The Carnival can be found here.

I’ve certainly come a long way since the last Blogging Against Disability day (”Sound out of Stone” and “Perceptions.” Note that the latter holds some assumptions about the “Deaf community” that I no longer hold, although it’s interesting to see me argue for what is Bi-Bi from a position of pretty much utter ignorance of Deaf Culture and ASL.). Having a specific day for blogging against disablism seems odd, inasmuch as this entire blog is in part about blogging against disablism.

Disablism directed against the deaf takes on very specific characteristics, so much so that we have our own name for it: Audism. I’m not thrilled with the construction of this neologism but it’s a very useful word.

Discrimination against the deaf is very widespread, pervasive, and has additional dimensions, because it also attacks deaf language and deaf culture. Deaf people aren’t “just” discriminated against (although we certainly get plenty of that: we’re “lazy” and “stupid” and “illiterate.” We “can’t drive” and “we’re helpless” in society. We’re “insular” and “insolent” and the list just goes on and on).

We’re also remade, rebuilt, forced to be hearing. Don’t believe me? Language acquisition is a vital part of cognitive development and function and most experts agree that exposure to language must occur by the age of three or so. So what of the deaf child? This is where sign language should come in. The child will pick this up as quickly, naturally and effortlessly as the hearing child does spoken language. With that as a solid base, then the child can go on to learn other languages (reading and writing at least, if possible speech and so on).

But instead, children are deprived of sign language, forced to take speech therapy and delay language acquisition until much later. Surgery (cochlear implants) take place earlier and earlier, and most CI programs require a subsequent Audio Visual Therapy program, which specifically forbids any signing. CI is not a miracle technology. It does NOT restore hearing. It is pretty much a high-end (and destructive to the ear) hearing aid that can reach a bit further than hearing aids. It is particularly suited for adults who have lost their hearing, but is increasingly given to younger and younger children.

Oh, but doesn’t this help the children? Doesn’t it let them “function” in the hearing world?

Look, first of all the notion that “deaf people don’t function in the hearing world” needs to be dispelled once and for all. Most of us are in the “hearing world” most of the time. We hold jobs, many if not all our relatives are hearing. We have hearing parents, hearing children, hearing friends. We are certainly not isolated from it, most of us are in it every single day.

But what of the oral deaf person? He doesn’t know signing, and relies on lipreading and hearing aids (or, increasingly, CI) to understand what is going on around him. Now imagine being forced to go through school where you can’t quite follow the teachers, you can’t quite catch the discussions. Half the time you’re yanked out of class for speech therapy so you’re fall further behind while not in class.

Let me tell you from personal experience, as a strictly oral deaf: it doesn’t work. It never does. You are isolated because you can never quite make out everything that’s going on. Read my last post that I linked to above. No matter how good you are, as a deaf person, you will never be hearing enough. Its impossible. You are not in the culture, you are forever relegated to the margins, trying to follow things, trying to fit in. Do you know that I’ve never really enjoyed a good conversation except from time to time with a single other individual? Add one more person in, and instantly my focus changes away from the content of the conversation to the mechanics of the conversation. I was stubborn though. I really tried. And now that I’m over 40 I’m finally learning sign language. And for the first time, the possibilities of enjoying conversation is expanding. It’s a strange, heady feeling, I don’t know if it’s at all possible to convey to you hearies.

So what are hearing people doing to children by denying them sign language, denying them access to other deaf children and adults (as friends and role models)?

Don’t get me wrong…the oral abilities are useful. But they are not a replacement for communication and socialization with one’s peers, friends, and family. To a deaf person, the ability to understand a hearing person, whether through lipreading and speech or through writing, or through an interpreter, is just a tool, a mechanism for getting through the day.

But access to sign language expands the possibilities of every deaf person. It does not restrict them, it does not take away from anything oral. It does contribute to satisfaction, confidence, social skills.

One thing that I think is vital to improving this state of affairs is to get more deaf teachers and more deaf school administraters into the picture. If hearing people can work with deaf children for 20 years without ever learning sign language beyond perhaps the basics, then we really can’t count on relief from this direction.