I am writing for those who are unable to participate in the Gallaudet protest or aid Gallaudet protestors: there are many, many more of us Deaf who support the protests wholeheartedly. We are the single parents, the health-afflicted, hard-working folks who cannot leave their jobs and so forth.

I am a CSUN grad student and a single parent of two children. While I never attended Gallaudet,  I have come to love and cherish Gallaudet for what it stands for. In fact, when I was 15 years old and a senior at Delaware School for the Deaf, I got to know the late Roy Holcomb (yes, the father of Tom Holcomb and grandfather of the Holcomb girls involved in the protest!) when he was the superintendent. He encouraged me to try MSSD, so I took the test. Unfortunately, the results of the test said I was ready to enter Gallaudet as a freshman. I was stunned! My mother and I went to visit Gallaudet, and it was the first time I ever saw Gallaudet College (as it was called in those days) - I cannot tell you what magic that was, that day - October 10th, 1975.....for some reason, Gallaudet snuck into my heart, and I was in love forever. Sadly, because of my age, my family did not want  to let me attend.

However, over the years, I'd go to Gallaudet and see friends, even illegally stayed in Peet Hall with friends, danced at Ole Jim and had drinks in the Rathskellar.  I'd attend plays and conferences. The most recent visit was to attend the sign language studies conference on campus last March. For some reason, I was startled to see a change. Gallaudet wasn't entirely what it was before. I talked with some grad students and old friends there, who told me of changes at Gallaudet that had to do with a certain individual. I thought that was bad news, as if it was an omen of things to come.

Sigh.....the omen came true in May. I could not believe my eyes, and I was so torn apart because I couldn't just pull stakes and GO! Still cannot. A friend of mine, who is seriously health-afflicted, despairs of not being able to fly out and be a part of the protests. Another has a big family to support and barely makes ends meet, he almost cries out for the protestors and their safety. My Deaf neighbor, who is from Mexico, recently asks me about what is this, the mess - I tell her, and she says: Of course! We must help! I ask her how? She looks at me sadly - she cannot help, for she takes care of her son's children while her son and his wife work every day. She can't read and write very much, either. Sigh.....

So,  there are really many more supporters like us. Our hearts bleed for Gallaudet and what it stands for. Go, Gallaudet FSSA, go!