Michael Schwartz, Esq., Assistant Professor and Director of the Disability Rights Clinic at Syracuse University College of Law, wrote a letter to PepsiCO’s chair and CEO, Indra K. Nooyi, regarding AGBell’s letter.
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Amusing to see Mr Schwartz using AGBAD rather than AGBell. So I guess AGBAD is getting to be the norm, and a good “inside joke”.
See AGBAD’s entry in the published book titled Abbreviations Dictionary. However the association prefers to be referred to as AGBell.
Your link to Abbreviations Dictionary generates HTTP 404 Not Found error. Did AgBAD have anything to do with that, grins.
Anyway, I guess AG Bell became AGBell, then AgBAD (lower case g, with BAD in upper case) to emphasize, and then maybe the lower case g grew up to a G.
* innocently kicking a cookie *
I’m really applause for Michael A. Schwartz, assistant Professor of Law Director of Disability Rights clinic!
He did doing great job and making really quite professional written the letter..
Make AGBAD look fools!
The copy of this letter should also be to every major newspaper in the United States!
John Egbert
Deaf Bilingual Coalition
Jay, you check this blog way too often.
I fixed the link seconds after I first posted the comment. It was within those few seconds that you happened upon the broken link.
It’s not just in a book. It’s everywhere on websites focusing on abbreviations.
Although we may disagree with AGBell’s recent letter, we should be respectful enough to call them by the name they wish to be called.
That letter is just amazing!
Well, on AGBAD website they use AG BELL all over the place. Have not seen any AGBAD in there. Yet in the published Abbreviations Dictionary and other sources they all are AGBAD.
Reason I brought it up, and joked about it a bit, was that I believe Mishka Zena made a comment to a blogger or another commenter somewhere that she pointed out that she was not badmouthing “AGBAD” because she used “AGBell” not AGBAD.
My apologies for drawing attention away from the purpose of this post — Hands Wave to Mr Schwartz!
Woohoo!
*hands wave*
Great job, Schwartz!!!!
Each letter from Schwartz, NAD , DBC should be sent to each newspaper company in various state along with AGBell’s “tainted” letter.
Misha
Wow! I’m surprised as an attorney, he invoked Nazi Germany. That part is quite interesting. It’s a great letter, that’s for sure!
Oh, that is GREAT! I’m so thankful for his letter to Pepsi. We need more people like him!
Whoa! Schwartz did a sobering & fact story about AG Bell!! Euthcunies (spelling, blah… I tried to copy the word, but could not, AND I lose the information on comment each time I go different page..).
Bravery him!
deafk
deafk and The Deaf Pundit, yup, AGBell will never be able to live down to the fact that AGB was a main proponent of eugenics. It wasn’t until recently that I learned eugenics started here in the United States. Previously, I thought it was born from the Nazism movement, while in fact, the opposite is true. So it is AGB who gave start to the genocide of disabled people in Germany.
Applause to DBC, NAD, MA, and MS!
Each of your letters are well written! Deaf community that I have seen us stand up and speak up the most loudest to AGBAD that’s amazing!
What an amazing letter. Bring the truth out! Yes, Alexander Graham Bell was very active in the American eugenics movement, where Hitler derived many ideas from. As a consequence of AG Bell’s strangehold on Deaf Education, especially in America, Deaf resistance had been “radicalized”. We gotta stop criticizing ourselves and focus on who the real radicals are;
those who ban ASL outright
or
those who want ASL as a base, with “additions” such as speech, etc.
DE
Jay,
Click on my name (above) to see the web site of Alexander Graham Bell’s great-grandson, Edwin S. Grosvenor.
He used the acronym “AGBAD” on his own personal website to stand for “Alexander Graham Bell Association for the Deaf.”
Case closed.
–Brian
I’ve known about AG Bell’s eugenicist beliefs, but there’s Godwin’s Law.
Which is why I was surprised he brought it up.
Good letter.
Funny! Not one perosn note how AGBAD/AGBELL use their full name. ALEXANDER GRAHAM BELL for the DEAF. Please note the word, “FOR”. NAD goes by NATIONAL ASSOCIATION of the DEAF. “OF” differs from “FOR”. I recall someone mention how these two words can define a group. NAD chose the word “OF”. Something to do, being a group that can be part of it. That is the best i can explain in simple term.
“FOR” pretty much explain itself. UMMM!!!!! So who is AGBAD really speaking for? AlexanderGrahamBell who has been dead for quite sometime?
We should seek remake of Through Deaf Eyes. This time with more of cultural and sign language.
Great letter from Schwartz.
A big THANK YOU to Prof. Schwartz for a very clearheaded, incisive letter that leaves no doubt about the agenda of AGBell and its history! I look forward to hearing more from this committed Deaf lawyer.
Kathy,
How true, but there are still many places and schools using FOR instead of OF. Such as “School for the Deaf”. I like to go with Deaf School, and I often write this in my emails and memos “Indiana Deaf School” rather than “Indiana School for the Deaf”.
Beautiful! Thank you for sharing this letter with us! Inspiring!
~ LaRonda
Michael Schwartz’’s letter is reminding the world how one of the practicing methods, eugenics supported by AG Bell was eventually picked up by Hitler and the Nazi’s when they created the Holocaust . Goodwin’s law emphasized how Holocaust was used in a comparison or a reference to an event which is not the case what Schwartz was referring to, isn’t this right?
Yep, AGBAD is not speaking for the Deaf community indeed. They are mostly hearing supremacists making paternal decision claiming what they think it is the best for us. Excuse me, AGBAD, we can actually speak for ourselves.
Let me quote Michael Schwartz’s letter:
“It is interesting to note that Alexander Graham Bell was an ardent eugenicist who fought intermarriage among deaf people because of his fear of the possibility of deaf offspring. Not surprisingly, the ideas of eugenicists like Bell were seized upon by Nazi Germany to justify the murder of over 225,000 people with disabilities, including those who were deaf or hard-of-hearing, a campaign that paved the way to the holocaust.”
Uh oh, AGBell or AgBAD WOKE up the sleeping Giant, now AGBell can hear rumblings over their American eugenics movement that HITLER borrowed ideas from in committing the holocaust against 6 million jews and countless disabled including the Deaf and Blind. That is incredible hearing it from a credible lawyer; I am very sure AgBAD wish the letter was never written to Pepsi Co, I can swear on my grandmother’s grave on that. That is a very serious link between the AGBell organization and Hitler’s tyranny.
I know some jews who donated to AGBell in the past. If they knew of this, they would never donate a penny to this God forsaken organization ever again.
Let me clarify this- AGBell didn’t purposely tell Hitler to commit genocide, we know that- but the American eugenics movement that AGBell fostered was one that Hitler surely embraced, and with more treacherous results.
Such an electrifying letter! AGBAD organization may have regretted they opened a can of worm. Technology is now on our side and we are no longer hidden in silence.
Deaf Pundit, Mr. Schwartz explained about how the idea was originally derived from AGBell’s eugenicistic practice. He was merely sharing the factual aspect of the history, involving the deaf and hard of hearing, in which Nazi Germany was very much part of. It is not possible to avoid mentioning the history as long as it’s not inflammatory. I see nothing wrong in him to bring it up.
and he even copied Youdelman on the letter.. meaning she’ll get a copy of the letter and choke on her own regurgitated contents.
So, now that we’ve trumped AGBell in this case, what can we do now to keep furthering our mission? What can we do to strengthen this winning hand that we’ve just acquired??
I was once the product of the oralism philosophy–taught to speak.. nah I’ll go into detail on my own blogsite.
BF
[riffly_video]9874BFE2D6D211DCBBCFD0A456B4F508[/riffly_video]
WoW! Lawyer Schwartz struck AGB back real hard! Brilliant writer!
Reminds me of a line “An ounce of your blood!” says a lawyer in Shakespeare’s “Merchant of Venice”.
Prof Schwartz’,
Thank you very MUCH!! *Kiss my fist* that brillant man!!
Now it looks like some of us confirmed that what Schwartz had brought up was not applicable to the Godwin’s Law since the practice of sterilization and eugenics originated by AG Bell was actually carried on by Hitler and the Nazis.
I have collected articles of testimonies of Holocaust survivors and witnesses and picked up a story when a German Deaf young woman who was pregnant from a German Deaf man was forced to an abortion and sterilization. Her hearing uncle fought and shouted “Damn Heil Hitler!” He then got executed for that and the Nazis sent his family an executioner’s bill.
This was what Schwartz was pointing out how the concept of eugenics that was derived from AG Bell by Hitler and the Nazis that they sterilized and murdered thousands of disabled including Deaf people.
My conclusion is that Schwartz has a right to bring up Holocaust since he is explaining how the practice of eugenics came in the picture that AG Bell was linked to Hitler and the Nazis.
It is indeed a well written letter pointing out the facts!
Something that I learn about AGBad is one of reason to against and he is serious “genocide.”
Glad we have a education from DeafRead about AGBad’s background and what is different of deaf and oralism. I glad Michael Schwartz, wrote to Pespi Co about AGBad’s
Tayler, Thank you for send about Abbreviations Dictionary. I learn alot from all of people comment and inculding you,too..
My jaw already floored after I don’t really understand AGBad.
As emotionally satisfying as that letter might be, let’s hope Schwartz won’t be disciplined by the University; let’s hope he got clearance to put this on the national stage with the University’s blessings. Personally, I think the way it was written does not bode well for positive dialogue.
Jay;
Good point RE: “School FOR the DEAF”. Guess it isto make clear who this “school” is for. I too note many say, “Indiana School Deaf” or “ISD”, rahter than the full name. CHEERS!!!
What a well-written letter! Let’s give Dr. Schwarz our praise and support!
A proud ASLer,
Bridget C.