Deaf Poets Society: for Writers with Disabilities"

Question

by Corinne Segal

Deaf Poets Society, a new digital literary magazine, has a message for writers with disabilities: We see you. We want you to be here. And this is your space.

Writer Sarah Katz, the magazine’s founder, grew up in North Potomac, Maryland, and attended a school with a program for students who were deaf or hard of hearing. “I had grown up around other deaf and hard of hearing people and took for granted that I had easy access to other people like me,” she said.

That wasn’t the case at the University of Maryland, College Park, where Katz said she was the “only deaf student I knew.” As a young writer, she began seeking out the disability community and went on to earn an MFA in poetry from American University.

Katz said members of the disability community have struggled to find its place in the literary world, with many writers asking who is afforded space to write in a world that often renders disabled people invisible.

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Question
Use the passage to answer the question.

Which detail from the passage supports the same idea expressed in the statement “We see you”? Select the two correct answers.

(1 point)
Responses

“As a multiply marginalized person, someone is always trying to control our narrative.”
“As a multiply marginalized person, someone is always trying to control our narrative.”

“The idea of physical spaces . . . is an idea that many writers chose to examine in the first issue of Deaf Poets Society.”
“The idea of physical spaces . . . is an idea that many writers chose to examine in the first issue of Deaf Poets Society.”

"The editors of the Deaf Poets Society considered how to make the magazine accessible for all people."
"The editors of the Deaf Poets Society considered how to make the magazine accessible for all people."

“She realized that she did not have to package herself—working class, femme, disabled, Sri Lankan, poet—for others.”
“She realized that she did not have to package herself—working class, femme, disabled, Sri Lankan, poet—for others.”

“[It] could greatly expand the range of people who are able to attend and add their own perspective to the literary community.”

Answer 1

The two correct answers that support the same idea expressed in the statement “We see you” are:

1. "The editors of the Deaf Poets Society considered how to make the magazine accessible for all people."
2. “[It] could greatly expand the range of people who are able to attend and add their own perspective to the literary community.”

Both of these statements emphasize the inclusivity and recognition of diverse voices within the literary community, aligning with the message of visibility and support for writers with disabilities.