Research Guides: Deaf Studies &amp; American Sign Language: Multicultural Resources

Books & Articles

Deaf Identities by Irene W. Leigh (Editor); Catherine A. O'Brien (Editor)
Call Number: University Library 2 SOUTH HV2545 .H35 1983
ISBN: 0190887591
Publication Date: 2019-11-22
Over the past decade, a significant body of work on the topic of deaf identities has emerged. In this volume, Leigh and O'Brien bring together scholars from a wide range of disciplines - anthropology, counseling, education, literary criticism, practical religion, philosophy, psychology,sociology, and deaf studies - to examine deaf identity paradigms.In this book, contributing authors describe their perspectives on what deaf identities represent, how these identities develop, and the ways in which societal influences shape these identities. Intersectionality, examination of medical, educational, and family systems, linguistic deprivation, therole of oppressive influences, the deaf body, and positive deaf identity development, are among the topics examined in the quest to better understand deaf identities. In reflection, contributors have intertwined both scholarly and personal perspectives to animate these academic debates. The resultis a book that reinforces the multiple ways in which deaf identities manifest, empowering those whose identity formation is influenced by being deaf or hard of hearing.

Primary Resources

During segregation, schools for the Deaf were segregated along with other schools. For over 100 years, Black Deaf children attended separate educational programs, housed either on separate campuses or in separate buildings on the same campus as the school for white children. Many of these residential schools published their own newspapers, which are available in online collections through Gallaudet University.

Alabama Banner
Publication of The Alabama School for Negro Deaf. Four issues from 1949-1957.
The Newscaster
Publication of West Virginia Schools for the Colored Deaf and Blind. Eight issues from 1952-1953.
Virgina State School Bulletin
Publication of Virginia School for the Deaf and Blind at Hampton. Eighty-four issues from 1953-1960.

Black American Sign Language Resources

Signing Black in America: The Story of Black American Sign Language (Full Video)

This is the first documentary about Black ASL: the unique dialect of American Sign Language (ASL) that developed within historically segregated African American Deaf communities. Black ASL today conveys an identity and sense of belonging that mirrors spoken language varieties of the African American hearing community. The program highlights the different uses of space, hand use, directional movement, and facial expression, which are ways that Black ASL distinguishes itself as a vibrant dialect of American Sign Language. The African American Deaf community is now embracing their unique variety as a symbol of solidarity and a vital part of their identity.

You must be logged in to your Sac State Account to view this video.

The Black ASL Project
The Black ASL Project is a language project which aims to describe the linguistic features of a variety of American Sign Language (ASL) used by African American signers and usually known as Black ASL. The project is sponsored by Gallaudet University’s Department of Linguistics and Department of ASL and Deaf Studies and is supported in part by the Spencer Foundation and the National Science Foundation Project.
The Hidden Treasure of Black ASL: Companion Video to the Book
A playlist of ten videos to accompany the book of the same name.

Additional Links

African-American/Black Bibliography from the Department of ASL and Deaf Studies
A bibliography of articles and books from Gallaudet University
Black Deaf Center
BDC is the one-stop place where you can come to find information and learn more about the Black Deaf community.
Black Deaf Culture Through the Lens of Black Deaf History
Includes many brief biographies of Black Deaf people of note
Library Guide to Black Deaf Education and Culture
Library research guide for Deaf Studies 498: Black Deaf Education and Culture at CSU Northridge
Library Research Guide to African American Studies
Sacramento State's library resource guide to African-American Studies.
National Black Deaf Advocates
National Black Deaf Advocates (NBDA) is the official advocacy organization for thousands of Black Deaf and Hard of Hearing Americans. For more than three decades, NBDA has been at the forefront of advocacy efforts for civil rights and equal access to education, employment, and social services on behalf of the Black Deaf and Hard of Hearing in the United States.

Last Updated: Oct 25, 2023 1:10 PM