Congressional Deaf Caucus
Congressional Pickleball Caucus, Congressional Chicken Caucus, Congressional WiFi Caucus, I-69 Congressional Caucus, Congressional Cannabis Caucus, Congressional Buy American Caucus.
Whoa, whoa. These are among 820 caucuses at Capitol Hill.
Yes, we have the Congressional Olympic and Paralympic Caucus and the Congressional Deaf Caucus.
As a devoted CSUSOP watcher, I have wondered if the 14-member Commission on the State of U.S. Olympics and Paralympics (CSUSOP) has contacted the Congressional Deaf Caucus to consider amending the Deaflympics to the Ted Stevens Olympic and Amateur Sports Act.
The Congressional Deaf Caucus is dedicated to helping bridge the communication divide between Members of Congress and their Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing constituents and empowering Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing individuals by promoting equal access for all.
The current list of the Congressional Deaf Caucus members are:
Rep. John Rutherford (R-FL), Co-Chair
Rep. Mark Takano (D-CA), Co-Chair
Rep. Joyce Beatty (D-OH)
Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D-OR)
Rep. Tony Cárdenas (D-CA)
Rep. Matt Cartwright (D-PA)
Rep. Debbie Dingell (D-MI)
Rep. Raúl Grijalva (D-AZ)
Rep. Jared Huffman (D-CA)
Rep. Hank Johnson (D-GA)
Rep. Marcy Kaptur (D-OH)
Rep. Derek Kilmer (D-WA)
Rep. John Larson (D-CT)
Rep. Betty McCollum (D-MN)
Rep. Jim McGovern (D-MA)
Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA)
Rep. Joe Morelle (D-NY)
Rep. Kevin Mullin (D-CA)
Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-CA)
Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC)
Most of them have represented districts where a residential deaf school is located. Nebraska, Nevada, and New Hampshire do not have state-operated schools for deaf students. Representing the Maryland School for the Deaf, Rep. David Throne (D-MD) needs to be listed.
BACKGROUND
On December 12, 2013, there was the inaugural meeting Thursday of the new Congressional Deaf Caucus in the basement of the Rayburn House Office Building. The organizer, Rep. Kevin Yoder (R-KS), welcomed the dozens of representatives.
Since it was not on the agenda, one lawmaker mentioned a fake interpreter in South Africa. Read “Rep. Yoder cracks interpreter joke at deaf caucus briefing.”
One year later (2014), the Caucus encouraged other representatives to hire more deaf staffers. [Note: Dick Caswell and I were the only two deafies working at Capitol Hill in the 1970s.]
In 2019, Co-Chairs Mark Takano and John Rutherford relaunched the Congressional Deaf Caucus because Yoder was defeated in the 2018 reelection.
Watch the 2020 Daily Moth video, “Congressional Deaf Caucus Writes Letter Requesting White House Provide Interpreters.”
In their Washington Post opinion on March 22, 2022, Co-Chairs Takano and Rutherford wrote, “Don’t forget ‘CODA.’ This is the moment to do more for deaf Americans.”
In 2023, Co-Chairs Takano and Rutherford relaunched the Caucus for the 118th Congress.
The CSUSOP ended its work on September 30 and will fulfill a report to Congress in Spring 2024. Meanwhile, I still ponder if the CSUSOP would discuss this Caucus for the last-minute tips.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
On June 20, 2019, Deaflympian/Paralympian swimmer Becca Meyers wrote on her Instagram:
“CELEBRATE INCLUSION! The United States Olympic Committee has formally changed its name to the United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee! What a great day to be a para-athlete!”
But, in the past 25 years, our forgotten Deaflympians have still been waiting for the inclusion of the Deaflympics into the program of the United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee.
Howard “Howie” Gorrell attended 13 of the last 14 Deaflympics since 1969 and is a 2004 recipient of the USADSF Jerald M. Jordan Award, given to those who exhibit leadership and continuous participation toward the goals of the Deaflympics and the 2011 Art Kruger Award for demonstrating leadership and constant participation, support and contribution in the USADSF over an extended period.