Issue 8: 10 Deaf Children, 1 Powerful Message
A video by Sheena McFeely and ASL Nook
Every day, Deaf people "fail" the hearing test immediately after being born, face "language delays" with their hearing family that don’t learn their natural language, and attempt "perfect speech" in order to fit into the hearing world. They fight to use interpreters that benefit both the hearing and the Deaf, and deal with job discrimination — all simply because they cannot hear.
Ironically, the practice of teaching signs to hearing babies is booming due to practical, emotional, and cognitive benefits validated by research. Hundreds of thousands of hearing people are taking ASL classes in high school as well as college — making ASL the third most-studied language, according to Modern Language Association. Many come out of the experience proclaiming how beautiful ASL is.
Even while ASL is beautified, Deafness is still perceived as something that needs to be fixed. This makes Deaf people seem unequal, abnormal, and even defective. Deaf people are perplexed by this, as they see themselves as equal, diverse, and an attribute to this world.
Today we ask, when can you see us the same way Deaf see themselves?
It is our hope that this message will raise awareness, and at the same time, encourage Americans to join the Deaf community in the ongoing fight for equality.