AJR 139 — Designates month of September each year as "Deaf Awareness Month" in New Jersey. *

AJR139 1R [First Reprint] ASSEMBLY JOINT RESOLUTION No.

MURPHY District 7 (Burlington)  Assemblywoman  Co-SponsoredMARGIE by:DONLON, M.D.

AssemblymanDistrict Scharfenberger11  (Monmouth)  Assemblyman   ANTHONY  S. SYNOPSIS      Designates month of September each year as “Deaf Awareness Month” in New Jersey;

designatesVERRELLI lastDistrict full15 week(Hunterdon ofand SeptemberMercer) each  yearCo-Sponsored asby: “Deaf Awareness Week” in New Jersey.

Assemblymen Scharfenberger, Sampson and Assemblywoman Quijano   CURRENT  VERSION  OF  TEXTSYNOPSIS      AsDesignates introduced.month of September each year as “Deaf Awareness Month” in New Jersey.

    ACURRENT JointVERSION ResolutionOF designatingTEXT the     monthAs ofreported Septemberby each year as “Deaf Awareness Month” in New Jersey and designating the lastAssembly fullHealth weekCommittee ofon SeptemberJune each18, year2026, aswith “Deafamendments. Awareness Week” in New Jersey.

   A Joint Resolution designating the month of September each year as “Deaf Awareness Month” in New Jersey 1[and designating the last full week of September each year as “Deaf Awareness Week” in New Jersey]1.

and Whereas, It is 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” and1[and the last full week of September as “Deaf Awareness Week”Week”]1 in New Jersey;

       1.    In order to celebrate the culture, heritage, and language of people who are deaf, and to increase public awareness of deaf issues:

    STATEMENT        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.