Embedded Files
People with disabilities have developed their own cultures of communication, mutual aid networks, and strategies for surviving and flourishing.
This excerpt from Mallery's book displays the heading "Dialogues" with text describing a meeting between Tendoy, chief of the Shoshoni and Banak Indians of Idaho, and Huerito, an Apache chief from New Mexico.
According to the text, the two men communicated successfully using hand signs despite not speaking the same language. A sketch in the middle of the page demonstrates the similarities between two versions of the sign for "Who are you?" Huerito is on the left and Tendoy is on the right.
Full text of the passage can be found on page 486 of the e-book.
Garrick Mallery, Sign Language among North American Indians Compared with that among Other Peoples and Deaf-Mutes (1881)
Courtesy of Beinecke Rare Book & Manuscript Library
This excerpt from the late-19th century book Sign Language among North American Indians was featured in a past exhibition on d/Deaf culture curated by Yale graduate students.
Native American Sign Languages are communication systems used among hearing and deaf individuals to communicate silently or covertly. Many Native American signs have analogs in in Deaf sign languages, which led ethnologist and author of this book, Garrick Mallery, to wonder if there was an underlying gestural language among humans.
Further Resources:
YDN_19910509_02.pdfAn article entitled, "Getting Around and the Runaround: Handicapped Students' Struggle for Accessibility"
Dev Bhatia, "Getting Around and the Runaround: Handicapped Students' Struggle for Accessibility," Yale Daily News, May 1991: 10-12
Courtesy of Yale Daily News Historical Archive
This feature, published in the summer 1991 edition of the Yale Daily News, explores the inaccessibility of Yale's campus from students' perspectives. While the terminology for people with disabilities has changed since the early-1990s, the struggles and efforts to improve access on campus have continued. This article highlights the ongoing campaign led by students, staff, and faculty to make Yale an accessible campus.
Disability@Yale Survival Guide, DEFY
Courtesy of DEFY
Three undergraduates started the group Disability Empowerment for Yale (DEFY) in 2016. Benjamin Nadolsky ’18, Matthew Smith ’18, and Rose Bender ‘19 helped create the Disability @ Yale Survival Guide to combat the isolation and alienation many students with disabilities experienced on campus.
Among their accomplishments are the creation of an ASL language program, a Peer Liaison program, and the Disability Peer Mentor Program, which connects undergraduate, graduate, and professional students with disabilities to one-on-one peer support.
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