Thirty-one residents joined a growing number of incarcerated persons able to converse with members of the deaf community as San Quentin held its second annual American Sign Language graduation.
The 16-week-long ASL course united San Quentin’s residents through a non-auditory language of body cues. Prior to the program, only 11 residents communicated by “signing” — using sign language. That number has since risen to over five dozen.
“I never thought I would be in prison representing the deaf community,” said Tommy Wickerd, the founder and facilitator of the group. He said he saw deaf residents arrive at the rehabilitation center and instead of isolating themselves, they found a whole population who wanted to communicate with them.
Linda Wickerd, Tommy Wickerd’s mother, previously appeared in a documentary about deaf residents who had transferred to San Quentin. In the documentary, she spoke about how proud she felt that her two sons could finally talk to each other because of a video call system that allowed deaf residents to communicate.
At the graduation, Tommy Wickerd’s wife, Marion Wickerd, said that Tommy was incredibly moved by residents’ desire to learn to communicate with the deaf community. “The U.S. needs to have more ASL programs to speak at prisons,” she said. “Everyone should have friends. You all matter.”
The new ASL banner hung center stage with a collage of signs and photos of the group facilitators and founder Wickerd. Three residents designed and painted the banner over two weeks and 200 hours to represent the strength of San Quentin’s deaf residents. They featured the twin masques of comedy and tragedy, representing the documentaries “Friendly Signs” and “Silent Treatment,” both films about the struggles of deaf communities in carceral settings.
The Prison Law Office’s Rita Lomio addressed the graduation as one of the guest speakers. She discussed the difficulties of having deaf incarcerated persons transferred to San Quentin and the patience and the legal maneuvers that the job required.
Then, after thanking the facility staff for supporting the program, she addressed the graduates. “This class breaks barriers and builds communities,” she said. “It requires an open heart and an open mind.”
Warden Chance Andes congratulated the class for their willingness to learn a new language to communicate with deaf residents, saying, “This is what community looks like.”
Resident and graduate Brian Conroy signed about his journey from spelling letters in county jail to putting together full sentences at San Quentin. “Now, at the end of this class, I am proud to say that I am a part of the deaf community here at San Quentin.”
Resident Clayton Addleman added that he never expected to be “graduating anything,” and that founder Wickerd and program facilitator Albert Campos Jr. did not just teach him a new language. “What Albert and Tommy may not know is how much they taught me about life,” he said.
Deaf residents also signed their appreciation for the program. Campos called the experience of working with other residents in his non-auditory world “a blessing.” And resident Jaime “Happy” Paredes signed about the joy he felt for all the students who completed the program to learn his language.
“I am proud of all the students for learning my language,” he signed. “Now San Quentin has 62 more people I can communicate with.”
