"We Share the Same Sky"- Wuhan Deaf Community

With only a 30-day visa in China, we were blessed to have visited so many cities. This meant several long, sun-up to sun-down days and overnight train rides, but worth every second to arrive and see how thrilled our hosts were to greet us. Our final chance to emerge in the deaf community was a three-day stop in Wuhan. With amazing hospitality, they showed us what China is really about…friendship, support, and encouragement. They succeeded in changing many negative perceptions of China often portrayed in the news.

At the No.1 and No.2 Deaf Schools of Wuhan, we witnessed brilliant art work and dance performances from students. Many of these students will move on to ChangChun University and become well known artists and dancers in the country, as well as throughout the world (the famous Dream Team Deaf Dance Group is from Beijing). These schools are where leaders start to grow their roots.

We were also welcomed by organization leaders to the Association for the Deaf of Wuhan and Hubei Province Disabled Persons Federation. They shared their visions for helping deaf people find jobs, recover from their hearing loss (getting hearing aides adjusted to your hearing loss and speech therapy), and advocate for deaf rights. Through these associations we were able to visit several worksites that hire hundreds of deaf employees, including the Titanium Dioxide Co., LTD and Wuhan Spaceflight Corrugated Pipe Co., LTD. Deaf employees are treated equal to hearing employees and encouraged to move up in the ladder through experience and training programs offered in sign language by the company. They also have a yearly disabled day where employees take the day off (with pay) to travel to another city.

We met a famous deaf 84-year-old artist, Mi Wen Mo, whose paintings are sold for up to 3,000 RMB. He welcomed us to his home for tea and shared stories of his lifetime, including how he became the first President of the Association for the Deaf of Wuhan.

We can’t thank this community enough for their warm welcome, guidance and hospitality. We were treated like royalty as visitors to their hometown. A special thank you to Zhang Peng and Jun Peng Li, who taught us that we do in fact, “share the same sky.”