海角大神

Today鈥檚 stories look at Washington鈥檚 impeachment power couple, the uncertainties about Bernie Sanders, Egypt鈥檚 new response聽to a Mideast crisis,聽a path to reconciliation in Colombia (maybe), and music empowering African women.

Last Wednesday, we hoped we were doing the responsible thing. You might have seen聽the video we published on members of the DeafBlind community crafting a language that speaks to their remarkable talents and perception of the world. It was genuinely moving.

When it came to identifying the community, however, our style guides pointed us to 鈥渄eaf-blind,鈥� even though producer Jingnan Peng鈥檚 conversations with the community suggested the term was outdated. To many, 鈥渄eaf-blind鈥� is medical language that dwells on their condition and its seeming limitations. 鈥淒eafBlind鈥� speaks of their ability and agency. The word choice was more than style, it was a statement of how we saw them.

Last week, we chose 鈥渄eaf-blind.鈥� This week, we have switched.

My first day in Journalism 101, my teacher told us we would decide what was news. We were the future information gatekeepers. That vision is all but gone. You all have Google now. What the Monitor can be is a partner, working with you to bring its unique gifts to your doorstep. And that means being a partner with those whom we report on, too 鈥� and listening to the best of what they have to say.

DeafBlind speaks to 鈥渨ho we are,鈥� says Debra Visser Kahn, administrator of the DeafBlind Autonomy Facebook group. 鈥淚t鈥檚 our cultural identity, and we feel it best represents our community.鈥�