Deaf U - General Discussion

[peachmangosteen]

Quote

Deaf U follows the students’ day-to-day lives at Gallaudet, the famed Washington D.C. private college for the deaf and hard of hearing.

Premieres tomorrow, October 9th, on Netflix.

 

[peachmangosteen]

I went ahead and watched all this yesterday. It's only 8 ps and they're all about 20 minutes or less so it's a really quick binge.

It was different than I was expecting what with the abortion, molestation, depression, and domestic violence. I kinda expected it to be a bit more light based on the trailer.

It was so short, which on the one hand I appreciate but I wanted more. I wonder if there's gonna be a part 2 or something because it didn't seem to really end imo.

[bourbon]

This was a whole lot of really unpleasant people, but I suppose they're no different than participants on any other "candid" reality show. If that was the point they were trying to make, they were successful. 

My daughter is a hearing ASL interpreter, and she works a lot with students and staff at Gallaudet. She's commented about the whole "elite" deaf of deaf group. Tessa and her crew came off like a bunch of Mean Girls. 

[Refresh]

This was not what I was expecting either but I enjoyed it. 

Cheyenna looks a lot like Lauren Conrad from Laguna Beach/The Hills.

Alexa is messy. I think her sexual behavior is typical for that age, at least it's familiar to me and the people I hung out with at 20-25. But she also needs to realize that you don't leave your reproductive health in the hands of the guy. Period. End of sentence. 

I enjoyed Rodney's perspective, he made me laugh multiple times -- specifically about Dalton' throwing out his hearing aid. He's kind of extra but I found his bluntness refreshing.

 

The show took place at Gallaudet but certainly wasn't about the education. We got a bit of the football team but barely any about the scholastic education which I would've liked to see. But maybe it's not that different than the hearing world?

We had an ASL program at my high school and there were maybe 15-20 deaf students. There were a few people who were part of the mainstream social groups but most of the deaf students kept within their small social circle. I didn't understand it at the time, or thought it was just because of communication, but maybe it's more complex than that.

I had no idea about this Elite vs. Mainstream thing. The Elite students on this show were NOT great representatives of that thinking. But I've read some interviews with the exec producer Nyle DiMarco and he starts to explain it a little better. The desire to keep an all deaf culture and community, to protect that.  I get that.  If there's something unique about you and your family you want to safeguard it and not have it by default be forced into the cesspool that is the mainstream world. On one hand there's a very strong community. On the other it looks like self-isolation for protection.

DiMarco said Elites are only 5% of all deaf people in the US.  I wonder if there are other examples of isolated subcultures and how that's managed. All the examples I can come up with are religion or ethnicity-based, and not based on a disability or able-ness issue. It's a very interesting issue to think about. 

But all that said, that doesn't grant you license to be a bitch and bully those that aren't especially in an educational space.  That scene at the party with the girl shoving the lollipop into Cheyenna's mouth was not ok. 

Edited October 12, 2020 by Refresh
spelled Gallaudet wrong

[non sequitur]

I watched this based on the trailer, and was honestly kind of shocked it was so intense.  I thought at least some of it would focus on academics.

Alexa, Rodney and Daequan seem like they all have some serious emotional issues. Instead of working on those problems, they are masking them by constantly looking for the next relationship.  I really felt for Daequan, even though what he did was obviously wrong.

Had to laugh when almost immediately after Alexa's Dad said he didn't like Braxton, she gets back together with Braxton.

 

[meatball77]

This was really good.  I'm super surprised that they found students (girls) who were willing to be that open about their sexuality and things like abortion, molestation and abuse.  I liked learning a bit about that deaf community.  I've read about the divide with the culture in regards to implants and lip reading ect, losing their culture . . . and I'd love to learn more.  I'm guessing Covid is going to kill any hope of a second season.  I wish they'd given us a where are they now with the cast.

[Irlandesa]

On 10/10/2020 at 9:49 AM, peachmangosteen said:

It was so short, which on the one hand I appreciate but I wanted more. I wonder if there's gonna be a part 2 or something because it didn't seem to really end imo.

I thought it kind of did.  We had Cheyenne leave school which makes me wonder if she were really going to that school to begin with?  (I'm skeptical of reality TV.) Don't get me wrong, I won't care if it's fake because I liked what we learned by her presence. 

At least two others had significant others.

And Alexa, who was linked to pretty much every male cast member, returned to her boyfriend. And given how they broke up with his "you gotta be free" spiel, I suspect he was he was her boyfriend the whole time.

[kathyk24]

On 10/10/2020 at 10:49 AM, peachmangosteen said:

I went ahead and watched all this yesterday. It's only 8 ps and they're all about 20 minutes or less so it's a really quick binge.

It was different than I was expecting what with the abortion, molestation, depression, and domestic violence. I kinda expected it to be a bit more light based on the trailer.

It was so short, which on the one hand I appreciate but I wanted more. I wonder if there's gonna be a part 2 or something because it didn't seem to really end imo.

I appreciated the inclusion of those topics. Having a disability doesn't make you immune from other issues. I know people with physical disabilities who were molested. I thought the therapy session was great.

[ClareWalks]

I'm on like the fifth episode and most of these people are awful. I like the lesbian couple but they're hardly on at all. Alexa is a hot mess. I find it interesting that she totally blames Daequan for getting her "pregnant on purpose," when it seems like neither of them was using any sort of birth control, plus just finishing in someone doesn't mean they're automatically gonna get pregnant (not to put too fine a point on it). Daequan is a hot mess and needs therapy. Rodney is funny but not boyfriend material AT ALL. Dalton is awful. Just awful. Tessa seems like a total bitch, she was almost gleeful hearing about Alexa's abortion because she just wanted to go gossip about it immediately. Cheyenna is cool in my book, really the only "regular character" with self-awareness.

[Adiba]

20 hours ago, ClareWalks said:

I'm on like the fifth episode and most of these people are awful. I like the lesbian couple but they're hardly on at all. Alexa is a hot mess. I find it interesting that she totally blames Daequan for getting her "pregnant on purpose," when it seems like neither of them was using any sort of birth control, plus just finishing in someone doesn't mean they're automatically gonna get pregnant (not to put too fine a point on it). Daequan is a hot mess and needs therapy. Rodney is funny but not boyfriend material AT ALL. Dalton is awful. Just awful. Tessa seems like a total bitch, she was almost gleeful hearing about Alexa's abortion because she just wanted to go gossip about it immediately. Cheyenna is cool in my book, really the only "regular character" with self-awareness.

Me, too. Alexa puts the total blame on Daequan as if she had no choice in the matter at all. She chose to have unprotected sex with him--apparently she was not on any birth control and did not insist he use a condom. She also bothered me with her "Why?" and "Why me?" It seemed a little narcissistic,  imo.

Also, what about STDs? I don't know about Daequan, and I'm not slut-shaming Alexa--but she seems to get around and lead an active sex life.

[ClareWalks]

5 minutes ago, Adiba said:

Me, too. Alexa puts the total blame on Daequan as if she had no choice in the matter at all. She chose to have unprotected sex with him--apparently she was not on any birth control and did not insist he use a condom. She also bothered me with her "Why?" and "Why me?" It seemed a little narcissistic,  imo.

Also, what about STDs? I don't know about Daequan, and I'm not slut-shaming Alexa--but she seems to get around and lead an active sex life.

This show has definitely made me stop and wonder if I sounded this stupid when I was in college.

[auntiemel]

I think Alexa nailed it when she said she has Daddy issues. She needs validation from a guy. But then it doesn't fill the void, so she tosses that guy aside and goes looking for it from the next magical guy. When he doesn't make her feel substantially different inside, she starts the process over.

Pretty typical early 20s behavior. If she's self-aware enough at this point to understand the root cause, I have a feeling she'll have gotten some therapy and have herself sorted in the next 5-10 years. 🙂

[awaken]

Just finished the series!  A good watch, although I agree, would have liked to have learned more about life there and the education, not just their sex lives. I live in DC and have worked with several clients at Gallaudet so it was interesting getting more of a peek into life there. 

alexa is one screwed up individual. I realize some of it was the editing, but it was presented as if she literally went from guy to guy continuously trying to have sex with anyone. I’m sure IRL the timeframe was longer.

the idea of the deaf elite society was interesting to me and I will definitely seek out more info. Good for cheyanna for forging her own way in life. I’m sorry she dropped out though. 

[GaT]

I just binged this show, & I'm confused. I thought everyone seemed old for college students, is this a regular university? I 'm just not sure what else it could be.

I found the Elite vs everyone else thing bizarre, but honestly, I don't think that was the real problem. I think that this was a basic jealous girls problem that has nothing to do with hearing. Cheyenna was obviously a lot prettier than the elite girls they showed & she's also an influencer with followers who think her opinion matters. All these girls had was that they were "elite" in a tiny little bit of the population. 

On 10/12/2020 at 10:35 AM, Refresh said:

That scene at the party with the girl shoving the lollipop into Cheyenna's mouth was not ok. 

No it wasn't, but you know, she's an elite!

On 10/14/2020 at 9:32 AM, ClareWalks said:

Alexa is a hot mess. I find it interesting that she totally blames Daequan for getting her "pregnant on purpose," when it seems like neither of them was using any sort of birth control, plus just finishing in someone doesn't mean they're automatically gonna get pregnant (not to put too fine a point on it). 

 

On 10/15/2020 at 6:31 AM, Adiba said:

Me, too. Alexa puts the total blame on Daequan as if she had no choice in the matter at all. She chose to have unprotected sex with him--apparently she was not on any birth control and did not insist he use a condom. 

Alexa is a playa, she just wants a guy to make herself feel good, then she moves on to the next one. Everyone kept talking about how cute & hot she is, I thought she was attractive, but not that attractive. Also not very smart if she isn't using any kind of birth control with all the sleeping around she apparently does. I'm surprised she hasn't gotten knocked up a number of times, I guess the other guys weren't trying to get her pregnant on purpose. Still not sure how that would even be possible. 

Loved that the deaf community came up with that hand gesture for Trump.

[TwopLurker]

On 11/2/2020 at 4:40 AM, GaT said:

I just binged this show, & I'm confused. I thought everyone seemed old for college students, is this a regular university? I 'm just not sure what else it could be.

I looked up the town in Virginia where the two elite girls are from and the specialized deaf school goes until age 21. Maybe it's a common thing in the community to stay at one of these schools and then go onto university? 

Edited November 4, 2020 by TwopLurker
A word

[Adiba]

I think Cheyenna was 20 at the time of filming, according to her bio--and Daquan was getting ready to graduate? They didn't seem that old to me, but perhaps its because I am much, much older, lol. Also, the emotional maturity in some of the participants was lacking, imo. Tessa and the girl who shoved a lollipop into Cheyenna's mouth acted like middle-schoolers.

[Scarlett45]

Checking this out now. 

[auntiemel]

Just wanted to add that the dish breaking scene on the parking garage roof was one of the highlights of the series for me. When Cheyanna said, "Fuck that guy!" and threw the dish down, and you could see the legitimate surprise and delight on her face when the feeling of empowerment coursed through her, I got teary-eyed.

Because, seriously. Fuck that guy. 🤬

[Eri]

I don't know - I liked the initial premise but I kinda left the series feeling...disappointed? I've been fascinated about deaf culture since Switched at Birth was introduced years ago but I didn't feel as if I learned all that much except that there's ableism in every culture. I wanted to see actual campus life but I didn't realise the men/women ratio was so high. As others mentioned, the lack of diversity irked me and some of their personal lives didn't really interest me at all. Renate was probably the only interesting character of the lot.