The problem faced by the deaf community is the injustice they encounter when in the criminal justice system. Someone who is deaf or hard of hearing has at least a 50 percent loss of hearing in one ear (Ridgeway 2009), and some may be able to read lips. However, only ½ of all spoken sounds can be translated into American Sign Language (Ridgeway 2009), which makes it difficult for the deaf to communicate without using sign language. Because English and sign language are not the same language, many deaf people are illiterate because of a lack of schooling past a certain age. Even those with schooling up to the age of 18 or older are often functionally illiterate, read at a grade level of second grade or below, and have unintelligible speech (Vernon 2010). Furthermore, there is a segment of the deaf population that is incompetent or minimally competent in terms of understanding the legal process; those people are defined as having Primitive Personality Disorder (PPD). Due to all of this, there are those in the deaf community who are deemed as having Linguistic Incompetence, which means a defendant is declared incompetent to stand trial because he/she does not understand the charges made against them (Vernon 2005).
The deaf and hard of hearing are left with few resources when entering the criminal justice system. For example, since law enforcement personnel lack knowledge of deaf people and their culture (Vernon 2005) the law enforcement often arrest those who are deaf like everyone else, with their hands behind their backs, yet if the only way the deaf communicate is with their hands then the police have taken that communication, a basic human right, away from them. Often the police are not educated in sign language; therefore they c...
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...system on deaf culture. Many things are wrong with the criminal justice system and how they treat deaf people, but as a society we can take the first step in learning about our neighbors, friends, relatives and strangers in the deaf community. We can get educated on their culture and partner with them in the fight for justice.
Works Cited
Lewis, T. (2013). Deaf Prisoner Telecomm Injustice. Retrieved from http://www.behearddc.org/blogs-a-vlogs/74-first-blog.html
Ridgeway, J. (2009). The Secrete World of Deaf Prisoners. Retrieved from http://www.motherjones.com/mojo/2009/10/secret-world-deaf-prisoners-0
Vernon, M, & Miller, K. R. (2005). Obstacles Faced by Deaf People in the Criminal Justice System. American Annals of the Deaf, Volume 150(3), 283-291.
Vernon, M. (2010). The Horror of Being Deaf and in Prison. American Annals of the Deaf, Volume 155(3), 311-321.
The movie “Audism Unveiled” was a very interesting and powerful movie. I never realized that deaf individuals are discriminated against. This could be partly because I have never been immersed in or educated about the deaf culture until this year. One of the things that struck me the most while watching “Audism Unveiled” was the many heart wrenching stories about children being unable to communicate with their own non-signing hearing families.. The deaf child would have to ask their family members, why everyone was laughing or what’s going on. The family members would just tell them “I’ll tell you later” or “Nevermind. It’s not important”, resulting in the individual feeling isolated. Personally, I agree with people saying that if a parent has a deaf child they should learn how to sign; communication is what brings families together. As a result, the most intriguing thing to me was the stories of family members never learning American Sign Language; leaving their family member isolated.
In the following chapters, there is an extensive amount of knowledge to learn about how Deaf culture is involved in our modern world. The pages assigned give us an outlook of how Deaf people are treated in our daily life, and how we should learn from it. Its gives a clear line between what are myths and what are facts, to those who are curious about the Deaf community or have specific questions. This book has definitely taught me new things that I could put to good use in the near future. In specific chapters, my mind really opened up to new ideas and made me think hard about questions, like “why don’t some Deaf people trust hearing people,” or “do we need another ‘Deaf president now’ revolution?” I realized many new things in the course of reading this book, and have recommended this to my family.
Just like members of other minorities, such as Hispanics and African-Americans, Deaf people experience some of the same oppression and hardships. Although the attempts to "fix" members of and obliterate the DEAF-WORLD are not as highly publicized as problems with other minorities, they still exist. Throughout time, hearing people have been trying to destroy the DEAF-WORLD with the eugenics movement, the mainstreaming of Deaf children into public hearing schools, and cochlear implants.
Many hearing people do not take the time to listen to the Deaf community as they just assume that they are being “selfish” as they do not want to change. The Deaf community does not want the hearing community to change them. If we try to change the Deaf community, we are trying to change their language and culture. The Deaf community relies on American Sign Language just as many of us rely on English. We would not want anyone to try to convince us to change our language just so we can communicate with the general population. Being deaf is not a disability, but rather a culture that most of the hearing community is going to have to
In this article, “The Deaf Body in Public Space,” Rachel Kolb explains how interacting with people who do not understand sign language could be difficult. With her hearing disability she struggled to communicate with her peers. Kolb further explains the different situations she has encountered with people and comments that are made with first intercommunications. Going further she also mentions how she struggles with two languages and two modes of communication.
The documentary of “Through Deaf Eyes” has open my eyes to the deaf culture. The movie has made it “click” that deaf people are just that people and individuals like me. Deaf community has its struggles just like everyone else. They struggle with growing into who they are as a person, harmful situations, and feeling a sense of belonging. They just speak a different language like Italians and Hispanics. Communicating with a different language does not make them lesser than a hearing person. When able to learn to communicate, the deaf are able to learn and gain knowledge just like a hearing person. The only difference is they have to learn more and work harder to achieve their goals and gain knowledge, which a hearing person learns just by hearing their surroundings.
Throughout the course of the semester, I have gained a new understanding and respect of Deaf culture and the many aspects it encompasses. The information supplied in class through discussion, movies, and guest lecturers since the previous reflection have aided in the enhancement of my knowledge of Deaf culture and nicely wrapped up all of the information provided throughout the semester.
Tanner, D.C. (2003). Chapter 6: Hearing Loss and Deafness. In Exploring communication disorders: A 21st century introduction through literature and media (2nd ed., p. 189). Boston, Massachusetts: Allyn and Bacon.
While the benefits for the hearing are great, there are better benefits for those who are Deaf. Jarashow stated that it was essentially frowned upon if a Deaf child was using sign instead of trying to use what ability they had to hear. This seems counterproductive and if they emphasized more on teaching Deaf children ASL, there would be better outcomes for them in the future. Instead of focusing on trying to make everyone the same, they should focus on giving these children the best opportunity possible despite their
Deaf and hearing impaired individuals are know longer an out cast group. They now have there own deaf community. Deaf individuals do not consider themselves having an impairment, handicap, or any type of disability. They believe that through the use of sign language, other communication skills, and technology that there deafness is the way they are supposed to be. Many people who have perfect hearing can not understand deaf people and why they embrace there deafness instead of trying to receive hearing and get rid of there handicap. However not all deaf people have th...
Neubauer, D. W., & Fradella, H. F. (2011). America’s courts and the criminal justice system (10th ed.). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth.
Hearing people can have a place in the Deaf community. Each minority group tends to welcome genuine allies and the Deaf community is no exception. But it is important for people who hear to remember our role as allies. We join the community to show our support, not to lead. We can help educate other hearing people, but we are not missionaries to bring Deaf people into the mainstream. Deaf people are the appropriate leaders of their own civil rights movement and teachers of their children. Our role is not to give Deaf people a voice; it is to make sure that the voice already present is heard. And we can do that. We can teach other hearing people to listen.
Then I will discuss how departments can take steps to ensure their officers are aware of deafness in their area and steps that need to be taken to ensure the safety of deaf
This essay will discuss the role of the criminal justice professional in serving both individual and societal needs. It will identify and describe at least three individual needs and three societal needs, in addition to explaining the role of the criminal justice professional in serving each of these needs. Illustrative examples will be provided for support.
This essay will explore the medical model of disability as well as the social model of disability by providing an in depth analysis of the views and explanations that outline each perspective. It will examine and establish the connection of the two models in relation to Deaf people. Furthermore it will illustrate how Deaf people are defined according to each outlook, as well as the issues and concerns that arise from these perceptions. This essay will consider the medical model and the social model to compare the ideas and objectives of the given articles; Caught in the Deaf Trap by Karen Van Rooyen, A Brave New World of Sound by Thandi Skade, Fake Interpreters: A Violation of Human Rights and lastly Professor Graham Turner’s; 10 lessons from the tale of the ‘fake’ interpreter.