger, more productive
deaf American citizens. This new focus takes the discussion to a whole new level, where deaf people's
identity can be enhanced by emphasizing ASL.
The Power of ASL
6
Winter 2018 – Issue 12