A Thank You Letter to Penn and the World

PGS: Disability Rights and Oppression: Experiences within Global Deaf Communities

Tasmiah, one of the Penn Global Seminar Correspondents, shares her experience abroad during the May 2025 travel period. Follow along with the group of correspondents on our blog and look out for their images on the @pennabroad Instagram feed.

Here’s the best way I can describe it: imagine that you don’t speak English, but you go to an English-speaking school. Everyone around you automatically assumes you’re less intelligent for not speaking their language, and they refuse to learn your language or provide resources for you to express yourself in yours. This has been the case for Deaf people for centuries—they were assumed to be unintelligent, and their sign languages have been historically disregarded and sometimes even banned. Up until four years ago, LIS (Italian Sign Language) wasn’t even officially recognized as a language by the Italian government, and it’s a similar case for many other Deaf communities in countries around the world. 

By integrating ourselves into the Italian Deaf community, we were able to meet them where they were. My classmates and I fumbled through LIS lessons the entire week in Italy, but with patience, effort, and the support of our amazing interpreters, we were able to navigate the language barrier and communicate with the Deaf community, understanding their experiences and struggles. Their stories reflected strength and perseverance, and it reinforced a very important lesson that we learned in class during the semester: that Deafness should be reframed as a form of diversity as opposed to disability. “Disability” implies something subtractive, whereas “diversity” represents something different, yet equally valuable. 

These lessons I learned, both in class and during our trip, are invaluable, but I wouldn’t have been able to grasp them as strongly as I did if it weren’t for the people around me. My classmates were amazingly inquisitive, always asking questions and sharing reflections that strengthened my understanding of each and every concept. At the same time, they were so energetic and absolutely hilarious—I wouldn’t choose to scooter through the streets of Rome with anyone else. 

Another important figure is my professor, Dr. Jami Fisher—one of the most brilliant women I’ve ever met. She guided us through learning difficult concepts, preparing us to be empathetic in our comprehension of Deaf culture while communicating how we could harness our understanding to serve as allies to the Deaf community. She navigated teaching us all of this while simultaneously acting as our trip mom all throughout Italy—routinely reminding us to stay hydrated and wear comfy shoes while providing us with a daily extensive list of the nearest grocery stores to make sure we didn’t go hungry. That is the duality of teachers. 

After coming home, I haven’t stopped thinking about how impactful this PGS experience has been for me. The appreciation I have for every moment I’ve experienced, every person I’ve met, and every place I’ve seen is unmatched. It all reminded me how important learning through a global lens is, and it made me realize that I want to spend the rest of my life traveling and understanding the world. There is so much for me to learn out there, and I wouldn’t feel right with myself if I didn’t do everything in my power to seek out those lessons. With that, I feel abundant gratitude for the institution I attend, because I wouldn’t have had this wonderful opportunity if I was anywhere else. Thus, I write one more thank you note: