ONCE AGAIN, we are witnesses to how people (especially children) with disabilities are victims of the very systems that are supposed to protect them. In the "Chicago Tribune" 3/19/2011, there is an article about Stagg High School in the south suburbs. According to the story, a female student with a disabilty told a school staff person that another student had sexually abused her. The law in Illinois is very clear. If any student reports to a professional (teacher, aide, counselor, coach, etc.) in a school, that staff person MUST contact the police. The staff person cannot say, "Oh, I told my boss." No! the Illinois law demands the staff person contact law enforcement himself/herself. Apparently, this did not happen.
The staff person did not notify the police. Am I surprised? NO; not at all. Once again, we see something that happens over and over again throughout this country. Abel-bodied people do NOT respect people who are deaf or disabled. They do not believe that children with disabilities are victims of sexual abuse even though - EVEN THOUGH - the statistics show that children with disabilities are sexuallly abused more than twice as often as non-disabled children.

Children and adults with disabilities suffer discrimination, prejudice, bullying, abuse, torture, rape, murder at a rate higher than children and adults who are not disabled. Why? Because perpetrators (those who commit these crimes) know that most non-disabled people will not believe what a child with a disability tells them. Non-disabled adults cannot believe that anyone would want to have sex with a disabled person. That's exactly what the child sex-abuser wants other adults to believe. Even many police departments and states' attornies offices do not always pay attention to what disabled children and adults report about their lives. So once a agin we see another child with a disability abused twice: first, by the person who actually commited the crime and, second, by a system that did not do what it was supposed to do to protect that child. The system rewarded the perpetrator, not the victim.

Have you ever been hungry, really hungry? I mean the kind of hunger that has your stomach hurting, your head aching,your emotions angry and frustrated, your body exhausted? Then, when you finally had food to eat, how did you feel? My guess is that you felt energetic, satisfied, positive, ready to do something. Every year, the season of Lent begins with the same Gospel verses, MATTHEW 6:1-6, 16-18. Jesus challenges His followers ( you and me!) to do something. Jesus commands us, Matthew 6:2-4, to help the poor and hungry(giving alms means helping the poor). Why did Jesus make this so important? Because in Matthew 4:2, Jesus Himself did not eat and was hungry, really hungry! Jesus experienced what it meant to feel all the bad things that happen when our bodies are starving. So, Jesus told His followers that feeding the hungry is a very important way to show our faith in God.
In our country, the USA, the richest country in the world, millions of our citizens are hungry. Most of them are women and children...not children in some foreign country, OUR CHILDREN! Yet, people in the government do not seem to care. Recently, in the US House of Representatives, many of these politicians voted to cut over $500 MILLION dollars to a program called WIC. WIC means "Women, Children and Infants." The WIC program provides food and basic items (diapers,formula, etc) to poor women and their families. Yet, the people in the Congress voted to stop helping these women and their families. We have millions of children in our country who go to bed hungry at night, day after day. This means that their bodies will not grow like healthy children; they are more likely to become sick; they will not do well in school. At the same time, the same Congress voted to build more nuclear submarines (Trident submarines). Each Trident costs 7 BILLION dollars; the Congress wants to build 10 of them. Yet, the same Congress does not want to feed the hungry children of our country. Shame!
What can we do? First, we can contact our U.S. Senators and Representatives. Tell these people we want the hungry children of our country fed! The government has enough money for weapons; then it has enough money for food. Second, each of us can think how we can do our own part to feed hungry people. We can contribute to programs like Catholic Charities, St. Vincent de Paul, Feed America, etc.Third, we can contribute at the food store by adding several dollars to our food bill; the store will use that money to contribute food to the poor. Whatever we can give, we are doing what the Lord wants us to do. Our "hunger" to do what is right will be rewarded in heaven. Read Matthew 6:1-18, and see what God promises us!
"God's reign is already present on our earth in mystery. When the Lord comes, His reign(kingdom) will be made perfect. That is the hope that inspires Christians. We know that EVERFY effort to better our world, especially when injustice and sin is so powerful, is an effort that God blesses, that God wants, that God demands of us." - Archbishop Oscar Romero, El Salvador, March 24, 1980.

This past week, thousands of people, state workers, protested in Madison, WI because the newly-elected governor there wants to take away the ability fo workers to bargain for their rights. Among those people are state workers (deaf and hearing) at WSD (The Wisconsin School for the Deaf). There are other deaf workers throughout the state who will suffer if the governor gets his way.
In New York, the newly elected governor wants to save money. How? By closing all nine state schools for the deaf, the two schools for the blind, and "mainstream" all the students into regular schools. What about all the deaf peopele who work in these schools, will they be "mainstreamed" too?
In Illinois last week, the newly-elected governor gave his "budget" speech. he said that the State of Illinois has money problems, and he needs to save money. So, he proposed:
a) Eliminating the Circuit-Breaker program for Senior Citizens and people with disabilities;
b) Eliminating the RX Prescription Drug Plan for Senior Citizens and people with disabilities;
c) Reducing Medicaid paymennts which will hurt agencies, schools, and organizations that serve people with severe disabilities.
I cannot do much about Wisconsin (though I have relatives/friends there who are teachers and are suffering). I cannot do much about NY, even though I know some good people who live and work there. I can, however, try to do something about Illinois and its plans to "balance the budget" by hurting senior citizens, deaf and disabled people. I intend to do whatever I can to oppose these plans from the State of Illinois to hurt poor senior citizens and people who are deaf and/or disabled. This proposal is unjust and clearly wrong. Poor senior citizesn and deaf/disabled eprson do not have much "power". So, the politicians feel they can do anything they want and no one will notice. WE HAVE TO NOTICE THE POOR! WE MUST NOT IGNORE OUR BROTHERS AND SISTERS WHO ARE WEAK AND SUFFERING. In the coming days/weeks, we will gather people together to do what we can to keep programs for those who are "the least of our brothers and sisters." HOWEVER.......
.....in the Gospel reading from yesterday, Matthew 5:38-48. Jesus reminded us that we are NOT to become hateful, mean, or vengeful even against those who hate and hurt us. Jesus said quite clearly, "Love your enemies; do good to those who harm you." Even when Jesus was dying on the Cross,and people were mocking Him, Jesus prayed, "Father, forgive them." We must fight very hard to protect people in need and those suffering. Yet, it is not right or Christian for us to insult, hate, or wish pain and suffering on those politicians who do not care about us.Our Lord and Saviour, jesus Christ, wants us to be His followers, not become like those people we oppose. Therefore, we need to focus on protecting our poor and suffering brothers and sisters; this is what the Lord commands us to do. However, we will do it God's way, not the way of people who are selfish and do not care.
I will do my best to keep you informed about what is happening with this issue.

In our Catholic Faith, we have always understood the power of language. Jesus said (Matthew 5:33-37) that the words we use and promises we make are powerful. St. James in his important Letter (Epistle) of St. James reminds us (chapter 3) of the responsibility every person has to use words and language responsibly. Technology has given us all many benefits. In a special way, deaf people have enjoyed a huge increase in the ability to communicate just in the last 40 years. In the 1970s, deaf people began to use the TTY (often a converted teletype machine) to reach others. Since that time, we have seen the modern TTYs, the fax machine, then email, "sidekicks", phone relay, video-relay, VP. The popular "Deaf Expos" are largely show places for the newest communciation technology. FACEBOOK and other "social media" are hugely popular, and powerful(just look at how the social media is being used in Tunisia, Egypt, etc.). However, with this increase in the ability to communicate, there should be also an increase in WISDOM. Because communication technology makes any message INSTANT & ACCESSIBLE to anyone, WHAT we communicate is as important as HOW we communicate.

Unfortunately, in our own deaf/hard of hearing community, many people are using technology in mean, hurtful, and bullying ways. People send out messages about other people without checking facts. Then, when the truth comes out later, the person says, "oh, I'm sorry. I did not know." Why not wait to find out the truth? (Too many people beleive ANYTHING they get in electronic media. Many of the messages are false, scams, total lies.) Some people use the technology to spread lies, things they know are not true to get even with someone, to hurt them because that person did something bad to the first person years ago. People are bullying other persons through the technology, getting other people to say hurtful things against someone who often is innocent. Recently, several deaf people told me how sad they were. Why? Because their "friends" had "un-friended" them (deleted them) from their FaceBook accounts. They blamed the innocent person for things that never happened. My response: "someone who unfriends you was never truly your friend to begin with!"
FOUR THOUGHTS:
a) If you are someone who thinks it is "fun" to spread gossip, lies on the internet, to cause other people pain, remember: in the end, people will realize who you are, and no one - NO ONE -will want to be your "friend".
b) More and more people are now saving bullying, threatening messages. I expect that soon we will begin to see people in our community suing one another over these texts, messages, etc.
c) In our deaf community, we ought to be supporting and encourgaing one another, NOT tearing down each others reputations.
d) Jesus has taught us to forgive, AND to ask forgiveness of others. "Forgive us our trespasses - sins - as we forgive those who trespass against us.."(Our Father) If we have hurt others - family, friends,co-workers - by the language, signs, words, technology we have used, ask those people for forgiveness. And if someone asks us for forgiveness, then we are to forgive them. Why? Because God the Father has forgiven us. How? By the death of Jesus on the Cross! If we forgive others, even those who do not seem sorry for hurting us, then we will always remain God's "friends." God will never "Un-Friend" us!

When I began working in the deaf community in 1977, many deaf people complained that car insurance comapnies charged them more. Why? Simply because they were deaf. The car companies assumed that deaf people were worse drivers than hearing people because they (the deaf) could not hear. Eventually, deaf people started to collect information and, guess what? They proved that hearing drivers had just as many accidents as deaf drivers. In some states, hearing drivers had MORE accidents than deaf drivers. Yet, it took many years for deaf drivers to pay the same rate for car insurance as hearing drivers.

For many years, people who were deaf could not buy health insurance. Why? Because they were deaf! The health insurance companies refused to insure deaf people because the insureres believed that deafness was a sickness, that deaf people were more likely to be sick than hearing people, that deaf people had more diseases than hearing people.(There is NO proof that any of those claims are true.) In the same way, these health insurance companies would not insure people with MS, diabetes, lupus, some forms of arthritis, and on and on and on. The insurance companies said that they would not insure people with "pre-existent conditoons", meaning any form of illness or disability. Why? Because the insurance companies argued that having a "pre-existing condition" meant you would get sick more often, need doctor's care or hospitalizations more often, and would make you a bigger health "risk."
When the Congress finally passed, and President Obama signed into law, the Health Care Reform Act of 2010, part of the law stated that insurance companies may NOT deny insurance to people who have disabilities, are deaf, or have a "pre-existing condition". However, receently, some people in Congress and some states have tried to get rid of this part of the law. Why? Because many people in the insurance business do not like the law.(We are blessed to have some people in the insurance business in Illinois, like Ms. Suzette deSalvo, who actually WANT deaf customers!) However, there is a big risk that politicians will continue to try to get rid of the law that protects people who are deaf and/or disabled. One organization that is fighting to keep the Health Care Law safe is the National Organization for Rare Disorders (www.rarediseases.org).
What makes this whole situation crazy is that people who are disabled, who have "pre-existing conditions" often work very hard to protect their health. They cannot get insurance. Yet, there are many people who drink too much alcohol, eat too much food (obese!), do not take care of their health who can easily sign-up for insurance because they do not have a "pre-existing condition." However, their behavior costs insurance companies (and us!) lots of money because of their unhealthy life-styles. Many people with "pre-existing conditions" make better, and healthier, insurance customers than so-called "healthy" people who are very careless with their bodies.
It is VERY important for all of us to fight to keep the part of the Health Care Reform law that allows people with "pre-existing conditions" to purchase health insurance, just like any citizen of this country.

A week ago, I was invited to give a talk to the deaf/hard of hearing students at a local high school. The assembled group were 24 students, between the ages of 14-16. During the course of my discussion with them, I asked, "how many of you know someone in your family or among your friends who has been murdered?" Half of the students raised their hands, some with tears in their eyes.These are young people, living in Chicago, who are growing up surrounded by violence, the total disregard for the value of human life. Several of them approached me after the talk to share with me stories re: drugs, violence, and abuse in their homes and communities. These young people want a better life, A DIFFERENT LIFE than the one they are experiencing. Yet, how can they achieve their dreams?

We live in a society that allows just about anyone to carry a gun or guns. Everytime we try to pass reasonable gun laws, the politicians oppose these laws. We live in a society where many 14 and 15 year old girls are pregnant. yet, no one wants to enforce the law against Statutory Rape (Aggravated Criminal Sexual Assault of a Minor) even though we know that many of the "fathers" are much older than the girls they impregnate. (Girls who are deaf and/or disabled are raped two-three times more often than hearing/non-disabled girls.) Drugs are everywhere, totally available on the streets, in the schools, anywhere where young people gather. The greatest problem is that for many of these young people home is not "home". Many of these young people do not come from "intact" families. In many public schools( city and suburbs), fewer than half of the children have families where there is a significant, continuing, caring male presence in their lives. Of course these kids have problems. Yet, few people in authority actually want to do what is needed. These people blame teachers for failing to do their job; claim that social workers and school counselors "baby" their students; suggest that more physical punishment would stop all this. Most of the programs for deaf and disabled students in Illinois and other states get a small percentage of what they need. Many of these students are deprived of any real opportunity to succeed because their families get almost no support from government. People in government rarely, if ever, actually try to listen to what the people in schools, and the adult professionals in the community try to tell them. It is much easier to blame than to do the right thing. Sadly, the death and suffering will continue until that failure on the part of the so-called "leaders" in power changes.

Each year, the NCOD(National Catholic Office of the Deaf) holds an annual "Pastoral Week" for those people involved with deaf ministry in the US and Canada. This year, over 90 people attended at the W Atlanta Hotel, Atlanta, GA. The meeting began Sat, the 15th. Deacon Ralph Hinch, Bob and Maggie Swatek, Patricia Slisz and Diane Russell attended from Chicago.The week previous Atlanta had been hit by a snow storm that paralyzed the city for three days. then, their football team lost on Saturday night, so the mood in the town was NOT happy! Sat and Sunday were workshops, regional meetings and Mass. Patricia Slisz was busy promoting the ICDA Conference for Chicago this coming summer.
I arrived Sunday evening. Monday morning at 7:30am, we had a breakfast meeting with 16 people re: the coming changes in the Roman Missal. The issue: how to prepare sign-language interpreters for these changes, especially interpreters in areas where there is no organized deaf ministry. We ended up with a good plan that we believe will reach those interpreters in isolated areas as well as large cities. At 9am, Fr. Mike Medas of Boston gave a very good presentation on working with deaf teens and young people. Following his talk, were several break-out sessions following up with practical advice on doing our work in the deaf community.
Tuesday morning we had another meeting at 7:30am on MFP (The Ministry Formation Program for the Deaf) located in Chicago. We had about 25 people attend. 9am was the business meeting of NCOD, followed by committee meetings. That afternoon, I gave a presentation on the Vatican Confertences involving deaf ministry in 2008, 2009, and June 2010. Mass brought an end to the Conference. The NCOD Conference in 2012 will be 1/14-17, Boston, MA.
About half of the participants were deaf, a good sign that more and more deaf want to take up responsibility for this work.

The New Year certainly will not be easy for our community. There are a number of challenges to all deaf people and their families, but also to our Deaf Church communities.
GOVERNMENT & LAW: many newly elected Representatives and Senators in Washington,D.C. want to weaken laws such as the ADA and the new Health Care law. The ADA is the greatest protection deaf people have for equal rights.(One newly elected Senator said that the U.S. government should get rid of the ADA entirely!) The Health Care law gives many deaf people and people with disabilities their first opportunity to get health insurance. The role of the NAD (National Association of the Deaf)will become very important in keeping all of us informed about these threats.
STATE OF ILLINOIS: the State is in very poor financial shape. Because of terrible leadership in Springfield, many agencies serving people who are deaf and/or disabled have cut back programs or closed! Deaf children in special education classes are NOT getting the education they should because there has been no funding!
ECONOMY: many deaf people are out of work or have lost jobs. At the same time, the costs for gas, food, etc are increasing EVERYDAY! This situation is causing great stress in many families. Yet, at the time that these families need counseling help, the counseling services for deaf and hearing people are cutting services. Why? Because the State of Illinois has not paid its bills for THE LAST SIX MONTHS!
This economic situation has many consequences. If gas goes over $4/gallon and people do not have money, will they continue to come to Deaf Church, deaf socials, deaf workshops? People on Social Security have not gotten a "cost of living" increase for the third year! Will deaf seniors keep driving to Senior Citizen Socials if they cannot afford the gas? Deaf people love their technology. How will people afford new technology to communicate if they can barely afford to buy food?
WHAT CAN WE DO?
1) Deaf people must continue to support ONE ANOTHER! Encourage each other! Help each other! Gossiping against each other only hurts our community.
2) PARENTS of deaf and/or disabled children must not allow their school districts to cut back on services to their chidlren.Make sure you stay informed about what your school is doing.
3) There are people in the deaf community who sell illegal drugs and use these drugs. These people are MURDERING their deaf brothers and sisters. If you know who these people are who are selling drugs, call the police.People who are addicted need to go to ARD (Addiction Recovery of the Deaf).
4 COME TO CHURCH! We need God MORE now than ever! Prayer helps us, especially when we pray with one another. Receive the Body and Blood of Jesus in Holy Communion. Make sure you pray with your children at home, and bring your children to Church!
Good question: if the price of gas goes over $4/gallon, what should we do? Should we have Mass for the deaf every Sunday on the internet? Fr. Mike Depcik already does a great job with his VLOG (www.frmd.org). Fr. Luberti is doing good work at www.transfiguration.com/VideoMedia-SignLanguageLiturgies. We may need to be more creative using the internet, VP, etc.
What is most important is that we continue to live and act as brothers and sisters to one another. If we simply live in a selfish way, only concerned about ourselves, then as a community we will disappear and die. All of us - deaf, hard of hearing, hearing; interpreters, special ed. teachers/counselors, parents, advocates - must keep working together for us to face the challenges that are confronting us right now.

The days of Christmas are so hurried and busy, that I feel the day has come and gone without much chance to ask, "what does the birth of Jesus really mean?" So, I was glad to receive the following reflection written in Spanish, "Todos Los Dias Nace El Senor (Every Day the Lord is Born)" written by Juan Antonio Espinosa, translated into English by Fr. Kevin Hays.
"For this darkened world, the Lord in born; to conquer darkness, the Lord is born; to change our life,everyday the Lord is born.
To bring us freedom, the Lord is born; to smash our chains, the Lord is born; in each person who is free, everyday the Lord is born.
To take away oppression, the Lord is born; to wipe out injustice, the Lord is born; in those people who cry out, everyday the Lord is born.
To conquer poverty, the Lord is born; for the poor who suffer, the Lord is born; for the equality of the poor, everyday the Lord is born.
To bring us peace, the Lord is born; for a bleeding world, the Lord is born; for each person who struggles, everyday the Lord is born.
To bring us love, the Lord is born; to conquer selfishness, the Lord is born; to take us by the hand, everyday the Lord is born.
For a sleeping world, the Lord is born; to disturb our lives, the Lord is born; in each person who hopes,everyday the Lord is born."

This Christmas, the Marines in Kandahar, Afghanistan will lay their helmets and M-16s beside them, gather around a simple altar where the priest is wearing a flac jacket, and hear Isaiah procaim, "He is the Prince of Peace."
The Catholic community in Baghdad,Iraq will not gather for Mass this Christmas because it is too dangerous. Terrorists killed four of their priests one month ago. Yet, they will remember that He is Emmanuel, "God is with us."
The people in Port-au-Prince, Haiti will gather in front of their cathedral, runied and destroyed by the earthquake, gather as they have every Sunday since the earthquake. They will dance and sing. They will hear the Scriptures proclaimed, "Do not be afraid. Rejoice. We have news that gives you great joy!"
Christmas morning, Cardinal Francis George will celebrate the Mass for the prisoners at Cook County jail. He will raise the host and say, "This is the Body of Christ." He will look out at this group and say, "And you, too, are the Body of Christ."
I am not sure the world is any worse than the one Isaiah confronted 2,600 years ago or the world into which Jesus was born 2,000 years ago. Our world is certainly not better. Yet, into those worlds and ours, the angel comes and says, "Do not be afraid." Why? Because God is Emmanuel, the one who is "always with us." The great sign of that truth is Jesus Christ. Jesus was born into His time to re assure people that God's Promise is true. He is born into our time, into every heart that welcomes Him, that seeks to follow His way by being a sign of healing, reconciliation, concern for the poor/hungry/abused/homeless, unconditional love, and peace.
Ultimately, the real celebration of Christmas is NOT that God became one of us 2,000 years ago. Christmas is all about Jesus being born into our own hearts, changing our lives, helping us live for others as Jesus Christ lived, died, and rose for everyone of us. Merry Christmas.