Open Letter to Matt Hamill
From Deaf World As Eye See It blog: “Acting Deaf: Here We Go Again!”
Open Letter to Matt Hamill:
Matt, don’t forget your fans who have supported you, especially young Deaf fans who looked up at you with inspiration.
See video excerpt from the YouTube - where you went to Fremont, CA as a guest and see how much your fans admire you. Joey Baer of CSD-F filmed this, and Richardk3 puts it up on YouTube. See the entire video from CSD-Fremont website Play Quicktime version - 2.19 minutes long
If you cannot view this video, watch below:
Remember, Matt…never underestimate the power of Deaf role model. Having Deaf role models (oral, ASL, CI, HoH, or late-deafened) are very important to deaf children.
Here’s the famous painting done by Chuck Baird displaying at Gallaudet University, that I want to share with you.
There is one part of the whole painting still sends chills up in my spine, and I get very inspired by that. I hope you can consider how much you have inspired many Deaf children and adults for what you are doing as a professional wrestler.
Now, having your hearing friend, Eben Kostbar cast the role of you for Hamill; how can we be inspired from this decision? Please think about it.
Thank you,
Amy Cohen Efron
May 10th, 2008 at 6:27 pm
Great letter. True, he has inspired so many
Deaf children and Deaf adults. That painting is
implying just what he needs to do.
-Ali
May 10th, 2008 at 7:35 pm
Amen, amy. How can Matt Hamill allow this to happen? I’m not inspired right now at all.
R-
May 10th, 2008 at 7:56 pm
Having Deaf actors continue to empower not just us Deaf people, also Deaf children, do not forget them.
Anne Marie
May 10th, 2008 at 8:25 pm
He did it without thinking?? Oh I am so lost… I won’t let my kids even see the movie. They are Deaf and deserves more than that…
All Deaf and HOH children do…
May 10th, 2008 at 8:32 pm
I surely hope Matt will reconsider his decision. I still respect him for his professionalism. I am asking him to think twice if possible about his role model not only to hearing world but also d/Deaf world. I would love him to advocate film industries to hire more d/Deaf actors and employees.
Deafchip
May 10th, 2008 at 11:30 pm
Let me ask you a question. suppose this movie is about Matt’s life from birth to wresting champion, now keep in mind Matt did not learn to sign until when he was in college, this means there is no sign language whatsoever, no ASL until he’s in college, would it make much more of a difference if it was an oral deaf or hard of hearing actor that does not use sign language very well?
May 10th, 2008 at 11:43 pm
While I relate to the concept that deaf characters should be be played by deaf actors…I think it may be that Matt grew up in heavily oral environment that he does not think the way we do. I don’t think he sees anything wrong with hearing actor playing him. He doesnh’t see himself as culturally deaf. He sees himself as hard of hearing who speaks and does not sign. It wouldn’t matter all that much to him who plays him because he doesn’t communicate using sign language - he speaks. I understand he barely signs - and looks unnatural when he signs. Signing does not come naturally to him.
Pretty the same case with Miss America, Heather Whitestone (right last name?). She never learned any form of sign language and only speaks. She doesn’t consider herself “deaf” but a person with a hearing loss. She retreated when the deaf community tried to reach her. She did not identify with deaf and did not want to. I suspect Mark Hamill is the same.
With this kind of self-identity, it is best to leave them alone. They are not one of us. We shouldn’t expect them to accept our values or accept our perspectives.
Yes, they are role models but they are not always what we want or need. When there is a culturally deaf role models, we do seize the opportunity to showcase this person to represent us…but Heather Whitestone and Mark Hamill aren’t one of those.
Whoever plays Mark in the movie has to portray who Mark is - a non-signing oral deaf person. We cannot try to impose our image of what a deaf person should be onto Mark’s character in the movie. It has to portray the real Mark Hamill. Therefore, any actor would do - since he would not need to sign. Perhaps, ideally, they should hire an oral actor - oral deaf people speak “funny.” I understand they don’t quite sound like a normal hearing person. This is the challenge the actor playing Mark will face - speaking funny.
May 10th, 2008 at 11:59 pm
Cy, I agree with you. In the Deaf community, this shows how destructive collectivism can be. Deafhood advocate are very proud of this collectivism. To me, it is just groupthink at its worst and this is a very great example of this. Amy is trying to force Matt to accept the same values or face scorn/explusion. It is very sad. I thought Deafhood was about accepting others for who they are, not what Amy wants them to be.
May 11th, 2008 at 12:03 am
Cy, you saw the video of Matt on this page interacting with the students at CSDF. That is someone who cares about the deaf community… and there should be no boundaries between “oral deaf” and “deaf”. We are deaf together… and we are much closer to Matt than Eben will ever be.
Heather Whitestone and Matt Hamill are role models to us. They are deaf people who face the same obstacles that we do… and succeeded beyond their wildest dreams. All of us respect and admire them for their accomplishments. What better message to send us (the deaf community) if Matt changed his mind about Eben and asked that a deaf person to play him? We would respect him even more!
May 11th, 2008 at 12:26 am
Passing up the deaf actor for a hearing actor and begging for Gallaudet’s and NTID’s auditions are the the reflection of Matt Hamill’s enormous conflict and vast unsureness about his own identity if one would remember what he has said to deaf kids at Freemont, CA. The deaf kids would never forget the conflict easily, would they?
May 11th, 2008 at 1:42 am
Matt Hamill just posted a commentary on his website slamming Amy Cohen Efron as one of “fringes” who wants to stir up the troubles over “trivial” things.
R-
May 11th, 2008 at 9:13 am
check matthamill.com whipping your ass, Amy…
May 11th, 2008 at 9:58 am
Is Marlee Matlin a lesbian? If not, then should she be on the L-Word? Is she a good role model for young lesbians? Sigh, so many arm chair quarterbacks in this world.
Ron
May 11th, 2008 at 11:55 am
I agree with people like Cy. In addition, actors playing characters of different cultures happen EVERYDAY. Someone of no Italian ancestry play an Italian character. A non-Jew plays a Rabbi. An American actor develops a British accent for a movie. The idea of acting is.. well.. that - acting. It is the actor’s job to immerse herself/himself in his character, learn the culture/traditions that the character is a part of, and be able to sign/speak in a certain accent. I do not see any difference here. Granted, it is a lot more difficult for a hearing actor to be able to be able to sign at the level required of his character than a deaf actor. But, it IS possible. And, no offense to Matt, his signing is not naive - so ironically, it might be easier for a hearing actor to mimic his style than a fluent ASL user trying to “downgrade” him own signing. It IS a true story, telling kids that this is a REAL deaf fighter is inspiring in itself.
May 11th, 2008 at 12:42 pm
DJ
Heather Whitestone is not a role model in our Deaf communityu. What she is to us is she “made it” to becoming Miss America through oralism. She never learned ASL and refuses to. She doesn’t support use of ASL. She doesn’t interact with deaf community and has no deaf friends. She visited a few schools for the deaf as part of her Miss America title duties, and she brought an interpreter. A friend told me she was confused - why the interpreter? Wasn’t she deaf? She realized she didn’t sign and spoke pretty fluently. She asked her if she wanted to learn ASL and Heather answerred to her, “not really. I can speak. I don’t need to learn. I succeed in life because I can speak. If I learned ASL, I won’t be wearing this crown. This is the way the world works.” YOu call this “role model” for deaf children? I think not.
I belive the same is true for Matt - he may have visited with some deaf kids but he does not relate to them or identify with them - the same way Heather does. Matt knows he has obligations as a public figure - UFC fighter. He realizes he has deaf fans and he has a duty to acknowledge them. I think there is nothing more than that on Matt’s part.
We WANT them to be our role models but they are not. They are not and don’t want to be. MJy students talk to me about Matt in my class - asked me if he went to a school for the deaf and where. I told them he did not - he grew up oral and doesn’t sign. They said, “no wonder he signed funny on youtube like he just learned how to sign. He signs like my (family member name).” Once they understood he is not like them, they lost interest in him. He is just another UFC fighter. They stopped talking about him. They still talk about UFC because it is a “cool sport” but no longer about Hamill.
May 11th, 2008 at 12:57 pm
oh boo hoo! Stop this insensitive crap. It’s Matt Hamills Movie, Matt Hamill can do what Matt Hamill pleases and sees fit.
We should applaud Matt’s advances in his career and support him in his decisions. He is and will continue to be a deaf role model, just because a hearing person is playing him in a movie doesn’t mean we should turn against him, i think that is childish. Matt did grow up oral and there is a huge part of the deaf community that didn’t learn sign language til later, we need to come together as a team not against each other. I respect you, you respect me!
I am tired of this crab theory crap…. I will continue to be a Matt Hamill supporter but the only thing that bothers me is that now that a movie is coming out about Hamill does this mean his career is slowing down? Most biographical movies are made when that person has finished a great career… that’s the only thing that sorta bothers me cause i’d like to see matt pursue more things, and for his accomplishments to be more along the lines of Cinderella Man than Million Dollar Baby with a Rudy ending….
Well Matt, just so you know I support you i eat shit like this for breakfast… and it sure was fun punching you when I was drunk when you came to visit RIT lol
May 11th, 2008 at 1:37 pm
It saddens me that some deaf people are still applying these classifications of “not deaf enough” or “not one of us” to deaf individuals who have made an outstanding accomplishment in their lives.
Marlee Matlin, an actress herself, has been criticized for being “not deaf enough” because she speaks and uses a form of PSE, not “pure” ASL. Hey, just because she won an Oscar for her acting performance in a great film doesn’t mean anything to you guys?
Now Hamill is being nitpicked to death with this “purity” business, more reverse audism from the bucket of crabs who won’t give him credit for what he has accomplished on his own merits, never mind all the backbiting. Hey, just because Hamill has won numerous wrestling and MMA fighting awards doesn’t mean anything to you, I guess?
Sheesh, we’re a long ways from getting any kind of respect as a community if we can’t accord some respect to those who accomplished something well in spite of ANY kind of deafness, be it oral or ASL/deaf culture.
May 11th, 2008 at 2:45 pm
In response to #16 - Seam - It is my understanding that this movie was to be about his wrestling career, not his UFC career. Two different things here and there shouldnt be anything reflecting on your statement saying his UFC career slowing down cuz it isn’t slowing down, its in fact still on the rise.
May 11th, 2008 at 2:54 pm
Goodbye Matt, already ruled him out after learning about what he did.
May 11th, 2008 at 3:36 pm
sean, u’re stupid just like matt.
r-
May 12th, 2008 at 1:10 am
If you were producer or in Matt’s shoes. Will you invest your $1 million to the movie with deaf actors? Are you sure that movie will succeed the ROI, return on income? Marketable?
Think about it. I know you will do same thing what Matt does. Come on. Movie should be marketable or lost your $1 million. Forget about deaf customers / movie goers (It is too tiny market compared to hearing population). Stop being leftist (or deaf cult). Wasting your time in debating this silly issue.
May 12th, 2008 at 11:08 am
Hi Amy,
Here is my response
Aidan
May 12th, 2008 at 12:43 pm
Adian, I don’t agree with you. Matt have made his descision that he doesn’t hire a Deaf actor as a career. Shame on Matt.
Matt like you because you are beautiful.
May 12th, 2008 at 6:27 pm
I agreed with Amy! I never liked Aidan’s V-Blogs. What Aidan said about Amy wasn’t nice. Amy is FAIR and I am with her.
May 13th, 2008 at 1:17 am
Deaf cults are brainless and lifeless. They never be able to understand the real world is. Money is Money. Business is Business. Simple. Will TV or Movie investors be happy with deaf market? Look at this “tiny” deaf population! compared to the hearing industry world.
I praised Matt as owner / co-producer and he controls hearing actors. Wow! It seems History-maker. Hollywood industries will look at Matt as respected person and marketable! He can make million dollars profits from the movie as long as he is close to hollywood / continue marketing to hearing community, NOT deaf community - it will flop.
Is any DEAF producer or film-maker making MILLION DOLLARS??? Involve Hollywood business??? SEE! SEE!!!
Understand? Maybe, it’s difficult time for Deaf cults to understand, until they become SENIORS or NEVER. Sorry for them.
May 13th, 2008 at 10:48 am
I’ve known and interacted with Matt Hamill through PanAm Games and Deaf Olympics and I have great respect and admiration for what he has accomplished in his life. I too am a deaf person who relied heavily on auditory/oral methods growing up and didn’t learn ASL till I got to college. I am saddened that Deaf communities continue to be crabs in this world today. I’ve always wanted to feel connected to the Deaf Community but I get pushed away because I am “not deaf enough.” It’s no wonder why we have a hard time finding our identity. What happened to Deafhood? If I was in Matt’s shoes, I’d make the same decision. Leave Matt alone and celebrate the accomplishments of a deaf individual making it big. Go Matt!
May 13th, 2008 at 1:01 pm
Amy,
Thank you for bring this subject…
I find this subject interesting..
This is Brian, founder of Deaf Channel Organization. I believe that DCO or future of DCN(Deaf Channel Network)will be the ideal partner or buyer to claim rights to make for Deaf nation-wide TV Audience but also movie too.
That what i am doing for OUR DEAF Community.
You can check our website to learn more about DCO’s VISION. http://www.deafchannel.org
Thank you,
Brian
May 13th, 2008 at 4:45 pm
Amy, you did the right thing. when I was shock at Matt Hammill when I found his information site.
http://mmafever.blogspot.com/2007/03/matt-hamill-sponsorship-scammer.html
May 13th, 2008 at 4:49 pm
Amy, you did the right things. I know you have to save ASL and Deaf Culture. I found his information site.
GOOD JOB.
May 14th, 2008 at 1:22 am
Hey deaf cults!
You never did your homework in researching the “updates” on deaf market. How many and what is the percent of 32 million deaf population that uses sign language? Tell me now. Below 1 million!!! Even not reach 500,000. Ouch? What reality is.
VRS users in US nationwide- how many??? over 200,000???? No. Ask VRS industries, yourself.
350,000 deaf in L.A. - WOW. Dream! Deaf Expo, Deaf Nation Expo got 5,000 maximum. Look at this. You need to figure it well.
Why did all deaf-owned movie productions fail in business? Tell me what’s the name of deaf-owned production that they raised million dollars - even one million dollar only, tiny percentage compared to hollywood’s minimum budget.
Target to deaf market never win! Automatically FAILURE! can’t recover up expenses.
Of course, we need HOLLYWOOD STAR! to make it MARKETABLE! Not Deaf. Got it??? Don’t waste your time in debating. Accept the reality.
May 14th, 2008 at 11:55 am
Having read through some of the criticisms, I’m saddened and appalled by some of the snobbishness exuded by deaf people.
How does selecting a hearing actor diminish Matt’s worth as a role model to deaf children?
I’m not deaf and admittedly a typical ignorant American when it comes to deaf people. Watching Matt on the Ultimate Fighter has increased my awareness — his experience should be embraced by the “deaf community”, not criticized.
And as for the non-PC comment I feel compelled to make.. As much as I like Matt Hamill on TV, if the community needs to put all their collective eggs in the story of a deaf mixed martial artist, you’re bound to be disappointed. I’d be impressed and inspired by a deaf president, deaf musician, or deaf surgeon.. But a deaf cage fighter?
May 14th, 2008 at 9:47 pm
Well I dont understand why some people are sooo jealous of his successful be able to make movie production wanted him because hes a UFC fighter and coming from tough life he had growing up in small town that wasnt his fault!!! he doesnt have a strong ASL background that doesnt mean hes not part of our culture and we have to stop rejecting people because they are different Deaf people comes in whole bunch of ways such like color of skins they come in different colors so we have to look up and support him because hes successful with his life i do see a little in common with him growing up in small town in alaska and having limit use of ASL until i went to NTID and i admit i feel left out sometime and i just wanted to be part of this big group and not be pickly who to like and who to dislike because they have CI or because they might use little of oral not fully sign…
I strongly support ASL and deaf community!! and matt is part of our culture and people like myself who fell in love with UFC fight because i heard about matt and wanted to check it out and man I love that stuff !!
May 15th, 2008 at 6:58 am
Regarding to comments stated as above so here it is…
Click here to sign Official Petition: Matt Hamill’s decision
Small portion of the deaf community?
Wait and see…
May 15th, 2008 at 12:34 pm
KDee@MattHamilltheMovie.com. We will not censor. Censorship doesn’t allow for educated decisions nor does it allow for ground breaking art.
http://www.matthamill.com/ Take a look at a new post.
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