Deaf President Now (DPN) was a student protest at Gallaudet University, the liberal arts university for the deaf in Washington, DC, pushing for the selection of a deaf university president. The university, established by an act of Congress in 1857 to serve the deaf, had always been led by a hearing president. The DPN protesters felt that the lack of a deaf president suggested the belief that a nonhearing person was not competent to administer a university, as well as that deaf people were, at large, incapable of controlling their own fates. It has been suggested that Gallaudet United Now Movement be merged into this article or section. ... The word deaf can have very different meanings depending on the background of the person speaking or the context in which the word is used. ... Aerial photo (looking NW) of the Washington Monument and the White House in Washington, DC. Washington, D.C., officially the District of Columbia (also known as D.C.; Washington; the Nations Capital; the District; and, historically, the Federal City) is the capital city and administrative district of the United... Congress in Joint Session. ... 1857 was a common year starting on Thursday (see link for calendar). ...

DPN took place over an eight day period between March 6 and March 13, 1988. Because it received national media attention for the entire duration of the protest, the event is considered a watershed moment that raised awareness of Deaf culture. On the fourth day of the protest, Ted Koppel on ABC's Nightline interviewed some of the major actors in the clash. Parallels were drawn between DPN and the American Civil Rights Movement. is the 65th day of the year (66th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 72nd day of the year (73rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1988 (MCMLXXXVIII) was a leap year starting on Friday (link displays 1988 Gregorian calendar). ... This article describes aspects of Deaf cultures. ... Photo by Bob DAmico/ABC Ted Koppel, anchor of the ABC News program Nightline. ... The American Broadcasting Company (ABC) operates television and radio networks in the United States and is also shown on basic cable in Canada. ... Nightline is a late-night hard and soft news program broadcast by ABC in the United States, and has a franchised formula to other networks and stations elsewhere in the world. ... Martin Luther King is perhaps most famous for his I Have a Dream speech, given in front of the Lincoln Memorial during the 1963 March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom This article is about the civil rights movement following the Brown v. ...

The lead up

Deaf students at Gallaudet began campaigning for a deaf president when Jerry Lee, who had been president since 1984, resigned in 1987. Students supporting the selection of a deaf president participated in a large rally on March 1. It has been suggested that Gallaudet United Now Movement be merged into this article or section. ... This article is about the year. ... Year 1987 (MCMLXXXVII) was a common year starting on Thursday (link displays 1987 Gregorian calendar). ... is the 60th day of the year (61st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...

To Advice for the rally, Gallaudet alumnus John Yeh printed flyers that read:

"It's time! In 1842, a Roman became president of the University of Notre Dame. In 1875, a woman became president of Wellesley College. In 1886, a Jew became president of Yeshiva University. In 1926, a Black person became president of Howard University. AND in 1988, the Gallaudet University presidency belongs to a DEAF person." The University of Notre Dame IPA: is a Catholic[4] institution located in Notre Dame, an unincorporated section of St. ... For other uses, see Wellesley College (disambiguation). ... Yeshiva University is a private Jewish university in New York City whose first component was founded in 1886. ... Howard University is a university located in Washington, D.C., USA. An historically black university, Howard was established in 1867 by congressional order and named for Oliver O. Howard. ...

Yeh underwrote a good deal of the costs of the rally, including the thousands of yellow-and-blue buttons that read "Deaf President Now." Many other alumni participated in the events as well. A candlelight vigil occurred on March 5. The board of trustees considered three finalists: Elisabeth Ann Zinser, Vice-Chancellor for Academic Affairs at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro; I. King Jordan, Gallaudet's Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, who had been deaf since early adulthood; and Harvey Corson, president of a Louisiana residential school, who had been born deaf. This article is about the day. ... A Vice-Chancellor (commonly called the VC) of a university in the United Kingdom, other Commonwealth countries, and some universities in Hong Kong, is the de facto head of the university. ... The University of North Carolina at Greensboro is an American public university in Greensboro, North Carolina and is a constituent institution of the University of North Carolina system. ... I. King Jordan (b. ... Harvey J. Corson, Ed. ...

On March 6, 1988, the board announced the selection of Zinser — the sole hearing candidate among several qualified deaf applicants. Further causing astonishment and outrage, Zinser had little experience with deaf education and no sign language skills at all. is the 65th day of the year (66th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1988 (MCMLXXXVIII) was a leap year starting on Friday (link displays 1988 Gregorian calendar). ... Two sign language Intepreters working as a team for a school. ...

The protest

Student leaders Bridgetta Bourne, Jerry Covell, Greg Hlibok, and Tim Rarus, and other students and protesters associated with the DPN movement quickly closed the University and barricaded the campus gates using heavy duty bicycle locks and school buses with the air let out of the tires. The protesters issued four demands, which were supported by faculty and staff:

1. That a new deaf president be named immediately;
2. That Jane Bassett Spilman, chair of the board of trustees (who, it was alleged, announced the board's choice with the comment that "the deaf are not yet ready to function in the hearing world") resign immediately;
3. That the board of trustees, at that time composed of 17 hearing members and four deaf, be reconstituted with a majority of deaf members;
4. That there be no reprisals.

During this time Elisabeth Zinser came to washington D.C hoping that her presence would stop the rally. She met with I. King Jordon the dean of the collage and one of the people who had been in the 'race' for the university president. Together the two of them met with the four student leaders who told Zinser to resign. She refused.

 Later that evening in a press conference Zinser announced that she would not resign and I. King Jordon announced his support of Zinser and the board. 

Students were joined by deaf and hearing supporters from all over the country. Three hundred deaf students from the National Technical Institute for the Deaf came to Washington, D.C. by bus, and others came from all over the U.S. and Europe. The National Technical Institute for the Deaf (NTID) is one of the eight schools comprising Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) in Rochester, New York. ... For other uses, see Washington, D.C. (disambiguation). ...

 Later in the day of March 10, Jordon took back his support of Zinser and the board and said that the protest was good and resonable. 

Dr. Zinser resigned on the evening of March 10. On March 11, about 2,500 demonstrators — a thousand Gallaudet students along with their supporters — marched to the United States Capitol building where there were speeches, spoken and signed. March 10 is the 69th day of the year (70th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 70th day of the year (71st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... The United States Capitol is the capitol building that serves as the location for the United States Congress, the legislative branch of the U.S. federal government. ...

The resolution

On March 13, 1988, the board of trustees met for nine hours. Philip Bravin, the new (deaf) chair of the board, announced that Spilman had resigned, and that I. King Jordan, the deaf dean of the School of Arts and Sciences at Gallaudet, had been elected President. Furthermore, all four demands of the protesters were met. is the 72nd day of the year (73rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1988 (MCMLXXXVIII) was a leap year starting on Friday (link displays 1988 Gregorian calendar). ... I. King Jordan (b. ...

References

• Sacks, Oliver. Seeing Voices: A journey into the world of the deaf. Harper Perennial, 1989. ISBN 0-06-097347-1.
• Shapiro, Joseph P. No Pity: People with Disabilities Forging a New Civil Rights Movement. Random House, 1993.
• Gannon, Jack R. "The Week the World Heard Gallaudet". Gallaudet University Press, 1989. ISBN 0-930323-54-8.

External links

• Deaf President Now anniversary A day-by-day overview of the Deaf President Now movement, from Gallaudet University
• "At Gallaudet, a Turn Inward Opens New Worlds", April 30, 2006 All Things Considered