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I think it's really cool that Black American Sign Language is in some ways more conservative than the kind of #ASL you learn at Gallaudet University.

Other ASL varieties use a lot of handshapes influenced by English spelling. But black ASL has kept more of the original handshapes, because black #deaf schools didn't get hit so hard by the oralist reformers who made war on ASL.

You can see BASL in action at csdhh.org/black-asl

#BlackHistoryMonth


Black ASL — CSDHH

CSDHH
#asl #blackhistorymonth #deaf
in reply to Yingtai

modulux
modulux
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I don't know anything about sign language, and I can't easily access it, so just asking for curiosity's sake: what's this stuff about an oralist war against ASL and what is the implication of the more conservative language? If it's too much hassle to explain, do you know of any text about it?
in reply to modulux

Yingtai
Yingtai
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Oralism is heartbreaking, honestly. The background is that English is a second language for the deaf. Oralists thought deaf kids would be better at English - and hence more integrated into hearing society - if they just didn't learn sign language. But that's not what you get when kids get severely impoverished language input during their critical period. You just cripple their language faculty for LIFE. It's harder for them to learn any language, including English. HEARTBREAKING.
in reply to Yingtai

modulux
modulux
• •
Ouch, that sounds pretty awful indeed. Thanks, I had no idea something like that had gone on, but it is sadly not that surprising considering how society tends to deal with disabled people.
in reply to Yingtai

Yingtai
Yingtai
• •

If you'd like to see how ASL has changed over time, here's an excerpt from "The Preservation of Sign Language", a historic speech given in 1913 by George W. Veditz, the president of the National Association of the Deaf president in response to the oralist movement.

youtube.com/watch?v=XS2c07HCdy…


SHARE: Veditz Then and Now

This video was created by Jr. NAD members during the 2015 Jr. NAD National Conference in Orlando, Florida.TEXT-ON-SCREEN: Black background appears with white...
YouTube
in reply to Yingtai

Yingtai
Yingtai
• •

BTW, I am neither deaf nor American. If anyone can point me to accounts that educate people about ASL or deaf culture here on Fedi, I would be grateful. This is something I miss from Twitter.

Also, apologies for not being able to supply a reference to back up what I said about BASL. It is common knowledge among ASL researchers and they were the ones who told me.

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