Protesters barricaded gates, burned effigies, and gave interviews to the press demanding four specific concessions from the Board.

These organizations wrote letters of endorsement to the board recommending qualified deaf candidates and reached out to the media to gain support.

On February 28, 1988, the Board had narrowed the pool to three candidates: hearing person Elisabeth Zinser, Vice-Chancellor for Academic Affairs at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro; Irving King Jordan, Gallaudet's Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, who had been deafened at age 21 due to a motorcycle accident; and Harvey Corson, superintendent of the American School for the Deaf, who had been born deaf.

A group called the "Ducks", a radical fringe faction of the National Association of the Deaf (NAD), began organizing a rally.

On March 6, 1988, the board selected Zinser, the sole hearing candidate, over the other two deaf applicants, Corson and Jordan, as the next president.

The board, however, made no official announcement of this to the Gallaudet community; the student body found out later in the day by visiting the campus’ Public Relations Office.

Upon learning of the appointment of Zinser, an angry student body marched to the Mayflower Hotel, where the board members were meeting.

She responded to multiple questions surrounding the selection of Zinser as president, whereupon she allegedly said, "Deaf people cannot function in a hearing world."

The locked gates forced people to use the front main entrance whereupon protestors allowed only select persons to enter.

[6] The protest was led for the most part by four students, Bridgetta Bourne, Jerry Covell, Greg Hlibok, and Tim Rarus.

[8] On Thursday, March 10, Irving King Jordan came to Gallaudet to address the protesters, retracting his earlier support of Zinser as president, "I only have anger towards the decision of the Board.

"[6] On Sunday, March 13, 1988, Jane Spilman officially resigned and was replaced by deaf board member Phil Bravin.

The reporters used four main frames to cover the DPN campaign: effective conduct, external support, internal unification, and justifiable action.

The New York Times produced a headline that said, “Campus Protest by the Deaf Is Widening,” and it focused on the main groups who joined the movement to fight for a new president.

It is thought that Deaf President Now gained so much acceptance from everyone, ranging from the media to the public, due to the idea of standing with disabled communities within a non-disabled society.

In October 2006, the four DPN student leaders from 1988 issued a public statement, which was harshly critical of both Jordan and Fernandes.

DPN also allowed for better rights and also gave more access for deaf people when compared to the previous 216 years of the nation’s existence.