Deafhood on Audism

I had an inspiration on the topic of deafhood and audism and created an ASL poem in the Chinese Tu Fu style.

“All in a tiny poem, inside a tiny poem reflects all”.

How does deafhood look at audism?  What is the impact of audism on deafhood?  A big et cetera here.

What do you think the poem really means? reflects? signifies?

ASL Masterpiece #3 - Joe Velez’s Jabberwocky

The third Masterpiece of ASL Literature will be THE Joe Velez’s Jabberwocky.  You can view it for “free”.

The link to this full video is at the Gallaudet website.  I am disappointed still that the video at the library in Gallaudet University can not be embedded in my wordpress in deafread blog.  Go ahead and click on the below blue-hued word.

Joe Velez’s Jabberwocky

the full URL is this

http://video.gallaudet.edu/x21668.xml?video=6518

Commentary:    Eric Malzkuhn was the brain behind this excellent ASL translation Joe Velez did with Lewis Carroll’s word-wacko poem .  There is something about the video that future signers will enshrine forever.  Bernard Bragg told me a couple of stories about Joe Velez who is the father of Michael Velez, the half of the performing CODA duet of Half and Half.  They still have their website up so click at these blue words. I won a Joesph M. Velez book award from the National Theater of the Deaf one summer signed by no one but him BB.  Joe left too early due to cancer so his friends such as bragg started an award at NTD to enshrine the memory of this ASL master artist.

Is translation into ASL from English literature ASL literature?  This is a morsel for thought to chew on.  The NTD plays - are they ASL Literature?  Probably not all except those originals like the My Third Eye play.  What about the other NTD plays?  The Gilgamesh in ASL.  Gertrude Stein’s incomprehensible Four Saints in Three Acts?  Universallian Campbell’s A Hero of Thousand Faces in ASL.  I hope all of the NTD performances were recorded on video - thus preserved forever.  Anyone know, please leave comments here. I would like to know.  I look forward to the increasing digitization of ASL literature from old technological formats into cyberspace.  We will see more of them in the coming days.

Like in other literature, translation into ASL is a form of literature sort of could be considered part of the canon of ASL Lit.  See the category listing on the right side.  This 1967 video will be considered one of the earliest videorecording of sign language 100 years later.   I can see the future in this ASL literary piece in the field of ASL Literature in classes everywhere.  The spirits of Joe with Eric and their work translating Jabberwocky in google, youtube, and gally website and everywhere.

A true champ! this literary work.

it deserves a spot, the third, in the first FOUR the ASL Literature Hall of Fame.

And what literary piece will be the fourth of the Masterpieces of ASL literature at the website called an Ark of ASL Literature?

Hang on . . .  for the next post.

ASL Masterpiece #2 - Veditz’s Preservation of Sign Language

The second one will be George Veditz’s oratory speech of the Preservation of American Sign Language.

I still can not embed the video here and I will be working at this before asking a friend to help me.

The whole glory of the speech is available for free to be used and disseminated anywhere - at Gallaudet website.

George Veditz’s Preservation of Sign Language

This speech is widely cited in many books now. The cry from the past still is the cry of today.  The cry of preserving our beautiful language of signs.

One glaring thing we might notice.  He signs in the “English” order with a lot of fingerspelling.  Issues come when discussing this.  He is a leader being part of the establishment of National Association of the Deaf.  Elitism in American Deaf Community. Stratas inside the community - the bilingual educated ones and the “uneducated” monolingual ones.  I know the words here will touch hot buttons.  Therefore his speech is not ASL Literature?

That leads me to discuss the spectrum of codeswitching in ASL.  Between ASL and English.  ASL is an organic and living language which can be stretched here and there in between and absorb new lexical signs.  Bernard Bragg had discussed this with me.  ASL covers the spectrum between slangish street ASL to formal academic ASL.  How when and where ASL users use the English order is fluid.  I will get back to this.

Another important notice. George had to sign slower in order to be captured on film.  This is not his usual speed or his natural way. I believe George Veditz do sign in ASL his way.  Did he feel the paramount importance of the film project NAD did to preserve signs for posterity?  If so, did he switch to “english order”? I will have to do my homework and check the listerature.  But still, it is a powerful testimony from the past.

This oration in sign language belongs to the first four Masterpieces of ASL Literature.

What are the last two of the first-four?  In the next two posts . . .

ASL Masterpiece #1 - Andrews’ Deaf Ninja

The first of the first four Masterpieces of ASL Literature being posted will be . . .

the Deaf Ninja by Austin Andrews.

I hope the reason this was chosen be obvious. The first reason is because it was first known via the youtube, a wonderful technology that is part of a cluster of technological marvels that will change our world, especially causing the field of ASL Literature to finally (PAH!) grow. ASL Literature PAH can be preserved and disseminated to every part of the planet, almost.

The second reason is that Austin is hearing. ASL is not limited to the originators of the language any more. More people learn ASL nowadays. Researchers will show us the effects sign language has on newborn babies, hearing and deaf. ASL literature by hearing CODA, pah, of course!

Third reason is the masterful use of cinematic technique in the spirit de la Matrix. I believe cinematics in ASL Literature is a pure art form not found in any literature except the language of the film. There are a couple of masterful cinematic works in ASL Literature.

Now here is this matrixed cinematic story in ASL of a deaf brother as a ninja with wired mylar buds as weapon signed by a hearing CODA!

Now what will be the second ASL Literature masterpiece?

ASL Lit. Masterpieces #0

This post is to inaugurate the effort to select which ASL literature videos from youtube, googlevideo and all in the internet to serve as an example of the mastery in ASL artistry.  This post is to introduce the Masterpieces of ASL Literature before embedding the first one in the next post ASL Masterpieces #1.

Almost two years ago, I created this website, in my mind, to showcase the best of ASL Literature by embedding any video out there in the public domain of the internet. I placed a couple of my work to begin with.  Then, everything stopped.  I left this website aside for a long time because I think my two other websites, deafhood and spirituality and the deaf child: a mythology require my attention and work.  Now I go back to the Ark of ASL Literature.

Now I put my focus on embedding the video masterpieces from the ark of gesticulating mammals - ASL signers.  We need to showcase more work from ASL literature to the “hearing” world.  I have googled and utubed the key word, ASL literature, and came up with SO many, so many of them from “new” signers.  I caught a few good ones from native signers.  There are clips of successful ASL artists out there.

I will embed videos and make links to those work by artists I feel belongs to the ASL Lyceum.  A Mt. Olympus hallway with the walls as the Hall of Fame of ASL Literature?  We will eventually establish an group focused on ASL artistry, probably best housed at Gallaudet University.  Maintained by the ASL department there previously at Linguistics dept. but now coupled with Deaf Studies dept.?  That woud be great if Gallaudet administration take a look into this and create a special prize in the likes of a Nobel Lit prize, a Pulitzer prize, or our own, a Velez Prize?  National Association of the Deaf create a prize?  We definitely need a hall of fame of ASL Literature. We will see.

Watch for the next post.  Which one should be the first?  Joe Velez’s Jabberwocky? John Maucere’s SuperDeafy? Ella Mae Lentz’s eye music? Austine Andrews’ Deaf Ninja?  Sam Supalla’s best whiskey in the west? Clayton Valli’s dandelions? John Lestina’s always be cool jokes?  Mary Beth Miller’s faces of balls?   Ben Bahan’s bird of different feathers?  Francisco Acevedo’s Lowrider?  Dorothy Miles’ elephant dance?  Yes all of them and more -

I would also like to dedicate this website to Frank Varveri whom I believe is still the King of impromptu ABC stories.  Blessed be his name.  I pray that there are video recordings of his ABC stories, especially the impromptu ones.  Viewers/readers out there, let me know.

Here comes the first masterpiece of ASL Literature in the next post -

The Banner in Battle

This poem is created in response to mijn broer, Carl’s beginning of an ASL poem. I wanted to expand his genesis to something bigger. It is his poem and this is posted in honor his prolificy in vlogging. Maybe start a communal poem?

WORD stories - Baby, Golf, and Swan

First set of ASL stories in WORD format (following the English letters of the word) - Baby, Golf, and Swan signed by Charles Katz. Come aboard the Ark of ASL Lit.!

Faces of Balls - Golf

A Faces of Balls story - GOLF - signed by Charles Katz. Inspired by the performance of Mary Beth Miller at Junior NAD western convention at CSD-Berkeley in 1977.

Need to post it at yourtube aslark channel. Soon.

Intro to AAAL Vlogsite

Play Quicktime version

Welcome to a new website on ASL literature, An Ark of ASL Literature. Come aboard to view different kinds of stories in ASL signed by various animals, which are people who sign.

You can see different categories under ASL Literature (amendable and not finalized) listed up on your right to get an idea of what stories will be coming on this website. Move your cursor, without clicking, over each category to read its details.

I will be presenting different kinds of ASL Literature for all the categories. And selections of video clips made by other signing people in the internet. Only those of good and high quality will be selected.

Schools for the deaf, ASl classes of all kinds, researchers, and interested people can come to this website to view, study, and appreciate ASL Literature of all kinds signed by different “animals”.

Welcome to the Ark of ASL Literature.