With Betsy DeVos confirmed as secretary for Department of Education today, the majority of Republicans who voted for DeVos are really stupider than stupid. Gallaudet University is under the watch of Department of Education. All the employees and students might possibly face the changes in the future. Can students stage a walkout or engage in other forms of protest at Gallaudet? Yes, they can express their own political opinions peacefully. The students should not be attacked because they are entitled to have educational rights–as in human rights.

An educational right is a superb condition because higher learning has evolved through times of oppression and opportunity. Gallaudet University was supposed to be about intellectual life of Deaf people since 1864. We all remember about 1988 and 2006 protest at Gallaudet that we shall trust tomorrow and as for today, we need to remember that there is always a room for making new meanings, it is very important to remember that! 1988 Deaf President Now (DPN) was all about civil movement.

Betsy DeVos is totally unaware of Individuals with Disabilities Education Act [IDEA] and Americans with Disabilities Act [ADA] that raises a huge problem even at Gallaudet University. She is all about–simple and obvious: divide and conquer. She is now the spokesperson to destroy the educational life of Deaf people’s intellectual life. None of her educational leadership shows a great deal of damages. Deaf people will be suffering from not getting enough educational rights. After all, that is why ADA was one of many reasons created in 1990 because of DPN.

After seeing all the Republicans who voted for DeVos, one senator has surprised me–John McCain from Arizona. He was on the Board of Trustees (BoT) at Gallaudet University. He was supposed to be fierce leader in supporting education and…Higher learning for Deaf students. Apparently, it looks like it not anymore now. Is this why he resigned from BoT because of 2006 protest that he could not handle the truth? Senator McCain took $50,000 donation from Betsy DeVos was all about money—he does not care about people but money.

In next few years, the Department of Education–the ability to make even more difficult for future students to tell stories about it emotionally that will pass on to other generation of future students at Gallaudet. It is very much an emotional memory as much as anything else. I’m really surprised that Senator McCain would not join the resistance and block Betsy DeVos to run the department. What a shame!

What kind of power dynamics of education means to you? Why do you think education is important today and tomorrow? What are your reasons to embrace education for everyone’s sake? What is the present situation about the future education at Gallaudet University? What are the concerns of not getting enough education?

-JT

Copyright @ 2017 Jason Tozier

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