Our New Neighbors Archive

Our New Neighbors, Episode 13 – Deaf New Americans Advocacy, Monu Chhetri

by Ron Lombard

November 8, 2023

Born deaf in Bhutan, Monu Chhetri was still in diapers when her family fled their home country in the midst of an ethnic cleansing. In this edition of Our New Neighbors, Monu tells her compelling story of living for the next 19 years in a tent, in refugee camp in Nepal, before resettling in Syracuse. Once here, Monu found a great need to help deaf refugees and immigrants like herself, so she founded a non-profit, Deaf New Americans Advocacy, Inc. With the help of deaf interpreter Zenna Preli, hosts Maryna Bagovska and Ibrahim Mohamed talk to Monu about how her organization has had a huge positive impact in a very short period of time.

Read a transcription of this show here: Our New Neighbors Transcription