In lieu of an abstract, here is a brief excerpt of the content:

/ / / / / UYLCOYlSCLOUS T)lSCrtrrunaiwn LEO M. JACOBS eafness and the communication disability associated with it have placed deaf people in a minority group within a majority population of people who hear and speak. The disability has given us our own language, which has also spawned a separate community and culture. We have survived and enjoyed full lives within our own society. We are able to interact to some degree with the general community in order to have our needs served, whether they be familial, social, recreational, or related to employment or health. However , because we do have problems communicating with hearing people, there is a long history of prejudice and discrimination against us by the hearing majority. Over the two hundred years of American history, that prejudice and discrimination have been slowly replaced by greater understanding and appreciation of the rationale for a separate language and culture. I believe that I can safely say that the conditions for deaf citizens in America are much better and more advanced than those in other parts of the world. Yet we have not achieved the full understanding on the part of the hearing majority that would bring treatment of deaf citizens to full equity with that of other citizens. We are still faced with some misconceptions and mistreatment. The Gallaudet University protest last year (1988), which met with incredible coverage by the world's media and resulted in a deaf president for the university, was responsible for a great advancement in public understanding and sympathy for the language and culture of the deaf. One would think that public prejudice and discrimination have almost disappeared for the American deaf community, as evidenced by the rapid opening of new opportunities and increased upward mobility for deaf people. I assure you that prejudice and discrimination, although much diminished, have not completely disappeared. They have, rather, gone underground, into the subconscious of many hearing people who would probably strenuously deny having any prejudice at all! I do not accuse the whole hearing population of practicing this bias: Those who have had very little or no contact with deaf citizens probably have the least bias. I suggest that when hearing people become involved with deafness for the wrong reasons and with unhealthy attitudes toward deaf people, their prejudice becomes more pronounced in direct proportion to the amount of time they spend in contact with the deaf population as well as the closeness of the contact. Perhaps the most common problem between deaf and hearing people is the practice of a double standard. Hearing people who would probably be well mannered, open minded, conciliatory, and generally pleasant with other hearing people undergo a subtle change in their conduct when they are with deaf individuals. Then they are likely to be more paternalistic, overbearing, reproving, and impatient. It is sad to relate that we also find this double standard among some deaf persons toward their own people! This is Unconscious Discrimination more apparent among deaf persons who have achieved positions of leadership or other distinguished roles in the deaf community, and who have distanced themselves from those in lesser roles and become impatient with the deaf "person on the street." The attitude described above is usually unconscious and unrecognized by the offenders. I would like to suggest that before you begin communication with a deaf person, you should pause and review what is on the tip of your tongue. Would you express yourself exactly the same way with a hearing person? If you are convinced that the answer is yes, then you can proceed with a clear conscience. I am quite sure, however , that many times the answer would be no. If so, you should give yourself a mental shake and try to perceive the other person as you would a hearing person. Then the correct words will probably automatically come to the lips (or rather, the hands!). I am certain that unconscious offenders will improve with this kind of self-monitoring and eventually express themselves in the same manner to both hearing and deaf people. When hearing people who are ignorant of the ramifications of deafness encounter our disability, they are most likely to regard it as a pathology, something to be fixed or cured. This attitude entails an emphasis on therapy and/or prostheses. Therefore, when small children are found to be deaf, they are immediately fitted with hearing aids and given oral rehabilitation therapy. No thought is given to the great need of these little tykes for communication...

Share