My heart’s bleeding… bleeding buff and blue….
What I see at Gallaudet cannot be taken care of in a way that will please everyone. It’s one of the most tension-filled times in Gallaudet’s long history, perhaps eclipsing even the original DPN— This time Irving King Jordan’s on the other side, instead of being on ours. That makes all the difference in the world. Or does it?
What caused Dr. Irving King Jordan to become I, KING?
When Zinser did the honorable thing and resigned way back in 1988, and Dr. Irving King Jordan became President of our beloved university, many of us said, “At last! WE the people have spoken and the world heard us!”
Little did we know that the very same Irving King Jordan, who rose to the top of all our hearts and minds as a cultural hero, someone who had dared to dream and actually reached the pinnacle of Gallaudet University, has apparently become I KING and decided to enforce his iron will on Kendall Green.
Dr. Jordan, how can you actually say you care for the greater good of Gallaudet when lately, all you have done is ignore us? You’ve been setting up new rules and laws to make it more difficult to protest. Do you actually realize that if these selfsame rules were in effect back in 1988, you would never have become King? Oops. I meant President.
Do you not even care for your legacy? Have we not treated you well? I’d think being one of the highest paid people in the entire capitalist world would give you some appreciation of the people who pay your bills. Have you forgotten who matters? Have you forgotten who got you in office in the first place? Talk about biting the hands that’s fed you and your family for these past 18 years.
For many of us, we worshipped you Dr. Jordan. We thought the world of you. It didn’t matter that you couldn’t sign very well, it mattered that you were one of us and that you were WITH us at DPN. Well, you supported the board first, that’s right. But, then when you realized we were winning, you did come down on our side, for a while, anyway. Where did you go?
To lie to the media about our reasons for the protest is heartbreaking to us. We didn’t ask for much. Why tell the media lies? Where did you think that was going to lead?
By telling the media that we judge people based on how well they sign or how “deaf” they are, you’ve made us look like a bunch of nincompoops. Do you think we had that figured out the first time we asked you to be President, Dr. Jordan? How stupid does that sound? Is this something that you think we can just sweep under the rug?
There is precious little time, Dr. Jordan, to restore the luster to your once proud career. I suggest you use it wisely, for your actions will be judged for years to come. Not only that, generations of those who love Gallaudet will judge you. Black Friday will not be forgotten in a hurry. My children want to go to Gallaudet. I have a deaf girl and two hearing boys. Do I want them to come to Gallaudet? I’m not so sure anymore.
The clock’s ticking. Will it be I KING, or Dr. Irving King Jordan?
Dr. Jordan, nobody has the RIGHT to claim that the protesters don’t know better, because believe me, they do. We’ve been there before. We know better. It’s not about you anymore, Dr. Jordan. It never was.