Blue Ribbon Ceremony Video (1999)


It is a good time to remind ourselves why Deaf people are here on Earth in the first place. The 13-minute video memorializes Deaf people who have suffered yet carried on our Sign Languages and Deafhood. Additionally, this video will inspire us to continue fighting for our Deaf children’s human rights. The video is subtitled and was performed at the World Federation of the Deaf conference in 1999.

Credit: Educational Television and Australian Association of the Deaf (1999)

22 comments

  • Barb 16 years ago

    wow….it touches my heart. Thanks for sharing this video with us…never thought of the blue ribbon symbol…we know the pink, yellow. red, black, and green ribbon symbol…until this video…now add blue…thank you.

    Reply
  • John Egbert 16 years ago

    WOW! I was really moved by this.

    We all should wear a blue ribbon whenever we need to speak up for our rights to have our Sign Language back that was taken away from Deaf education since 1880 Milan.

    John Egbert

    Reply
  • Mark Hill 16 years ago

    Heartfelt and Powerful….

    Reply
  • PaulaJean 16 years ago

    This one is so powerful and pierced my heart tonite! Thanks for bringing it out and sharing it with us. With the blue ribbon as a glowing symbol, it will remind us to always preserve our God-given gift of our beautiful Sign Language and for our Deaf generations to come! Again, thanks!!!

    Reply
  • ANNAMARIE 16 years ago

    wow!! Thanks for showing video for us… OH MY GOD!! This is a really cool.. Yeah! WHY NOT ?

    LIKE WHAT JOHN EGBERT SAID, WEAR A BLUE RIBBON.. LET’S MOVE ON ..LET’S GO..

    ANNAMARIE

    Reply
  • Fookem 16 years ago

    We posted the awareness ribbon color and meanings in our blog,

    http://fookembug.wordpress.com/2007/12/22/awareness-ribbon-colors-and-meanings/

    What should we say/add? Deaf or deafhood or sign language? Please let us know so we can add the proper word in blue ribbon.

    Thanks in advance!

    Fookem

    Reply
  • Joey Baer 16 years ago

    Fookem (#6)

    That’s great!! Thanks for sharing your link and let me get exact definition of Blue Ribbon and get back to you by tomorrow.

    Reply
  • Mark Maki 16 years ago

    Wow interesting Video Thanks!!

    Reply
  • SDA 16 years ago

    Joey, Thanks so much for posting this on DeafRead, a refreshing diversion from all that CI craze! The truth shall prevail. I’m going to wear my blue ribbon from now on. Care to join me? 🙂

    ~For those of you who will be at the DBC convention in Milwaukee, bring your blue ribbon! Seecha there!~

    Reply
  • Allison Tyler 16 years ago

    Joey,

    Thank you for putting this up. That is what I needed, especially with the recent situation in deafread.com. This is the core of our community, what we stand for and what we are fighting for.

    Thanks,
    Ali

    Reply
  • Nick Vera 16 years ago

    Very powerful message from these individuals around the globe to share with our deaf and hard of hearing people to stand up for UNITY to stop the oppression of our beautiful language and communication accessiblities.
    I would love to buy the blue ribbon to honor Deaf Bilingual Coalition in order to preserve our language for deaf and hard of hearing babies to develop at very early education in development. Will DBC sell this item to everybody? Please let us know ahead. Thank you! Nick

    Reply
  • Sandra Goldstein 16 years ago

    I could not believe that I never knew about blue ribbons. I am aware of the fact about red ribbon representing for Aids, yellow ribbon for soldiers, pink ribbon for breast cancer.. Now blue ribbon.

    Libby Pollard represented USA, For the past nine years no one mentioned about blue ribbons . Oh my God!!!

    Now is the time for all of us to pass out blue ribbons. Starting at DBC conference in Milwaukee, NAD conference in New Orleans, spreading , passing out blue ribbons….

    Wear blue ribbons NOW!!!!

    Power to Blue Ribbon!!!!!!

    Sandra Goldstein

    Reply
  • Jean Boutcher 16 years ago

    Goose bumps. Why not design a lapel pin? I would wear itt everyday. Why not a tee shirt, too? Thank
    you, Joey, for sharing.

    Reply
  • Jea Marie 16 years ago

    Joey,
    Thank you for this splendid video to be shared with every one of us in the deaf community in one whole wilde world. It would be so wonderful if we make an icon out of the blue ribbon one way or another in the very near future. I am sure that every one will unite in one or another idea like this.
    Jea

    Reply
  • patti durr 16 years ago

    ya hoo

    thanks for getting this up on line joey

    peace

    p

    Reply
  • sallie mae 16 years ago

    WOW, very POWERFUL! I agreed with John Egbert, about wearing blue ribbon and let’s do it! Thank for sharing this…….

    Reply
  • Penny 16 years ago

    Joey- You should change your career to filmmaking because you always give interesting documentary. Smile. Very touching film. I hope that board of directors from DCARA will hire a new executive director that does not use cochlear implant. We need to take this very seriously because many deaf children are being oppressed and forced to get CI and they are forbidden to use ASL for communcation and learning. We can’t have leaders with CI because the society will use them for role models to Deaf children. This can’t be allowed period!!! Bay Area people including you need to assure this too. Thanks. 🙂

    Reply
  • Paul Kiel 16 years ago

    Very interesting!!!!! We need to wear blue ribbon everyday! Remind the audists who they are for what they did to us!

    Will look into what can be made to wear blue ribbon. I have seen a few metal ribbons that we can use to wear.

    Thanks for sharing, Joey!

    =)

    Reply
  • Cynthia K 16 years ago

    Oh my gosh…that was FANTASTIC! I never knew some of that stuff and I loved the way it was done!

    Reply
  • Lukas Huber 16 years ago

    The Blue Ribbon, the idea of Paddy Ladd 1999, was really an inspiration.

    Some years later the Austrian National Association of the Deaf (Austria/Europe) created a “TURQUOISE RIBBON” for Austrian Sign Language and Sign Languages around in the world.

    Paddy Ladd now also wears turquoise ribbons. 🙂

    Reply
  • Kim Hungerford 6 years ago

    Fabulous video in 1999!

    Want to know if we are using turquoise ribbon around the world or still with blue ribbon. Could we update our history of this ribbon that represents us, Deaf people as of now in 2017, shortly 2018.I am doing my art inspirational book on colours that represent us in one and many other aspects in our daily lives – Deaf people. Would love to get the right source.

    Reply
  • Andrew Niklaus 5 years ago

    Great to discover this video, many thanks to Paddy Ladd.
    Fantastic to see how Deafhood colour (dark blue), along with 2 other colours – inspired the design of
    Sign Union Flag. Flag representing our deaf and sign language communities.

    See #signunionflag channel at YouTube

    Reply

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