Silent Theatre

Hello,

This is my new roommate.

Yesterday and today have been super productive research days...which is good because I am going home in 2 weeks.

Yesterday, I had two interviews in the morning with deaf individuals who don’t work for UNAD and I had three more this morning. I only had two scheduled, but one guy wanted to be interviewed so he showed up. These interviews have been really helpful; everyone has different opinions on how the deaf should be educated about HIV/AIDS, so it should lead to an interesting paper.

Yesterday afternoon I watched the rehearsal of the Deaf Silent Theatre Company at UNAD. One of the actors and I were chatting during the tea, samosa, and chapata (flatbread) break. My Ugandan Sign Language skills are pretty minimal, but my ability to communicate with people at UNAD has greatly improved. I can’t really explain it…I guess I understand a lot more than I can say. Anyway, at the end of our conversation, he was telling me that I should get my hair braided to surprise everyone in the US and Florence (who has taken me under her wing) starting watching our conversation. She turned to me and asked, “You understand him?” And I said that I did, and the look on her face was the happiest thing in the world. She looked so proud, and I smiled and signed, “I’m learning.” It made me feel wonderful.

Today, after my three interviews, I went to the performance of the Deaf Silent Theatre Company. They performed at some kind of legal fair; people were waiting in tents to talk to lawyers from different organizations. Honestly, I’m not sure what was going on, but they performed about the discrimination against persons with disabilities in the legal system. It was really educational and entertaining. The audience really enjoyed it. I taped most of it, so let me know if you are interested in seeing a little. Below is a picture of a skit based on a true story where a witchdoctor stole a baby from a deaf couple who were forced to sign a statement they didn’t make (no interpreters) and couldn’t read (no education) at the police station.

Tomorrow will be another full day…but I am taking a day off from research. I am finally going to go souvenir shopping at the craft market, which should be fun.

Goodnight.

Sarah