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Mikelle StreetNyle Dimarco is a busy man — and he’s damn good at what he does. The model won cycle 22 of America’s Next Top Model and Dancing With the Stars, where he was the first contestant to perform as part of a same-sex couple. Courtney Act would follow suit in Australia, when they performed as their male-presenting self with teammate Joshua Keefe.
But DiMarco has also worked tirelessly on behalf of the deaf community.
That latter work is pretty nonstop. He’s called out the likes of Ariana Grande and various movie theaters for not providing captions. He also has taken issue with shows casting hearing performers for characters who are Deaf or hearing impared. But a part of his activism has been insisting that all spaces he’s in utilize sign language. It is a spot of visibility for the community, and also can allow those not of the community to possibly pick up some signs.
In a recent episode of Sundance Now’s This Close, a drama series written by and starring deaf creators Shoshannah Stern and Josh Feldman, Dimarco is on set at a photoshoot. He asks another character if they want him to send them a dick pick. (Yes, penis bearers, consent is sexy — and now even required in Texas!)
“Hey, you want a dick pic?” he signs, according to a caption. “I’ll send you a dick pic!”
Listen, you do not have to insist with me, shirtless model!
When it was uploaded to DiMarco’s Twitter account, the brief exchange obviously elicited the thirst. “Once again, my character is shirtless on TV,” he wrote with a short video of the moment, flooding basements as well as his mentions, no doubt.
It brings to mind a moment during Top Model when Dimarco asked: “You want to be on top?” The gif—and its accompanying motion — we have committed to memory.
Both feel like the perfect way to celebrate International Sign Languages day, which is today!
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