More than 100 members of the Madison's deaf community area met at UW-Madison's Grainger Hall Saturday to promote awareness of the deaf culture on campus.
Accessibility Advocates and the UW-Madison Multicultural Student Center cosponsored the event.
There is very low deaf student population on campus, so people aren't exposed to deaf culture and American Sign Language,"" Accessibility Advocates President Eric Nooker said.
Nooker emphasized the importance of learning how to communicate and approach people in the deaf community.
Attendees included deaf UW-Madison students, American Sign Language students, interpreters and several members of Children of Deaf Adults.
To kick off the event, planners showed the film ""Through Deaf Eyes,"" a PBS documentary covering nearly 200 years of American deaf culture. The movie included interviews with historians, deaf Americans and several performances by deaf media artists. The film challenged viewers to consider their preconceptions and opinions of the deaf community and culture.
According to Jen Nilsestuen, event planner and member of Accessibility Advocates, the film's perspective was informative for members of the audience with hearing ability, while also an interesting and personal for deaf attendees.
""It was not about overcoming something,"" Nilsestuen said. ""It was more a celebration of deaf culture.""
Vice President of Accessibility Advocates Kate Skarda encouraged interaction between the deaf and hearing communities.
""In a campus of 40,000, we really want to emphasize diversity, and deaf culture is a very diverse culture in and of itself,"" she said. ""This event is to promote awareness of deaf culture, to know that not all deaf people are the same and to celebrate that.""
Skarda, who is deaf, said communication between the deaf world and the hearing world should not be an issue.
""However we communicate, it is a language,"" she said. ""It's possible '¦ anything is possible.""
Keith Wann, an American Sign Language comedian, performed during the event. Wann is a hearing CODA and framed his act around the frequently amusing comparisons between the ""deaf world"" and the ""hearing world."" He joked about the difficulties of getting his parents' attention, translating certain English idioms into sign language and the mischievous things he got away with as a child.
Organizers said the event was a great success and that they hope to make it annual.
""It was really nice to get everybody together so they could talk to each other and share experiences,"" Nilsestuen said. ""It's something that hasn't really happened in Madison ever.""
