It Is All About Communication
This is in response to Ridor's latest blog posting, "My Own Thoughts."
When the protestors at gallaudet complain about audism, they are not complaining about deaf versus Deaf or "not deaf enough." It is all about communication. How do I understand this, despite my own oral background? How do I understand why Ridor is so upset by "barking, yowling, and abandoning ASL?"
[Ridor complained that Brenda Brueggermann, interim chair of the Board of Trustees of Gallaudet, spoke during graduation exercises. He wrote: "She is deaf, and guess what she did? She barked and yowled. She used her voice, as the interim Chair of Gallaudet’s Board of Trustees, on the property of Gallaudet University, to address the audience."
I had to watch the video of Gallaudet Commencement at http://commencement.gallaudet.edu/video.asp (it may be gone by the time you try to view it) to see for myself why Ridor was upset. When she came on, I was stunned. She did talk without signing! I saw a few gestures...like "Congratulations." They even had to have a split-screen, showing an interpreter to the left!! This is from someone ON the Board of Trustees! It is like having someone who speaks only English address a Spanish-speaking audience!
addendum: Someone e-mailed me to say: She can sign, but not that well. She’s just more comfortable speaking.]
To find the answer, we need to get into a time machine and travel with me back...back to Fall 1983 when I was a student at the National Technical Institute for the Deaf/Rochester Institute of Technology. Until Fall 1983, I communicated primarily orally with what can honestly be called poor sign language skills.
In Fall 1983 I lived on the eighth floor of Sol Huemann Hall (SHH dorm). I met two girls whom I had much in common with. There was just one problem hindering our growing friendship. It was my oralism.
These girls, despite having excellent English skills, were totally ASL-dependent. To my surprise, they told me they could not read lips! If I wanted to be their friend I would absolutely have to improve my signing. With their pushing me, I turned my voice off for awhile to force myself to communicate solely in sign language. It worked. When I had improved enough they let me use my voice again.
Now we leave the past to jump back to the present. I am the parent of deaf kids who do not talk, by their own choice. My kids are totally ASL-dependent. I don't think they can read lips well, if at all. If I talk or yell without using sign language, they simply won't understand me!
That is why complaints about audism are all about communication. Not all deaf people can talk or read lips! It is not about big D deaf versus small d deaf. It is not about deaf culture. It is about communication.
This is in response to Ridor's latest blog posting, "My Own Thoughts."
When the protestors at gallaudet complain about audism, they are not complaining about deaf versus Deaf or "not deaf enough." It is all about communication. How do I understand this, despite my own oral background? How do I understand why Ridor is so upset by "barking, yowling, and abandoning ASL?"
[Ridor complained that Brenda Brueggermann, interim chair of the Board of Trustees of Gallaudet, spoke during graduation exercises. He wrote: "She is deaf, and guess what she did? She barked and yowled. She used her voice, as the interim Chair of Gallaudet’s Board of Trustees, on the property of Gallaudet University, to address the audience."
I had to watch the video of Gallaudet Commencement at http://commencement.gallaudet.edu/video.asp (it may be gone by the time you try to view it) to see for myself why Ridor was upset. When she came on, I was stunned. She did talk without signing! I saw a few gestures...like "Congratulations." They even had to have a split-screen, showing an interpreter to the left!! This is from someone ON the Board of Trustees! It is like having someone who speaks only English address a Spanish-speaking audience!
addendum: Someone e-mailed me to say: She can sign, but not that well. She’s just more comfortable speaking.]
To find the answer, we need to get into a time machine and travel with me back...back to Fall 1983 when I was a student at the National Technical Institute for the Deaf/Rochester Institute of Technology. Until Fall 1983, I communicated primarily orally with what can honestly be called poor sign language skills.
In Fall 1983 I lived on the eighth floor of Sol Huemann Hall (SHH dorm). I met two girls whom I had much in common with. There was just one problem hindering our growing friendship. It was my oralism.
These girls, despite having excellent English skills, were totally ASL-dependent. To my surprise, they told me they could not read lips! If I wanted to be their friend I would absolutely have to improve my signing. With their pushing me, I turned my voice off for awhile to force myself to communicate solely in sign language. It worked. When I had improved enough they let me use my voice again.
Now we leave the past to jump back to the present. I am the parent of deaf kids who do not talk, by their own choice. My kids are totally ASL-dependent. I don't think they can read lips well, if at all. If I talk or yell without using sign language, they simply won't understand me!
That is why complaints about audism are all about communication. Not all deaf people can talk or read lips! It is not about big D deaf versus small d deaf. It is not about deaf culture. It is about communication.
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