10/06/2026
If you are in the area, please join us for this talk by Teresa Blankmeyer Burke of Gallaudet University!
The Philosophy Department Presents the 2026 Roy Wood Sellars Lecture
The Existential Threat to Signing Deaf Communities:
Gene Therapy and Deaf Bioethics
Teresa Blankmeyer Burke
Professor of Philosophy, Gallaudet University
4:30 pm Thursday, October 15
Elaine Langone Center, Forum
Bucknell University, Lewisburg PA
ASL interpretation provided
Free and Open to the Public
The Existential Threat to Signing Deaf Communities: Gene Therapy and Deaf Bioethics.
Recent developments in gene therapy have made it possible for some deaf children to hear. For many people, curing deafness is seen as an unequivocal good, a “miracle cure.” For others, this technology puts us on a course that could ultimately threaten the existence of the vibrant cultural and sociolinguistic community that is the signing Deaf community. This talk introduces the approach of Deaf bioethics and Deaf philosophy as humanistic lenses of assessing the value of scientific technology and challenging dominant narratives. Key questions to be addressed include: How should parents evaluate gene therapy? Should they engage with the Deaf community beforehand? How do we balance family needs with community identity?
Teresa Blankmeyer Burke, Ph.D. is Professor of Philosophy at Gallaudet University, the world’s only bilingual liberal arts college for deaf, hard of hearing, and hearing students. She teaches philosophy in American Sign Language and English. Her current research focuses on philosophy of disability, Deaf philosophy, and bioethics (in particular, ethics of genetics and emerging technologies). Her publications cover a wide range of genres, including peer-reviewed scholarship in philosophy and bioethics, journalism, and creative nonfiction. She divides her time between Washington DC and the historic neighborhood of Barelas in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and is currently working on a memoir about her years as a young widow and single mother in Cody, Wyoming.
Teresa Blankmeyer Burke, Professor of Philosophy, Gallaudet University FREE EVENT
