World Deaf Day • September 27
Deaf people have made their mark in music, film, art, education, and public life.
Ludwig van Beethoven gradually lost his hearing but continued composing. He wrote several major works during the years when he could hear little or nothing.
Marlee Matlin won the Academy Award for Best Actress for Children of a Lesser God in 1987, becoming the first Deaf performer to win an acting Oscar.
Troy Kotsur became the first Deaf man to win an acting Oscar in 2022 for CODA.
Nyle DiMarco won both America’s Next Top Model and Dancing with the Stars and later became an advocate for sign language access.
Dame Evelyn Glennie, a Scottish percussionist, built an international music career after losing much of her hearing, learning to experience sound in different ways, including through vibration.
The Philippines has its own notable figure.
Jose dela Cruz is a Filipino teacher and painter who won two gold medals at the International Abilympics, a global skills competition for people with disabilities. The name combines “ability” and “Olympics.”
Being deaf did not keep them outside the conversation.
You do not always need to hear the world the usual way to leave something worth hearing.
⌨ ᴛʸᵖⁱⁿᵍ ᴏᵘᵗ ᵒᶠ ᵗʰᵉ ʙˡᵘᵉ ᵈᵃʳᵉᵐ ᵐᵘˢⁱᶜ ᵇˡᵒᵍ
