- Nic F. Anderson
It’s #DeafLGBTQWeek
It’s National Deaf LGBTQ+ week, a project that began in 2018 by the Deaf Queer Resource Center and now occurs annually in April, with alternating weeks. This year’s National Deaf LGBTQ Week is from April 4-10.
The Deaf Queer Resource Center is a QTPOC LGBTQ-led nonprofit based out of San Fransisco, California. The week highlights and raises awareness on the deaf and hard of hearing community, specifically those who are also in the LGBTQ+ community in the United States.
Five Ways to show up for deaf peers:
Learn basic signs: There are many YouTube videos on the internet that will teach you basic signs for things such as how are you?; my name is…; what is your name; and other commonly used greetings and phrases.
Take an ASL class: Queer ASL is an online ASL class taught by two deaf queer people. There are constantly new class cycles.
Make an effort: Include deaf people but don’t assume that all deaf people can read lips, especially now considering we wear masks.
Remember: Deaf people can do everything you can except hear so make the accommodation but don’t overdo it. For starters, it’s weird. Imagine someone treating you differently because you’re short.
Subtitles: If you make videos, especially on social media (yes, stories count), use subtitles. TikTok has a feature that will autogenerate subtitles; however, it isn’t perfect. Review the subtitles and fix the words or sentences that aren’t correct.
Five Deaf Content Creators to Follow:
2. Chella Man
3. Shaheem
4. Bruce
5. SilentWorld
Editor's note: When National Deaf LGBTQ+ week is over, deaf community members don't cease to exist. Continue to do the work.