The next time you drive west on I-90 from Minnesota into South Dakota, be sure to stop at the rest area on the state line. There is a Welcome Center there, with information and brochures on attractions and tours throughout the state of South Dakota. Look for a brochure entitled "Deaf Ghost Town: A Driving Tour of Sioux Falls." In it will be houses where Deaf people used to live.
Look for these names of former occupants--who have all moved away in the past year: Alvarez. Apodacas. Arazis. Barber. Beldons. Crago. Davila. Ellis. Galey. Gundersons. Kaikas. Kochs. Meinhardts. Olsons. Prins. Rosenbaum. Steins. Williams. I'm sure I missed several others. And, with the upcoming relocation of CSDVRS employees to Florida and elsewhere, this list will grow even longer.
Will the once-vibrant Deaf community of Sioux Falls fade away? Or will the remaining folks, plus a new generation of immigrants, add new life? Only time will tell.
Thursday, January 25, 2007
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13 comments:
It is irony because I have assigned my classes the readings of the first chapter of "Deaf World"-- and this is where there are letters discussing about the possibilty of forming a "Deaf Commonweath" (or later nicknamed as DeafMutia or Gesturia) between both sides. There were debates mailed back and forth whether this was a good idea or a waste of time...
unfortunately the pro side couldn't obtain their Deaf utopia because the realities had kicked in-- people had to earn money so they find a job... got busy... relocated... et cetera. And this was back in 1858. Imagine!
Now, we can only hope that this lifestyle will become possibilty for those who want it. Each person should pursue their happiness, no matter what-- even if somebody else has tried in the past.
This is to be expected. It is just not feasible to have a deaf only town. Not enough diversity in jobs and residents. Upotia communities always diminshes over time and is not limited to the deaf. This is a complex and diverse world and we survive by those rules. It is pretty much like royalty. Over time they began to interbreed and produce unhealthy offsprings and environment because of their elitious lifestyle as royals. Same principle. Even martha vineyard has long since gone. Simply not feasible. Nice ideal indeed to get away from all the discrimination and unpleasantiess we deaf experience as members of the mainstream society but the reality is we all have to live through it all. Which is why uptoia is often viewed as fantasy because it is.
As a native of sioux falls, I am telling you that I am not surprised at all. CSD was a great boom for our community, but it had one great flaw. It's business with itself alone. It did not become involved in the deaf community locally (and I don't mean the people who moved in, I mean the people who were there all along). They did not build a relationshp with the community around them, hearing or deaf. Now that CSD is having financial problems, those deaf people had nowhere to go. There were no connections to the community, no internship programs, nothing that would have ensured a smooth transition from working at CSD to a hearing workplace.
It was very difficult for the locals to have CSD move in, take over everything, and they were still being shut out of the dark. While it is perfectly justifiable that CSD sought out those who were qualified for the positions (sadly, which many natives are not). Unfortunately, when they built their talent base, they did not make any effort to build bridges between both the grassroots local community and the professional community of CSD.
I'm not saying that this was the root cause of the problem here, just that it did not help the situation any.
#2 Anonymous...seems you are confusing Sioux Falls with Laurent, which is 45 minutes west. The departure of 100-125 deaf people and their families will hardly make a dent in Sioux Falls' population of 148,000 hearing folks. But the departure of even 50 Deafies is enough to impact any Deaf community, I'd dare say.
No, I am not confusing Laurent with Sioux Falls. I grew up there, in Sioux Falls and myself was a victim of the "no opportunities" trap.
That is why I live in NY now. There is no good reason for me to move back, even though all of my family is there still.
#5 WSS...I wasn't talking about your post, I was referring to Anonymous' post where s/he mentions a "deaf-only town."
CSD HQ should move to DC Metro, for better select of employee there and can work with other businesses
Um. There's more to the SF deaf community than CSD employees. You also named some people that are NOT moving. I'll agree with wildstarryskies that the CSDers have always been too elitist to bother associating with the 'grassroots' deaf community!
(A CSD employee who is also involved with the grassroots side of the community here)
Anonymous (the last one)...all of the names I posted here are of those who have *already* moved.
I have grown up in Sioux Falls and attended SDSD, I am saddened to see a so called Deaf person put down other deaf person or business... it is sad world. What is more is it christianity thing to say about Sioux Falls Deaf???
Please tell me how this post puts down other Deaf people or a Deaf business? Is it wrong, or unChristian, to share what the reality is about the loss of approximately 130 deaf people and their families from a community of about 450? That is a HUGE impact!
And still counting as of October 8, 2007 at 9:59 AM...
My son (age 26 and deaf) wanted to move to Sioux Falls but some of the blogs here may have a huge impact on that decision. It is his dream to live in a large deaf community. We were all coming from the Pacific Northwest and these comments will help make a realistic choice whether to move or not to move.
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