Bill > AJR135

Introduced Session

This resolution designates the month of September as "Deaf Awareness Month" and the last full week of September as "Deaf Awareness Week" in New Jersey. There are approximately 850,000 New Jersey residents with varying degrees of hearing loss ranging from mild to profound, including individuals who are born deaf and people who encounter late-stage hearing loss. New Jersey is also home to many world-class institutions and programs for people who are deaf, including the Union Street School for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing in Hackensack, the Bruce Street School for the Deaf in Newark, and the Marie Katzenbach School for the Deaf in Trenton. There are many misconceptions about being deaf and the challenges people who are deaf face in their everyday lives, which can only be dispelled through greater public education and awareness. Furthermore, much work remains to be done to promote the rights of people who are deaf throughout the world, including access to education, access to information and services, and the prevalence of sign language. Governments around the world have designated September as "Deaf Awareness Month," in order to commemorate the first World Congress of the World Federation of the Deaf, which took place in September 1951. It is therefore proper and fitting for the State of New Jersey to celebrate the culture, heritage, and language of people who are deaf and to increase public awareness of deaf issues by designating the month of September as "Deaf Awareness Month" and the last full week of September as "Deaf Awareness Week" in New Jersey.

Committee Categories

Carol Murphy (D)*,  Annette Quijano (D)*, 

Introduced, Referred to Assembly Health Committee (on 02/12/2024)

Official Document