Viva la Inspiration! Seattle’s Marilyn Smith Wins Big in Vegas

Rewind 25+ years, and you have a timeline of visionary persistence as ADWAS became a safe harbor for domestic violence and sexual abuse victims. Shocking those who said it couldn’t be done, in 2003 Smith received the “Leadership for a Changing World” $100,000 award which would be partially allocated to create Seattle’s transitional housing for Deaf and Deaf-Blind victims of abuse.

The journey wasn’t easy, of course, and each victory came with a battle in itself.

“The Deaf Community and Government agencies were ready (for ADWAS); it was hearing based service agencies that were not ready except for a few" Smith told deafREVIEW during an interview at her home. “Part of it was because they didn't want to share public funding".

Later, it became clear that sharing means gaining: The ADWAS agency has become a model for similar programs in 25 other states, and is funded by a U.S. Justice Department grant, although each agency is on their own.  

The Inspiration Award is the latest addition to Smith’s recognitions. When she retired from a 25-year ADWAS run, she received three awards last year alone: The Woman of Valor Award from Sen. Maria Cantwell, the Bank of America Local Hero Award 2010-11, and the Ginny NiCarthy Award (King County Coalition Against Domestic Violence).

It was an apt salute from NiCarthy, the Rape Relief Shelter founder whom Smith credits for helping get ADWAS off the ground. In 1986, NiCarthy – who had by then written Getting Free, which is considered “the Bible of Domestic violence texts” – consulted Smith, who then formed her ASL-based advocacy support groups.  

Along the way, NiCarthy also learned about how abuse can be compounded in the small, close-knit ecosystem that is the Deaf Community. She described the paradox as “everyone knowing, but no one telling” which often characterizes abuse within the Deaf and Deaf-Blind Community.

“Marilyn hired me to train the Deaf community and interpreters about abuse and as informal byproduct I was trained about Deaf Communities,” said NiCarthy. "I recall being surprised in the early days of ADWAS, by how many volunteers eagerly signed on to be advocates, advisors, or support staff.” 

Smith endured a two-fold injustice in 1970: As a rape survivor in college, she encountered apathy from law enforcement. Authorities, unable to understand sign language, would not treat the case as a crime, and the case was closed with no arrest.

The final straw hit in 1981, after the brutal death of a local Deaf woman whose husband was acquitted. The wheels were set into motion, and Smith rolled up her sleeves to establish ADWAS in her basement of the Ravenna home she still lives in today.

“Marilyn Smith swept in,” wrote NiCarthy in the May 2010 issue of Seattle Voter. “Taking the Deaf Rights Movement by one hand, the Women’s Anti-violence Movement by the other, she clasped them together for action.”

Off her rocker: Anything but retirement

In Spring 2011, Smith passed the torched to Tiffany Williams, ADWAS’ new executive director. But don’t count on a “rocker chair retirement” for Smith, whose schedule hums with git er’ dones.

As Gallaudet’s graduation speaker this year, she cited Bertrand Russell, who in his 90s was protesting the Vietnam War: “He wasn't sitting at home in a rocker; he was out getting things done and getting arrested.”

She reads voraciously – at least six books weekly. Currently, she is a Distinguished Alumnus Fellow at Gallaudet, teaching a class as a visiting teacher in the Department of Counseling. Part of the curriculum discusses the “opportunity to really explore and reframe our language” – namely, the “isms.”

Last May, she and longtime partner Karen Bosley founded a consultancy group called The Leading Edge. In addition to mentoring non-profit directors on the finer points of fund development, strategic planning, capacity building, and program development, they host workshops on topics such as the unique needs of Deaf victims/survivors in the Deaf community.

She will also be consulting for-profit businesses. There are still many battles to be fought on both sides, she cautions.

“Marilyn has inspired so many people to better their lives in big and small ways. She has truly inspired me to overcome adversity and use the experience to grow from within,” said Robert Roth, who in the 1987 volunteered to become ADWAS’ first male advocate. “She is unafraid to take a risk, and yet at the same time, she is a rock.”

We at deafREVIEW could hardly agree more. Thank you, Marilyn, for sparking the Seattle revolution that was felt ‘round the world.

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