From March 13 to April 15, the National Deaf History Month celebrates the achievements of people who are deaf as well as hard of hearing. In order to highlight the beauty of the community, New York-based streetwear Private Policy, which touts itself as promoting genderless design, entered a team effort with artist and activist Chella Man.
The jewelry is being offered on a limited basis. Most striking is Man's campaign video which is shot underwater. The video depicts different people from the Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) communities using sign language underwater as they share their experiences as people who are deaf.
“Perhaps even such a gain that we forget about loss,” Man’s video goes on. “In the face of prejudice, we gain strength. Other senses heightened coming together to form a dynamic perspective of life we will always carry. I see the ripples of vibrations. I feel them. Experience what others are too busy to appreciate. Sound is movement I make with my body.”
Man shares that ever since he was a child, he did not feel at ease with carrying hardware behind his ears. "It has always been designed by others and never by me," he said. "It never felt or looked like me." He added that there were times during his modeling career that "stylists and photographers have tried to avoid getting my cochlear implants into images rather than accepting them as a part of me and amplifying them."
The Hands, Arrow, Hands and Moon, and Arrow and Moon ear designs have also sold out. Each ear jewelry has a futuristic and minimalist sophistication to it. As the labels show, some have arrow ends, others have finger-like tips, and others have little moons at the end of their wires.