Free Essay Sample - Empowering Voices: Deaf Individuals Breaking Barriers and Shaping Communities

Society has always marginalized disabled and minority persons throughout history. The deaf community has not been an exception to the marginalization. To be identified with a particular culture is something essential to everyone. For many people, cultural identity is not a choice but what we are born into and can be defined by our religion, race, status, gender, or heritage. However, some individuals, especially minority groups, have to choose to belong to a culture that will govern their lives. According to Scheetz, the state of being deaf is when one lacks the sense of hearing, or the sense is defective (2016). This paper shall focus on the deaf Latino by the name John Lopez and the other deaf person whose name is Nathie Marbury and their experience, challenges, interactions, and contributions to the Deaf community and the hearing community.

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In the book Psychosocial Aspects of Deafness, there are four hearing loss types: sensorineural, central auditory dysfunction, conductive, and mixed dysfunction. They refer to how the hearing damage was caused, which could be genetic or pathological, and to what extent the ear is damaged. Communication with other people the deaf is directly influenced by what level is the loss of their hearing (Scheetz, 2016). Deaf people can choose to blend and assimilate into the hearing community or identify with the deaf cultures. Imagine a scenario where one can see people moving their mouths to speak, but another person cannot hear anything. Indeed the journey for individuals with hearing impairment is full of challenges, and without perseverance, one may give up.

The Deaf Culture in America was formed for those who are deaf to feel accommodated and have a sense of belonging. For some time now, people with hearing impairments have been treated with an ‘audism’ attitude due to their inability to understand spoken communication. There have been negative stereotypes labeled on them, such as being unstable mentally, being less intelligent, and being taught poorly along with other students with the ability to hear. The hearing society has made the deaf people believe that for them to be successful, they have to leave the American Sign Language and learn to communicate by speaking, and this has caused them to devalue their uniqueness (Peters, 2015). According to Peters, this has resulted in deaf children missing out on the early language acquisition stage (2015).

Around the mid-twentieth century, children who could not hear were carefully taught how to read the lips even though that was not so reliable. It is high time for society to understand that differently-abled individuals cannot sorely bear the burden of fixing the communication between hearing societies. Thus, with the deaf culture, the Deaf community helps individuals develop a sense of closeness. According to Peters, this belonging has contributed to the people who cannot identify themselves with a separate culture (2015). Deaf people are successful without a doubt in every aspect of their lives. What limits their interactions with the hearing community is their lack of ability to understand the unique communication.

John Lopez was born in Arizona and was the last born in a family of three children. He then attended Arizona School for the Deaf and later majored in history at Gallaudet College. After his graduation, he got the privilege to serve as a dean of students at the schools for the deaf. The visionary leader later switched to becoming a rehabilitation counselor. He was at the forefront of improving the 911 emergency services; although he could not hear, he positively impacted the hearing community. He worked actively with TDI- Telecommunications for the Deaf and was always willing to help in many projects.

John Lopez worked with President William Clinton’s policy office and was a member of the Deaf and Hard of Hearing Consumer Advocacy Network. He ensures to come up with strategies that would help solve the common issues faced by the deaf. Lopez was an advocate and chairman for the Latino Council for the Deaf and Hard Hearing. Even though he was deaf, Lopez left a legacy that will be remembered for many years, and his spirit lives on through the John Lopez Scholarship Fund which helps deaf Latino students in financing their education.

His perspective and attitude towards his blindness was a positive approach. He never let his disability deter him from attaining excellence. According to Scheetz's research studies, people with hearing disabilities have been rated and viewed to be dependent, slow, have fewer friends, are less assertive, and have low self-esteem and confidence (2016). This, however, was not the case for John Lopez because he is seen soaring to great heights up to the point of working in the White House. This perspective of society expects a deaf person to feel disadvantaged, but this can change when individuals value and focus on their destiny and making the world a better place for such disabled people just as Lopez did. It is not uncommon for difficulties to manifest while communicating between the people who can hear and the deaf. That is why it is crucial for the person who can hear to learn the American Sign Language (ASL) so that there is a flow and clear communication.

In this case, students who cannot hear, for instance, John Lopez have a different linguistic need that is essential in the social setting; however, the schools have given the needs a minimal consideration. The main educational challenge the deaf students face is acquiring their native, and instead, they will be exposed to the American Sign Language before learning their native language. And since most of them need repetition for clarity, they end, up finding it difficult to learn with hearing students, a case that prompted John Lopez to attend the Arizona School for the Deaf. However, ASL enabled John Lopez to get to work in different places that required his input, and this compelled him to work passionately to make the environment for the deaf have fewer challenges.

Lopez's contributions to the deaf community include making it possible for other deaf students to acquire education through the Scholarship Fund for deaf Latino students. He always contributed positively to the Hispanic communities by improving access to emergency services and telecommunication laws. He indeed left a legacy and an example worth following.

Nathie Marbury, who is from Mississippi, was born with hearing ability. However, as she turned four years old, she became deaf because she suffered from spinal meningitis. She attended Western Pennsylvania School for the Deaf and then joined Gallaudet College with a Bachelor of Science in Home Economics, then did her master's at California State University. For a doctoral degree, Nathie specialized in Deaf Education/Studies at Lamar University. Marbury learned the American Sign Language and was fluent in it, but trying to communicate with her family posed a challenge. She struggled with the blacks' English, and every time she could not be understood, she felt frustrated. Worse still, her family termed her as stupid since she could not communicate clearly to them. However, when she was in school with other deaf students, she felt a sense of belonging and could easily socialize since she was very sociable.

When Nathie was taken to the deaf school at five years old, she could not understand anything, but as years went by, she quickly learned and embraced American Sign Language. Nathie was a pioneer as she became the first black deaf woman to join the National Leadership Training Program. She became the first black instructor for an elementary school for the deaf. Truly, she was a very kind person who always aspired to bring the best out of everyone. Her inspiration strong values and beliefs left a legacy in the Deaf community. Indeed, her passion for teaching American Sign Language inspired several people to appreciate language.

The black deaf people have a unique culture in the world. As much as they experience double racial discrimination because of being black and not communicating clearly, they have risen above such prejudices. The discrimination among the blacks who are deaf can be traced back to when there was segregation where they were not acceptable in any organization or club. However, with time the discriminations and prejudices started to take a different direction and the black deaf community started being included in many programs such as sponsorship and leadership training.

The perspective of Nathie is that instead of dwelling on what one cannot do, like communicate clearly, one should take time to learn and develop sign language. Yes, there could be negative attitudes developed by the hearing society to the deaf, but that should never hinder one from pursuing their goals. Marbury's struggle at first with the American Sign Language was that she could not understand it. This encouraged her to learn more about it and for sure became her passion as she desired to teach it to other people.

Conclusion

In conclusion, society has always marginalized disabled and minority persons throughout history, including the deaf community. People with hearing impairments have been treated with an ‘audism’ attitude due to their inability to understand spoken communication. They have been negatively stereotyped as being unstable mentally, being less intelligent, and being taught poorly along with other students with the ability to hear. It is important that the people who can hear the need to have a positive view and attitudes towards the Deaf community and advance their skills in using the American Sign Language. It is equally possible to have positive interactions between the deaf and the hearing society. Scheetz asserts that if the people who hear try to understand the deaf, then the distrust and communication barriers will be decreased. All of the societal problems are caused by the way people view them. There is a need to brainstorm over a new kind of inclusive education and encourage positive social interactions between the two cultures. Even though there has been discrimination against deaf people, perception and treatment can always be changed.

References

Peters, S. W. (2007). Cultural awareness: Enhancing counselor understanding, sensitivity, and effectiveness with clients who are deaf. Journal of Multicultural Counseling and Development, 35(3), 182-190.

Scheetz, N. A. (2004). Psychosocial aspects of deafness. Allyn & Bacon.