Wyatte Hall

UNM linguist explores sign language, genetics and deaf mobility For University of New Mexico linguist Erin Wilkinson, studying sign language is not just about communication. It is about understanding human diversity, history and resilience.

New article about Erin! news.unm.edu/news/unm-lin...

A graphic of text that says 'Journal DeafStudies of Deaf Studies and and Deaf Education Deaf Education with the JDSDE logo in the top left corner. To the right is the title of the article - This is our Rhythm: Academic Becoming and Realignment in Deaf Space By: Maartje De Meulder, Joseph Murray, & Annelies Kusters "This paper explores what an academic space can look like when built on deaf scholars' terms." A purple icon on the bottom says "read more."

Thrilled to share this Open Access article in JDSDE from Associate Editor Maartje De Meulder, alongside long-time JDSDE contributors Joseph Murray and Annelies Kusters. A strong, forward-looking piece that adds meaningful depth to ongoing conversations in our field.

academic.oup.com/jdsde/advanc...

Signed Away | Sara Nović The hearing world continues to pillage and caricature the deaf community—most recently with the proprietary, sign-based system Makaton.

I will not fight with people on Threads about Makaton. I will not fight with people on Threads about Makaton. I will not thebaffler.com/outbursts/si...

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As a veteran of several smear campaigns against me, happy to chat anytime if you need to. Jon was helpful for me when I was going through those times.

We had our first Professor Deaf #drDeaf workshop with 22 Deaf mid/senior career academics having a dialogue across sessions on career stages, academic administration, running research centers, mentoring and more.

Flyer and QR code, which includes the following text: Join a Research Study on Disaster Preparedness & Deaf People! Are you a deaf person who has lived through a disaster? Your story is important! We want to learn from you! Who Can Participate? Deaf people 18+ who have experienced disaster - natural, or human-made What’s Involved? Share your experiences in one Zoom recorded interview, about 45 minutes Why Join? Your experience can help us improve disaster responses! You will receive a $25 gift card for your time. Interested? Fill out the eligibility form at: https://gu.live/WJfeC or use the QR code to the right for the link! Email the researcher, Sean Maiwald at Sean.maiwald@gallaudet.edu Concerns? Contact Gallaudet University’s Institutional Review Board at IRB@Gallaudet.edu for study #IRB-FY25-114.

Are you a deaf person (18+ in the USA), who has lived through a disaster?

I'm conducting research interviews, and want to learn from you - your story is important!

Interested? Fill out the eligibility form at: gu.live/WJfeC

More information can be found in the attached flyer.

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It’s like the great stories. Full of darkness and danger, and you didn't want to know the end because how could the world go back when so much bad has happened? Folks kept going because they were holding on to something: That there's some good in this world, Mr. Frodo, and it's worth fighting for.

ASL Mythbusters The most frequent of the FAQs

Feeling spicy about hearing parents of d/hh kids with massive social media followings today so here's a roundup of the most annoyingc tracks the oralist sign language myths playlist debunked (with links) buttondown.com/signs+wonder...

Deaf scholar calls for community to be ‘assertive’ amid rise in AI BSL technology Dr Maartje De Meulder, a deaf researcher focussing on the ethics surrounding sign language technologies, has called on the deaf community to "speak out" and be "assertive" around artificial intelligence using British Sign Language (BSL), as use of the technology increases.

Dr Maartje De Meulder, a deaf researcher focussing on the ethics surrounding sign language technologies, has called on the deaf community to "speak out" and be "assertive" around artificial intelligence using British Sign Language (BSL), as use of the technology increases.

To me, one of the hardest parts is that there has long been bipartisan support for research—who wants deaf children suffer?? Science cannot be a partisan issue. I met with folks on both sides of the aisle on the Hill, and am grateful to see that there continues to be support for this work. (15/16)

My R01 was swept up in the recent wave of terminations and was recently reinstated. @naomicaselli.bsky.social’s thread here details some of the craziness we have been through!

Wide view of a large auditorium filled with attendees watching a keynote presentation at ICED 2025. A speaker stands on stage presenting, with slides and sign language interpretation projected onto two large screens above.

My keynote presentation at #ICED2025 yesterday was about the critical importance of deaf academic spaces, presenting #DrDeaf as an example, and the values they entail for broader deaf educational environments.
Preprint of the paper: lnkd.in/ecx4bM-D
Full keynote presentation: lnkd.in/eE7qrkhY

Thank you to @nature.com for inviting me to write about some of the recent #deaf training program cuts and what we can do to keep going!

Deaf scientists hit by drastic NIH cuts — the research community must support them Severe blows to the ‘deaf-scientist pipeline’ must not mean abandoning its best practices. Here is how to support current and future students.

An important piece by @wyattehall.bsky.social in @nature.com today: “This is a generational setback for the deaf academic community,” but there are steps that “institutions can take to support deaf students.” www.nature.com/articles/d41...

I think I spy @naomicaselli.bsky.social and Michelle Koplitz! #deaf #science

‘Sinners’ on Max Will Include a Black American Sign Language Version Max will debut Sinners in the U.S. on Friday July 4, when viewers will be able to watch it two ways: by 1) streaming the exact theatrically-released version, and 2) choosing Sinners in Black American Sign Language (BASL). It’s the first time a streaming service has interpreted a film into BASL, Warner Bros. says.

‘Sinners’ on Max Will Include a Black American Sign Language Version

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In reality, their toxic attitudes towards deaf adults they engage with expose what they really think - there is a certain jealousy and resentment there. There's also disgust, that signing deaf people can function well in a way that's not the full assimilation and normalcy they desire 8/

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So they talk about their own kid (who are often adults themselves now) and how wonderful they became which we never see for ourselves. We're meant to just take their word for it, and any concerns about deaf education people have are disproved because they themselves did nothing wrong 7/

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So all these signing deaf people and professionals in EI spaces warning about the dangers of not giving ASL and the risk of language deprivation... in their mind, that's a serious wound to their DHH parent identity and they have to fight back! 6/

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The non-signing parent professionals seem to use their EI roles as personal coping and ego protection. It becomes a significant part of their identity. They experience validation of other families making the same choices they did. "If they chose this too, then I made the right choice before." 5/

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More or less, its which parents allowed their deaf kids to learn a signed language, and which didn't. In EI spaces, signing deaf people and professionals are super visible. Where are the oral kids-now-adults of these non-signing parents though? I dont really see any in EI spaces. 4/

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The respectful group separates their own choices while making space for other deaf people's experiences. The disrespectful group defends the choices they made by dismissing any stories and research that doesnt align with the choices they made. It is also fairly easy to spot who is who... 3/

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There seems to be (at risk of grossly oversimplifying) two groups of EI parent professionals-one respectful of deaf people, and one not. The underlying motivations for these groups' ongoing EI involvement beyond their own deaf child and their stakeholder engagement also seem different 2/

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In #earlyintervention spaces, I have engaged with many people that became EI professionals because they are themselves a parent of a #deaf child such as a parent guide or a director of programs in a parent organization. Some recent interactions have me pondering some things. Thread incoming 1/

New publication alert: global.oup.com/academic/pro...

Children of migrant Deaf adults During my Master of Research (MRes) studies, whenever I met someone new, they would often enquire about what I was doing for my thesis. When I told them, I was doing research with hearing children …

How do hearing children of Deaf migrant parents experience their multilingual repertoires?
@empacheco.bsky.social explains in the latest Language-on-the-Move post
www.languageonthemove.com/children-of-...

If this isn't titled "Spaceballs 3: The Search for "Spaceballs 2: The Search for More Money"", what are we even doing?