Tuesday, April 5, 2016

Nyle DeMarco's Dancing with the Stars Article Causes...

Read through the series of events and share your thoughts.

Washington Post Article about Nyle DeMarco on Dancing with the Stars 

AG Bell Foundation's response to Washington Post article creates a huge backlash from the Deaf Community 

30 comments:

  1. Nyle's platform here isn't all that revolutionary. If how I understood the Washington post is correct, he wants to expand access to ASL and help young children become ready for kindergarten. It doesn't seem like he's trying to force ASL on anyone, just make it easier to have access to. Not a crime. In the case of AG Bell...who asked them? Their assumption that ASL is dying out is preposterous. Here is an FAQ from the University of Iowa that states that between 250,000 and 500,000 people are using ASL today. (http://clas.uiowa.edu/dwllc/asl/faq-about-american-sign-language)
    Here's a 2010 article from the New York Times that says colleges have seen a 16% enrollment is ASL classes (http://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/08/education/08language.html)
    If AG Bell wants to start a controversy for no real reason, that's their right. But they should at least present facts, not opinions.

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  2. A 16% INCREASE in enrollment...sorry

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  3. I think with hot topics like this one it is important to validate every persons experience. I am not deaf so I don't know what it is like to be deaf. I do not use ASL to communicate so I don't know what that is like. I am not a deaf person that uses spoken language to communicate so I don't know what that is like. Nyle is working towards a goal that has been brought upon by his experiences and the AGB is going off of their experiences. Instead of arguing or disagreeing, both sides should see that each person that is deaf and their families have a choice to make. It is up to us as a community to educate them with no bias about all of their options and let them choose. Fighting doesn't advance either groups cause.

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  5. I completely agree Nyle Dimarco is trying to open up educational doors so that children can be better prepared for school and so they can further their education. Yes he wants to give them opportunities in ASL if AGB wants them to have oral options then AGB should give them those opportunities.

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  6. I agree with both of yall. Nyle Dimarco is just trying help children get a good education. He not forcing all the child to learn ASL.

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  7. I feel that everyone is entitled to their own opinion. So yes I agree that both have the right to be correct in this situation. Either one is correct in their own eyes and that is okay for the other not to agree

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  8. I think it, just like with everything else, everyone is entitled to their own opinion. Both parties believe they are helping the children to get an education. Nyle wants the students to learn ASL, which he believes the better options. Then AGB wants the students to learn oral for communicating. Both parties are correct and work for different children. It is depends on what is best for the child and how they want to communicate.

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  9. As many others have stated, it is important that each person has the choice of how they will communicate. Nyle is working toward making sure that all deaf children have the ability to learn ASL because it is a huge part of deaf culture, and he sees the value of the deaf community and has experienced all of the benefits of it first hand. He wants other deaf children to have the same positive experiences that he had through ASL and the deaf community. AGB takes a more scientific look at the argument. They say that the deaf population can learn to speak, so there really isn't any need for ASL. It may be true that those who are deaf have the ability to learn how to speak and function in the hearing world; however, this may not be the path that every deaf person wants to take. If a deaf person wants to speak, that's great. If a deaf person wants to sign, that's also great. What's important is that people have options and both ALS and oralism should be available options for those who are deaf.

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  11. I haven't read anything other articles from the AGB, but it seems that they are very much against ASL. It's great that some deaf children are finding success with learning to listen and speech therapy, but this article completely downplays the struggle these children go through to master these skills. It is not simply a "better" option of deaf children just because technology is advancing. Though it is very well written, this article is completely deceiving. Deafness itself is not changing. The technology available may be, but ASL is still a valued language in which deaf children can communicate in a way that better makes sense to them as visually oriented people. It allows them to be a part of an entire community that has developed into its own beautiful culture. While oralism may work for some, it takes an incredible amount of time and money and just may not be the best approach for some children. There are a lot of "facts" sited in this article that I think are bending the truth. It is completely misleading to those who aren't familiar with Deaf culture and honestly encourages prejudice on Deaf individuals who have chosen ASL even if they have chosen to speak as well. This article is a pointed insult to the Deaf community and to Nyle DeMarco personally. It is not just telling "one side of the story", the title makes their intentions very clear - "Dispelling Myths About Deafness". This article is bordering on hate speech and should be taken down.

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  12. I agree with Morgan, the last sentence of the AGB article says, "It is our hope to dispel the myths about deafness and spread the word that deaf children can hear and talk. What it means to be 'deaf' has changed." (http://www.agbell.org/in-the-news/response-nyle-dimarco/#sthash.Jhdaelzr.dpuf) That sentence alone seems offensive to me and I am not deaf and ASL is not my first or preferred language. I believe AGB could have stated their support for using assistive hearing devices and oralism in a way that was not so demeaning, and in a way that did not devalue a culture that so many people cherish. With that being said, I like what Morgan said about all of the time, practice, money, and patience that deaf children must put in to learning to listen and speak. For some, it may come natural, but others may really struggle. It should not be up to anyone other than the person affected and their family to decide how they choose to communicate and live their life. They should be presented with options that are factual and non-biased upon identification.

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  13. Both of them have the right to their own opinion. ASL and oralism are just different ways of communicating and its up to the Deaf individual to decide what they want to use. Every person is different and at the end of the day all that matters is that our students become successful. I do think that AGB is definitely bashing ASL and being offensive to those who choose to communicate through ASL.

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  14. I really liked how Nyle DiMarco really went beyond his loss of hearing to achieve his dream. Nothing has stopped him from dancing or going to the White House Dinner. He pushed forward laws to help students that were deaf or hard of hearing going into kindergarten, a chance to succeed and be able to make their dreams as well!

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  15. I think thatNyle DiMarco is try to do what he thinks is best for children. He is trying to encourage them to get an education. I do not believe he is trying to push ASL on children. He is simply using what he knows to encourage and support children like him.

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  16. I believe that Nyle DiMarco’s is an inspiration not only to the deaf community but to anyone who has ever been told that they can not do something. The DiMarco foundation's mission is to improve deaf children’s access to ASL education. The publicity DiMarco is now receiving after his America's Next Top Model win and his participation on Dancing with the Starts will help to increase awareness nationally. I believe that The DiMarco foundation’s and Alexander Graham Bell Association's recent publicity will help bring awareness to these important issues, dismiss myths associated with being deaf, and inspire positive change in the near future.

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  17. Much like everyone else here, I feel like DiMarco and the AGBA are entitled to their opinions. While DiMarco prefers and wants to get ASL to infants through his foundations, AGBA focuses more on oralism. This is all fine, in my opinion. The decision is made by the parents, so whichever approach is decided on isn't wrong to them and we or anyone else should not judge them for what they think is best for their child. I do think that DiMarco is using his newfound fame for good though because he is spreading awareness to the public eye in a way that this awareness has not really been spread before (so I applaud him for that).

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  18. I agree what most of the people have stated above. In this class, we have continually brought up that an individual and the family should make the decision they feel is best for themselves. It is not anyone else's responsibility to pressure a family or individual to make anyone specific choice. Since Nyle is not specifically stating that he feels all deaf people should be strictly using sign language, I don't feel like he is doing anything wrong. He is just promoting that sign language can be beneficial for deaf and hard of hearing individuals. AGB on the other hand is stating that Nyle's ideas are incorrect and wrong. While they have this right, I feel like it is much more important to show and promote all the options that deaf and hard of hearing families and parents have. I support that Nyle is using this platform to promote something he feels strongly about, but he is not disregarding what others believe.

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  19. I pretty much agree with everyone else. I know that the Deaf community has been at odds with AGB since the beginning and I knew generally why but had never seen reasoning for it first hand. Reading their letter really made it clear as to why the community is so against AGB. I agree with what others are saying, that it is up to parents to decide what is the best type of communication for their child, whether it be ASL or English. I am disappointed though how incorrect AGB's facts are. ASL is the third most used language in the US and more and more schools are offering it to their students. If anything ASL is gaining a mainstream popularity that it did not have before. Being Deaf does mean something different now but I do not think that AGB knows really what that difference is.

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  20. Like many have said, I believe that both programs are standing for what they believe in. I think that both programs are good but not for everyone. As we've learned everyone is different so one method will work better for one person than it would another. I just think it's great that Nyle is out there and getting the word out about deafness and bringing awareness to the cause.

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  21. It's awesome that Nyle is using his platform to raise awareness of the deaf community. Whether you agree with him or not, you can't ignore the fact that he has started a dialogue and caused people to discuss the topics at hand. Nyle was actually on Ellen today! This is probably bad to say but it's true that he is more likely to get his point across because he is beautiful. It's basic psychology that you're more likely to get attention and be heard if you're appealing to the eye. Half of the reason people are talking about him is because of his attractiveness. I think it is wise to use the many platforms he has been given, whether you're listening to him because he deaf, attractive, on tv, or whatever. It doesn't matter how he got your attention, but he got it didn't he?

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  22. I agree with many people on this post. In class, we learned that each child and each family is different. The parents and caregivers are needed to give their child the best care possible. I think it is great how Niall is using his platform to spread awareness and encourage more parents to allow their children to learn to sign.

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  23. I feel like Nyle DiMarco shared what worked for him in his experience. I also believe the article was written with good intent, but the writer didn't have a full understanding of the impact this may have on others. I think that's why it's so important to educate people about deafness and people with hearing loss.

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  24. It's unbelievable that an organization as big as the AG Bell Foundation could write something with such a negative tone. This foundation has no right to decide what's better for everyone. Each person is different and DeMarco is going about supporting his views better than the Bell Foundation. DeMarco is supporting ASL while the Bell Foundation is supporting speech and rejecting Sign Language, this is an extremely negative approach. Even the title seems negative. Maybe if the foundation expressed their views more positively without shutting anyone down, this article may have not been so badly received. It's okay for people to have different opinions, but it's not okay to say who's opinion is right and who's is wrong.

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  25. this topic is a really hot topic and my opinion is not like most and I will try my best not to offend anyone but if I do please call me out on it. I honestly do not have a strong opinion about either of them. It doesn't raise any feelings in me of support or negativity. Everyone has their own opinion and i'm just one person and my opinion isn't going to change theirs and i don't want to change theirs. no opinion is wrong. but the fame of Nyle will go down over time and this will be forgotten. and then when the media decides to put another deaf person in the spotlight another debate will come up. it's how it works.

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    1. I agree with this statement. I really feel that no opinion is wrong and that both sides should be viewed. I also think its great that Nyle has the spotlight he does to promote what he believes in. This gives the Deaf community a big voice.

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  26. Nyle was not forcing ASL upon the deaf individuals but was stating that children were deprived of the language, meaning they were not given the access to the language. If the child was given the option and chose not to learn it they were not deprived of it they just chose to live differently. So many people are unfamiliar with the deaf population and are not aware of the culture and options that are available and the bill was allowing there to be more awareness and more availability and entitlement to the deaf. AGB promotes another option, but it is an option that needs to be chosen by the individual. There are many "facts" listed throughout the article yet they are not sited by sources, in that case that merely makes them just thoughts and opinions. Your information needs to be backed up in order for it to be valid. AGB also seems to want everyone to be the same and to be equal, they don't see a value in uniqueness. People are not all the same and do not fit a perfect bill and that is okay. Both Nyle and AGB are promoting options for the deaf individuals and both are valid and can be chosen based upon the individuals needs at hand. However, you can agree to disagree at the best method. There are professional ways to conduct yourself and to represent your beliefs, especially on controversial topics such as this; I believe there was a better way to deliver the message at hand.

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  27. I think it is wonderful how Nyle is trying to open up more doors for ASL and try to relay back to the public that this IS a language and it IS in use and that we should all have an opportunity to learn and reflect on this language. I haven't ever heard of a Deaf individual being on dancing with the stars or winning America's next top model. I feel like unless your "apart" of the Deaf world then you never get this information relayed back to you which is unfortunate.

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    1. I agree it's important to realize that ASL IS a language and should be taught like any other language is. Nyle is trying to make great improvements on ASL. Having watching America's Next Top Model I think Nyle did absolutely incredible and didn't let his deafness come in the way at all!! I believe he will do the same for Dancing with the Stars and I am excited to see how he impacts the ASL in the future and what the public continues to say about Nyle

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  28. I think it is wonderful how Nyle is trying to open up more doors for ASL and try to relay back to the public that this IS a language and it IS in use and that we should all have an opportunity to learn and reflect on this language. I haven't ever heard of a Deaf individual being on dancing with the stars or winning America's next top model. I feel like unless your "apart" of the Deaf world then you never get this information relayed back to you which is unfortunate.

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