Deaf Culture Papers

“Deaf people can do anything, except hear.” - Marlee Matlin. Although Deaf people are viewed as disabled, they have a different perspective. Everyone has their own experiences with individual cultures and is entitled to their own experiences. While everyone is obligated to their own opinion, it is important to respect every culture, even if there is a lack of understanding or agreement. Deaf Culture is very diverse and each potentially welcoming experience is unique, but continual participation in the culture can have positive and negative effects for each individual.

Deaf culture is a very diverse culture that many people are unfamiliar with. When talking about Deaf culture, it is vital to take into account the actual definition of the two …show more content…
Many Deaf people feel as though trying to “fix” them is an active effort to eliminate their culture, which is already a minority group (Rikk 76). Having the world around them constantly insinuating that something is wrong with them due to their culture could be detrimental to an individual..“The Deaf community claims that they have a culture with their own language and value system instead of just being a group of handicapped people” explained by Antonia Rikk, author of “Cochlear Implants-Fixing What’s Not Broken”. This is a prime example of how a lack of understanding of the inner workings of a culture and assumptions made about one’s culture could potentially be harmful to the culture’s participants. In addition, Kim Kruz, author of “Lived Experience: Deaf Professionals’ Stories of Resilience and Risks,” states, “Studies have shown links between being deaf and experiencing suboptimal outcomes in educational achievement, employment opportunities, health literacy, and mental health.” Deaf people struggle daily due to different adversities that they are faced with and are treated less because of their identity. Not only are they treated as inadequate, but they are also isolated, Kruz observed, “95% of deaf children are born to hearing families. Thus, most deaf children are likely to experience limited access to language and communication.” Life is already full of hardships as a Deaf person due to living in …show more content…
Although Deaf people face their fair share of setbacks, like any other minority group, the vast majority can show resilience and adapt to the hearing world (Kurz 239-49). With all of the things that Deaf people experience in life, from ignorant comments or behavior to blatant injustice or inequalities, they can still thrive in a world that was not built with them in mind. Furthermore, Hilari Scarl informs that “Deaf people from other countries are part of Deaf culture and use their version of sign language; Deaf people worldwide share the same values and beliefs.” The Deaf community is so vast and people from all over the world connect due to their commonalities and shared experiences as a Deaf person. It is also important to note, that Scarl comments, “Big “D” Deaf can refer to an individual with any degree of hearing loss. “Deaf” people use sign language, go to Deaf events, and are involved with the community.” These cultural events are significant to the thriving of the Deaf community and function as a way for them to connect especially because, as mentioned earlier, 95% of deaf children are born into hearing families. The Deaf community welcomes deaf people and has events to come together and celebrate their culture; it is not forced on unwilling individuals. This is because a fair amount of people who are deaf are “lower-case ‘d’ deaf” and chose to opt out of the culture that

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Deaf Culture Research Paper