Led by Charles "Chuck" V. Williams of Ohio, Sandi LaRue and Linwood Smith of Washington, DC, they presented issues of the NAD's lack of attentiveness to the concerns of Black Deaf Americans as well as the lack of representation of Black Deaf individuals as convention delegates.

Sandi LaRue issued a statement to the convention attendees: "NAD must take action to communicate better with the Black deaf community, encourage the involvement of minorities" within the national and state organizations, and recruit more Black Deaf children in the Junior NAD and youth leadership camp.

The July 6, 1980 The Cincinnati Enquirer published an article on the needs of Black Deaf people at the NAD convention in which LaRue stated to the newspaper, "We would like to get on the cover and front pages.

The six founding members were Lottie Crook, Ernest Hairston, Willard Shorter, Linwood Smith, Charles "Chuck" V. Williams, and Elizabeth "Ann" Wilson.

[12] In 1983 Sheryl Emery was elected as the founding president of NBDA and established the organization's by-laws and developed the administrative guidelines.