Dandelion
Christie
from a new generation, has had more time to mature from a flower into a puffball. In
contrast, “The Man’s” violence is carelessly impulsive and he realizes too late that it causes
the seeds spread--ensuring his defeat and our victory. And understand that the victory has
come because of one dandelion.
There are a number of reasons the end of this poem is amazing. If a yellow
dandelion can shape shift into a white puffball, what is our magic as Deaf people? What
is our special power? This brings to mind an African American folktale called The People
Who Could Fly (Lester, 1969). This fantasy tale is about one enslaved African who helps
the others remember magical words. These words were forgotten in the trauma of being
forced to leave Africa. As they rediscover the words and say them, they fly free, back to
their homeland. Do we carry magic in our Deaf genes? Our language? Or is it in the fact
that when threatened, we discover our powers of resistance?
Back in 1920, Deaf folks did address Booth’s quote about sign language as a weed
language. During the National Association of the Deaf conference that year, the
Association adopted “The Weed Language” resolution: “Resolved, That we condemn in
the strongest terms the attitude assumed by Mr. Frank W. Booth in his public declaration
at the recent joint convention of teachers at Mt. Airy that ‘sign language is a weed language
that should be eradicated,’ and that we consider anyone who seeks to deprive the Deaf of
the language of signs an enemy to their interest and happiness” (Roberts, 1920, p. 99). The
documentation of this attack on our language, and their response is impressive while also
demonstrating that they knew something about language deprivation even back then.
But what is most amazing about the ending of this poem is how Valli’s facial
expression changes with the scattering of the seeds from the dandelions. Valli’s initial
expression is that of “The Man;” that is, his face shows disgust at the spreading of the
seeds. However, in the last seconds of the poem you can just perceive in Valli’s face the
shadow of a peaceful smile. Just a sliver of smile, but it is there. It blows my mind every
time. It is as if he is assuring us of the value of even one Deaf person who takes a stand.
Veditz has proclaimed, “As Long as we have Deaf people on Earth, we will have sign
language” (Veditz, 1933). Here, Valli has promised that as long as there are those who
don’t want Deaf people on Earth, there will be at least one Deaf person who will resist.
Alice Walker (1997) said, “Resistance is the secret joy” (p. 281). And right there she has
named that overwhelming feeling I had the first time I saw Valli perform this poem.
Further, the power of ASL poetry is highlighted by the fact that Valli is able to condense
the feelings of being an undesirable defective to joy in less than a minute and a half.
The poem, Dandelion, thus, becomes a work of ARTivism. In other words, Clayton
Valli was an activist who advocated for social justice through his poetry. In a great number
of his poems, Valli addressed the oppression of ASL, institutionalized audism, forced
social assimilation of Deaf people, and the medicalization of Deaf identity (see Christie
and Wilkins, 2006 for a further discussion as well as Luczak’s English translation of
Dandelion and Pawns in Valli, 2009). He was one of the first Deaf people to call attention
to the impact of AIDS on the Deaf community. In addition, his poetry celebrated the beauty
of ASL, and the value of future generations of Deaf people.
The Hearing Basque poet Miguel de Unamuno (1993) wrote “to live is to work, and
the only thing/which lasts…Throw yourself like a seed as you walk,/and into your own
field” (p. 234). Clayton Valli’s groundbreaking contributions as an ASL poet and
researcher of ASL poetics are the work of a precious life that will last. In the image of
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