A sweet video that shows a Luke Skywalker cosplayer communicating with a Star Wars fan via American Sign Language (ASL) has gone viral.
Posting to Reddit's "Star Wars" forum yesterday under the name u/imflukeskywalker, the cosplayer, Fluke Skywalker, wrote: "If you can learn some basic ASL, you can really make someone's day, especially a big Star Wars fan."
The post has quickly amassed more than 92,000 upvotes and over 1,000 comments from Redditors who said they were touched by the interaction while others said they would be interested in learning ASL.
Skywalker told Newsweek that the now-viral interaction took place at the Dayton Off-Road Expo in Ohio. The self-described "volunteer cosplayer for charity" attended the event with two other cosplayers—Tim O'Sullivan and Jon Hammer, who were dressed as C-3PO and Boba Fett, respectively—to raise money for Blue Skies for the Good Guys and Gals Warrior Foundation.
While at the event, the cosplayers spoke to Star Wars fans and posed for pictures, and Skywalker had the opportunity to meet Robert—a 29-year-old Star Wars fan from Xenia, Ohio.
"Hello! My name is L-U-K-E. What is your name?" Skywalker asked Robert, who responded by signing his name.
The two exchanged pleasantries and then posed for a photo, after which, Skywalker signed: "Thank you. You are a Jedi. May the force be with you!"
Robert nods and waves goodbye, but before he can leave, Skywalker asks Robert for a hug.
"May I have a hug, please?" Skywalker asked. Robert nods, "yes," and the video ends with the two sharing an embrace.
In response to Redditor u/Alastor3, who asked Skywalker "why" he decided to learn ASL, Skywalker said: "I learned sign language because I was embarrassed not to be able to communicate with Star Wars fans who are hearing impaired and speak ASL. To me, they matter the same as everyone else and so I wanted to make an effort to at least learn some basic words."
Skywalker further told Newsweek that he took the time to learn basic ASL during COVID and that Robert was the first Star Wars fan to whom he's signed since learning the language. Though he "messed up" a couple of times during the interaction, he said Robert still understood him.
"I think he appreciated that someone was speaking his language," Skywalker said.
Previously, the United Nations (UN) stated that there are more than 70 million deaf people worldwide, who collectively use more than 300 different sign languages. Further, there are approximately one million people who use ASL as their primary source of communication, Newsweek reported.
According to Start ASL, American Sign Language is the third most commonly used language in the U.S.; however, it is not English.
"It is a distinct language with its own syntax and grammar and has been developed over hundreds of years by deaf people as a means of communication," Start ASL explained.
"It is also just as capable as English or any other language of communicating abstract or complex ideas," the organization continued.
As previously stated, Skywalker's video was a big hit and inspired others to look into learning ASL.
"Jeez, this really affected me," wrote u/omaca. "I want to learn now."
"Ok. Anyone have some good ASL classes to post??" asked u/PushKatel.
Update 03/02/2022, 1:10 P.M. EST: This article has been updated to include comments from Fluke Skywalker.
Uncommon Knowledge
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
About the writer
Sara Santora is a Newsweek reporter based in Florida. Her focus is reporting on viral social media posts and trends. ... Read more
