When Deaf people say they are not “disabled”, what do they mean?
The medical profession is quick to identify Deafness as a disability, an impairment…as something that is wrong.
However, talk to a culturally Deaf person, and you will soon realize this perspective is not one that Deaf people hold. Deaf people do not see themselves as having a disability, just a different way of communicating…and, by the way, communicating is a two-way street.
In order for communication to be successful, both the person “talking” and the person “listening” need to understand each other. When a hearing person and Deaf person communicate, there are blocks. Deaf people typically prefer to use American Sign Language, hearing people use English. The important point here is that the problem does not lie in the Deaf person… but between the two people. The same as if one person was speaking Spanish and the other French. If both people don’t understand the same language, communication is a problem.
Deaf people are proud of who they are. They can live independent lives and are successful. To say they are damaged simply because they have a different way of communicating would be an injustice.
Understanding this point is central to understand Deaf culture.
This is why Deaf people do not like the term “hearing impaired” — it implies something is “impaired” or wrong.
This is why some Deaf people are against Cochlear Implants… it is the medical communities way of “fixing” a problem that doesn’t exist.
We don’t consider a Hispanic person disabled, so why would we consider a Deaf person disabled?
http://www.deafe.org/newsletter/1-3/deafness.htm
The medical profession is quick to identify Deafness as a disability, an impairment…as something that is wrong.
However, talk to a culturally Deaf person, and you will soon realize this perspective is not one that Deaf people hold. Deaf people do not see themselves as having a disability, just a different way of communicating…and, by the way, communicating is a two-way street.
In order for communication to be successful, both the person “talking” and the person “listening” need to understand each other. When a hearing person and Deaf person communicate, there are blocks. Deaf people typically prefer to use American Sign Language, hearing people use English. The important point here is that the problem does not lie in the Deaf person… but between the two people. The same as if one person was speaking Spanish and the other French. If both people don’t understand the same language, communication is a problem.
Deaf people are proud of who they are. They can live independent lives and are successful. To say they are damaged simply because they have a different way of communicating would be an injustice.
Understanding this point is central to understand Deaf culture.
This is why Deaf people do not like the term “hearing impaired” — it implies something is “impaired” or wrong.
This is why some Deaf people are against Cochlear Implants… it is the medical communities way of “fixing” a problem that doesn’t exist.
We don’t consider a Hispanic person disabled, so why would we consider a Deaf person disabled?
http://www.deafe.org/newsletter/1-3/deafness.htm