The Deaf Community
Imagine if you could never experience the sound of your favorite song on the radio. Or you could never hear the voice of a family member wishing you happy birthday. Since these situations are typical we may take them for granted. But these every day scenarios will never be part of a deaf person's life. "One out of thousand infants will be born deaf every year," (Deaf Understanding). Most people don't realize the giant impact of the deaf in our society. Deaf persons can be any race, gender and position in society. They can be scientists, doctors, or many other professions. Since the occurrence of deafness is so high in our society we all must learn how to communicate affectivity with the deaf community.
There are many approaches a person may take to familiarize themselves with deaf society. Most people that are of hearing belong to one of two following categories. The pathological approach to interact with the deaf is to focus on their disability and try to correct it by using medical approaches. This approach is usually practiced by doctors. Many disagree with the pathological approach because they would rather be categorized by the senses they were given and not the senses they lack. Sometimes individuals view deaf people as being abnormal and must be "fixed." The truth is since the deaf can't hear they learn how to use there other senses in ways the hearing can't imagine.
The second view is the cultural approach when interacting with deaf society. This point of view classifies the deaf as a group of individuals that share a common language. "In fact, American sign language is the third most used language in the United States," (Sign Genius). Another way the cultural view classifi...
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...uage which is sign language. Sign languages are visual languages that are living languages and therefore changing. Each country has their own unique sign language that the deaf community uses. Also, many famous individuals in sports and culture have been deaf. Since the occurrence of deafness is so high in our society we all must learn how to communicate affectivity with the deaf community.
Bibliography
http://www.deafunderstanding.com/facts.html
http://www.signgenius.com/info-sign-lanuage-05.shtml
http://www.deaf.net/interesting.htm
http://www.nad.org
http://www.signmedia.com/info/adc.htm
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.
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.
In this book, we read of several different things about the deaf culture. One example is the dislike the deaf people have for cochlear implants being given to deaf children. As stated in our book, the reason why the deaf do not approve of cochlear implants being given to deaf children is because they feel the child should have the opportunity to decide whether they want to be hearing or deaf. Another part of the deaf culture that we learn about in “Train Go Sorry” is that the deaf are very social people. They enjoy being involved in many social events and love to talk with one another.
What I found most interesting about Jarashow’s presentation were the two opposing views: Deaf culture versus medical professionals. Within the Deaf culture, they want to preserve their language and identity. The Deaf community wants to flourish and grow and do not view being deaf as a disability or being wrong. Jarashow stated that the medical field labels Deaf people as having a handicap or being disabled because they cannot hear. Those who are Deaf feel as though medical professionals are trying to eliminate them and relate it to eugenics. It is perceived that those in that field are trying to fix those who are Deaf and eliminate them by making them conform to a hearing world. Those within the Deaf community seem to be unhappy with devices such
Stepping into a room filled with both students who were deaf and others who were not, I was instantly met with smiles and hugs. While most people sat cross legged in a circle on the floor, the warm and amiable atmosphere imitated how Deaf culture is founded on a collective mindset and not on a separated
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.
Many people of society perceive deafness to be a disability a person has at which causes them to lack the power of hearing. Many of the people whom choose to believe that those who are deaf are disabled rather than possess a simple difference amongst them have most likely never had the chance to learn about deaf culture. Only about two or three out of every thousand children are born with detectable levels of hearing loss in the United States and an entire ninety percent of deaf kids are born to two fully hearing parents. (NIDCD) Therefore, it may be possible that a large portion of society views deafness as a disability due to the lack of background knowledge on Deaf culture.
90% of all deaf children are born to hearing parents who never thought much about the deaf community (Bat-Chava). That is why in mainstream society, the quality of being deaf is seen as a disability rather than something to be praised. The common view of deafness is that it is simply a person who cannot hear and “is deficient in some way because he or she may not be able to communicate by ‘speaking’ or ‘hearing”, we capitalize on what a deaf person cannot do rather than what they can (“Understanding Deaf Culture”). Carla A. Halpern says:
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.
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...
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.
The deaf community does not see their hearing impairment as a disability but as a culture which includes a history of discrimination, racial prejudice, and segregation. According to an online transcript,“Through Deaf Eyes” (Weta and Florentine films/Hott productions Inc., 2007) there are thirty-five million Americans that are hard of hearing. Out of the thirty-five million an estimated 300,000 people are completely deaf. There are ninety percent of deaf people who have hearing parents (Halpern, C., 1996). Also, most deaf parents have hearing children. With this being the exemplification, deaf people communicate on a more intimate and significant level with hearing people all their lives. “Deaf people can be found in every ethnic group, every region, and every economic class” (Weta and Florentine films/Hott productions Inc., 2007). The deaf culture and hard of hearing have plenty of arguments and divisions with living in a hearing world without sound however, that absence will be a starting point of an identity within their culture as well as the hearing culture (Weta and Florentine films/Hott productions Inc., 2007).
Two centuries ago, the Deaf community arose in American society as a linguistic minority. Members of this community share a particular human condition, hearing impairment. However, the use of American Sign Language, as their main means of communicating, and attendance to a residential school for people with deafness also determine their entry to this micro-culture. Despite the fact that Deaf activists argue that their community is essentially an ethnic group, Deaf culture is certainly different from any other cultures in the United States. Deaf-Americans cannot trace their ancestry back to a specific country, nor do Deaf neighborhoods exist predominantly throughout the nation. Additionally, more than ninety percent of deaf persons are born from hearing parents (Singleton and Tittle 222). Consequently, they often feel isolated from their families, as they do not even share the same language. Non-hearing children born into hearing families are more likely to attend a regular public school with typical peers, causing them to have little contact with other members from the Deaf community. Therefore, this community embraces a diverse group of individuals, who are surprisingly different from the rest of the members of their own families. This situation causes a cross-cultural conflict, which others believe needs fixing. Nevertheless, society should not perceive the Deaf community as a disability group but as a discrete linguistic minority, rich in history, values, and traditions.
In mainstream American society, we tend to approach deafness as a defect. Helen Keller is alleged to have said, "Blindness cuts people off from things; deafness cuts people off from people." (rnib.org) This seems a very accurate description of what Keller's world must have been. We as hearing people tend to pity deaf people, or, if they succeed in the hearing world, admire them for overcoming a severe handicap. We tend to look at signing as an inferior substitute for "real" communication. We assume that all deaf people will try to lip-read and we applaud deaf people who use their voices to show us how far they have come from the grips of their disability. Given this climate, many hearing people are surprised, as I was at first, to learn of the existence of Deaf culture. To me deafness is not a defect but a source of connection. Imagine yourself deaf, growing up with a beautiful language, visual literature, humor, and theater. Imagine taking pride in your identity without any desire to become a member of the majority culture. For many deaf people, their community is a comforting relief from the isolation and condescension of the hearing world. However the Deaf community is far more than a support group for people who share a physical characteristic. Members of the Deaf community may have hearing levels that range from profoundly deaf to slightly hard-of-hearing. But no members of the Deaf community are "hearing impaired." Inside this community, deaf people become Deaf, proudly capitalizing their culture. Hearing people suddenly find that they are handicapped: "Deaf-impaired."
Today’s society consists of numerous individuals who are diagnosed with disabilities that prevent them from partaking in their everyday tasks. Not everyone gets the chance to live a normal life because they might have a problem or sickness that they have to overcome. Deafness is a disability that enables people to hear. All deafness is not alike; it can range in many different forms. Some people like Gauvin, can be helped with a hearing aid, but some can’t because of their situation and health reasons. In society, hearing individuals consider deafness a disability, while the deaf themselves see it as a cultural significance. In the article “Victims from Birth”, appearing in ifemnists.com, Founding Editor Wendy McElroy, provides the story of