A friend of mine, Ben Moore, came over last night to sit on my porch and unwind with some wine. We got to talking. The recurring theme of our conversation? You guessed it! The Gallaudet protest.
Earlier that night, when Ben emailed me and said he wanted to stop by, I thought to myself, “This will be a good time to catch up. I’m NOT going to bring up the Gallaudet protest.” But when I saw Ben walking up the steps, I couldn’t restrain my hands as they asked, “So what’s going on in HMB?” He had just come from there, where the students are barricading the doors and maintaining the “takeover” of the building (HMB - Hall Memorial Building).
For hours we talked. I wished we had a video camera capturing the dialogue that ensued.
You see, I’m not happy with Gallaudet. I don’t like that Fernandes refuses to listen to the community and resign. I don’t like how the administration treats the students. I don’t like many things. I believe change is necessary.
But I’m not so sure I’m for the protest. (And I’m not alone in this ambivalence. Many other students at Gallaudet aren’t sure what to do.) I know that rash action can backfire. I know that quick change is misleading. When you force change on people, they may take it for a day or two but then they revert back to the old ways quickly. Change takes time.
I tell all this to Ben. I explain how the protest seems like a mess of opinions, a mass of unorganized people following each other in circles, a muss of violence and not-thought-through actions. All of this makes me shake my head and want to wash my hands of the entire affair. “I’ll just wait it out and see.”
Ben replies, “Everyone has a microphone. That’s the problem with this protest. With today’s technology, everyone can blog about whatever they want. People who remain anonymous post comments to those blogs. The media thrusts a microphone at the first person they see. Emails are forwarded again and again without thought as to who wrote it and why.” He has a point. In the past, protests were led by a select few. Those who knew what they were fighting for and knew how to talk about it. They were the voice of their protests. They gave everybody else a reason for fighting.
For the protest now at Gallaudet, it seems that most of the protesters are angry about the situation at hand but they do not really know how to articulate the reasons why they’re there. When I first went to HMB on Friday morning to see what happened and what the goals were, I encountered an undergraduate student, a young girl. I asked “so what’s going on?”
“We don’t like the president,” she airily replies. I’m stunned. That’s what she has to give us? That’s how she explains why she’s blocking the entry to the building that houses most of the classes at Gallaudet and several offices? That’s how she justifies resisting DPS and other officials trying to push them out of the building? That’s the voice of the protest?
Frustrated with her answer, I leave and walk over to the SBG entrance. People give me the once-over and demand, “What are you doing here?” I feel as if I’m not welcome. People rush around infused with energy. Some of them are just caught up in the fire of the fight. It’s fun. And that’s fine. Like Ben said, “That’s human nature. To get swept away in the spirit of things.”
That problem - too many voices, too many unthought-out actions - is probably not just happening here at Gallaudet for the protest. It’s probably true for many other protests today. Technology, while it may be good for giving more people opportunities to be heard, makes it difficult because we have to sift through so much to find the few grains of truth.
But what needs to happen now is that the microphone needs to be pointed to just a few people who know what they’re talking about, who know why this protest is necessary, and who can convince the rest of us.
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I think you described the situation pretty well. There is no unified message. There is no unified fight. The faculty who aren’t happy with the selection hope Fernandez will resign, but not necessarily for the same reasons that the students want her out, it seems. Everyone’s got the floor. No one has the floor.
Julie-
Great Posting…. I hope someone is tracking this whole event… it will be a good documentary when this settles and can be put behind us.
Exactly right. It is sad when people dismiss the protest just because they don’t like how the microphones sound when they should be paying attention to the megaphone instead. Although FSSA bears responsibility in that it has failed to come up with a clear, strong message, it is our civic responsibility as deaf people to overlook leadership flaws that may have obscured the FSSA protest and concentrate on the overarching theme of the protest: a better Gallaudet.
The vote of no confidence in Fernandes from the faculty and students which, out of all groups in the world, have had the most intimate contact with her leadership is telling. When we compound this rift of trust with disturbing statistics, from a 13% graduation rate at Gallaudet in 2005 to the increased number of remedial english classes this fall, it is clear Fernandes needs to go.
Gallaudet’s embarrassing admission standards are biting FSSA in the ass right now because there are legions of, well, stupid students running around with microphones. But look past the microphones and you will see a noble and justified cause for education reform.
Instead of dissing the microphones, we should be helping the protest by helping to ensure the megaphone is in control of the “few people who know what they’re talking about.”
Now, if only we can get Julie to don the megaphone.
Well put. If you want to get a clear message of the whole protest - who will you go to? Commerson and his entourage? I applaud that he has the balls to lead something like this, but a leader must have have the ability to communicate the vision and purpose of this protest. There isn’t one. It’s almost like he’s running a pack of lemmings toward the cliff.
You did have an interesting conversation with Ben Moore. I don’t think it’s microphone. Microphone is just for talking. I think everybody becomes a self-appointed news editor, thinking that “anonymous” prevails. Blogging and v-logging are important for the sake of history. Our future generations will interpret and formulate our actions. Your input is important and so is everybody else’s input. We are history in the making whether we like it or not. Anyway, do tell Ben I said hi!
Right-o!
I was informed by a friend, who is visiting to lend her support, that there is a meeting in the Altrium with a lawyer, Mark Goldstone. There are many people attending other than the students themselves.
It is with hopes that today will be the day they’ll be using the time to re-organize, discuss on how to address the real issues for the protest to the media and assign who will be responsible.
Good observation.
But it’s like with TV. You choose to watch CBSNews, CNN, FoxNews, etc based on your own personal preferences. And in the Blog world, there’s DeafDC.com and Draco Malfoy with his website-that-shall-not-be-named. :)
Unfortunately, it’s just becoming easier to read between the lines (or signs). Attempts to sway the BOT have become futile.
Indeed, a very insightful point you have, Julie.
As a matter of fact, I’m curious to see what people who are considered “neutral” or are not in favor of the movement have to say about this entire movement.
So far, all I feel that I have been reading are the pro-movement views. Please note that I am not inclined to assume that people who are in full support of the movement are fully anti-jkf. I acknowledge that a good number of individuals point out that it is not necessarily about JKF herself but instead, it has to do with the entire process that was alleged to be completely flawed from the beginning. But again, that seems to be a stance of the pro-movement folks?
So, if there are any out there that have mixed/neutral or opposing views to the movement, please do share. We all can learn a thing or two.
I wouldn’t say I’m neutral about the protest, but I definitely have mixed feelings. As a grad student at Gallaudet, I’m upset that this protest has gotten to the point that it has–disrupting life (and education) on campus. I went to the emergency GSA meeting last night to try and get more information about what exactly they are protesting. All I found out was that they have two demands: to re-open the search process (which would necessitate JKF stepping down) and to have no punishments for people involved in the protest. They are not willing to negotiate. Over and over I heard, “The system is flawed. The system needs to change.” I asked, “What are you hoping to accomplish? What of the process is flawed? What specifically needs to be changed?” My questions were strategically ignored. When I persisted, I was told that the faculty had a list of guidelines, but no one seemed to know what these guidelines entailed. Needless to say, I was disappointed with the outcome of the meeting. I was hoping for some real answers, which I guess was too much to ask for. If I’m going to be involved with something, I want to know what I’m fighting for. So far, I have yet to hear anything that convinces me this is a cause worth fighting for. Honestly, I don’t think JKF will be a good president. I don’t think she has shown effective leadership skills, and I don’t think she will be able to make money for the university. But I don’t think that this protest will solve those issues. I think that letting her run the university will bring these issues to the forefront and then the BoT will address them. If the university isn’t making money, she won’t stay long. I think that people are being too short-sighted. If they’re looking to change the system, they should focus on that–for the next time we have a new president (which in my opinion will be relatively soon). It will take a lot of evidence to convince anyone to go back in time and reverse the decision to make JKF president. So far I haven’t seen any of that evidence.
I hope this sheds some light on the issue from a different point of view.
Interesting conversation, Julie. Last week I was talking to a friend of mine (a deaf former faculty member at Gallaudet) and we speculated that the root cause here is that none of the candidates for president was ideal. We actually went over the ones we know — Stern (no Ph.D. or college administrative experience), Wiener (nice guy but not presidential material), Roz (she apparently had as many detractors as JKF when she was Provost), Glenn (who apparently did not have a good interview with the search committee), etc. And then there is JKF, who has impressive credentials but is largely disliked on campus. It’s like a no-win situation, or so it seems — and that’s one reason why it’s so difficult for me to envision a better outcome.
You say you wish that JKF would resign, but would that really solve the situation? There doesn’t seem to be anybody else to step in.
If JKF resigned (and I don’t think she will), it would also raise troubling issues of governance: who runs Gallaudet, the all-volunteer Board of Trustees charged with oversight, or an emotional group of protesters with no clear vision or message?
I think that the protesters would be smarter to focus on cooperating with the administration so that they can have a say in who becomes Provost. They would gain a lot of credibility (with me, anyway) if they show that they put the good of Gallaudet first. But that is just my opinion.
Hm. that would explain the confusion I had when I tried to examine the students’ side of the story.
At first I thought this was due to Identfiy politics and I do come from a similar background as JFK expect that deafness doesn’t run in my family. I’ve had problems with ASL miltiants in the past. I’m not against sign or anything like that and I do try to treat others with respect. I’m neutral on the whole thing as I do not have inside info. I’ve always tried to be fair despite my bias.
Unfortunately, to say this protest has caused deep divisions in the Deaf Community is an understatment.
You guys have got quite a mess to clean up. There’s distrust among the students and the BoT.
Also, this isn’t limited to Gally. Those who are not Deaf are a bit skeptical that this isn’t about ID poltics. You’ll need to convince the people out there this isn’t about ID poltics. As you have noted, you’ll need to send a clear message.
I’m sorry to say this but you need to come up with some hard facts to make your case vs JFK. Despite the lack of facts, I do have the feeling something odd is going on. I can’t present my case just on my feelings though.
I think Chris is correct and that the long term strategy will have to empathize restoring trust and accountiablity among the administration and to cooperate with it so that they can have a say in chosing a provost.
This may not be directly relevant to this topic.
But, I am thinking… why did Gallaudet’s Board of Trustees and Presidential Search Committee interview the top candidates who were largely affiliated with Gallaudet with exception to Mr. Ron Stern (He’s an alumnus though).
1. Dr. Roz. Rosen- a former Provost/Vice President for Academic Affairs
2. Dr. Glenn Anderson- a former chair of Board of Trustees of Gallaudet University
3. Dr. Stephen Weiner- an associate professor of communication studies and a former dean of undergraduate studies at Gallaudet University.
4. Dr. Jane K. Fernandes- a former Provost and soon to be the president of Gallaudet University
5. Dr. Thomas Marshall-a professor of Administration and Supervision at Gallaudet University.
6. Mr. Stern-A current Superindent of New Mexico School for the Deaf and a former Director of Curriculum and Instruction at California School for the Deaf-Fremont (CSDF, in my humble opinion, is Gallaudet’s satellite to an extent).
So, here you have, the top candidates for the President’s position and they are all AFFILIATED with Gallaudet to an extent. To me, that’s very troubling. That’s nearly 90 percent! That’s not the norm at other universities/colleges.
I am certain that there are qualified deaf candiates with Ph.D/Ed.Ds with some higher education experience out there-not necessarily a Ph.D or Ed.D in education alone. Universities and Colleges usually like to look for outsiders to apply for the president’s position, so they can bring in their experiences outside of the hiring University. Universities would want the finalists who are to be the next president to be able to share their perspectives and to contribute to the University’s goals and objectives in a positive manner.
We are talking about a combined of twenty four years of administrative experience in the top two posts at Gallaudet University (Dr. Jordan and Dr. Fernandes). I think that’s a tad bit too long for a dynamic university like Gallaudet as Gallaudet deals with many issues surrounding the university. Gallaudet University is not just merely an academic institution alone which can concentrate on developing and expanding its educational goals. It is a cultural and sociological institution that bridges itself upon the advances of science and cultural crossroads.
To help Gallaudet flourish in the 21st century, you would need a leader who has a neutral relationship with Gallaudet and is indeed, open and to be able to bring in management and leadership of great expertise in a variety of fields.
I honestly will be greatly disheartened if JKF resigns and Gallaudet University hires an individual with a great affiliation with Gallaudet. Gallaudet should and needs to look OUTSIDE of Washington, D.C.
You seem to forget that for those of us who went to college in the 60’s and 70’s and some of the 80’s, our choices were VERY limited. Colleges/universities didn’t provide interpreters. A deaf student at a hearing university was a big exception, not the norm. And employment was limited if you wanted a professional job and needed an interpreter - it was usually something in the field of deafness (teaching, VR counselor, etc.) or with the federal government which was covered by the Rehab Act. Thus, it doesn’t seem at all strange to me that most of the people interviewed have a connection to Gallaudet in one way or another.
Dan,
That is an excellent point! However, it must be noted that Gallaudet University said that of all deaf people who obtain a bachelor’s degree, 80 percent of them obtain it at Gallaudet.
http://www.examiner.com/a-1104.....sity_.html
(I also recall Dr. Jane Fernandes citing this stat last May)
Anthony Mowl also cites this stat in his article at:
http://www.insidehighered.com/.....05/05/mowl
So, if this is a fact, then it creates small pool of alternatives who could be eligible for Gallaudet President (and remember the candidate MUST be deaf).
Just wondered, since a small portion has taken over HMB, locking down the building, cancelling classes for those who do not wish to be involved or paid for their education out of their own pockets, why should those who don’t want to be part suffer? I mean, it’s just plain STUPID that twice a bomb threat has been called in, and some of my friends are bitching because they can’t go to work or attend their classes.
It’d be nice if i could go somewhere and NOT have someone vent their opinions about the issue at hand. What i think is even more interesting, some of those involved have never attended Gally or just jumping on the bandwagon.
yours truly,
a. stranger
The image of Galluadet as a whole through the media makes it look like T.O. while he was in Philadelphia.