Deafhood

[DeafCaroline]

According to Wikipedia: "Deafhood is a term coined by Paddy Ladd in his book "Understanding Deaf Culture: In Search of Deafhood."[1] While the precise meaning of the word remains deliberately vague—Ladd himself calls Deafhood a "process" rather than something finite and clear—it attempts to convey an affirmative and positive acceptance of being deaf.

Unlike deafness, which is often used to describe deaf people only in terms of their hearing loss, Deafhood asserts being Deaf has a positive value for humankind and does not need to be cured like a disease. Many other Deaf people, like Ella Mae Lentz have used this term to explain a Deaf person's unique personal journey to discover and understand themselves as a Deaf person. "
I had to look up the definition of Deafhood so I could understandly exactly what we are arguing about here.

Kokonut - if you are on a journey, you ARE Deafhood. If you accept your deafness for what it is instead of viewing it as a disability that you need to fix, you ARE Deafhood.

And lastly, for someone so resistant to identifying with Deafhood, you sure like being in the culture and community of the deaf for you are here posting every single day.

 

[drphil]

Amazing I was "deaf' BEFORE I KNEW IT. That apparently was PRIOR to December 20, 2006. As noted before a reality check: I wasn't part of AllDeaf.com till July10. How could anyone so pontificate? Right-computer screen diagnosis.

So as for the ongoing process towards my "deafhood" probably assisted in having a Cochlear Implant.I do revert to be being deaf only when disconnected- eg deaf swimming/sleeping.
As I recall the process in 2007 re Sunnybrook/Toronto I didn't consult the "deaf community"-wherever- on what I should do. As noted above wasn't here in Alldeaf.com either. No feedback on the ongoing process at that time.Interesting footnote: I didn't ask any patients with Implants at Sunnybrook either. I did discuss with CHS/Toronto audi the process and duly advise "easily fit the criteria for Implant". In the end that is how it turned out. The process for me: Feb/07 to June/07 was quick!

I know-can't go backwards.

Implanted Sunnybrook/Toronto Advanced Bionics-Harmony activated Aug/07

 

[Grummer]

No. Your experience is unique. Each of our own journey is unique. Yours are just as valid as the person living with mild hearing loss.

Are you still trying to rationalise your contempt for deaf culture, using audiological attributes as a key to justify yourtypically audist slant. Mild hearing loss (sic) to you is really saying 'no, im hearing, but i have a disabillity because i dont have perfect hearing, but my hearing is more 'perfect' than yours (with 'more hearing than yours') which is, a way of stating an audist superiority. This sucks.

 

[posts from hell]

According to Wikipedia: "Deafhood is a term coined by Paddy Ladd in his book "Understanding Deaf Culture: In Search of Deafhood."[1] While the precise meaning of the word remains deliberately vague—Ladd himself calls Deafhood a "process" rather than something finite and clear—it attempts to convey an affirmative and positive acceptance of being deaf.

Unlike deafness, which is often used to describe deaf people only in terms of their hearing loss, Deafhood asserts being Deaf has a positive value for humankind and does not need to be cured like a disease. Many other Deaf people, like Ella Mae Lentz have used this term to explain a Deaf person's unique personal journey to discover and understand themselves as a Deaf person. "
I had to look up the definition of Deafhood so I could understandly exactly what we are arguing about here.

Kokonut - if you are on a journey, you ARE Deafhood. If you accept your deafness for what it is instead of viewing it as a disability that you need to fix, you ARE Deafhood.

And lastly, for someone so resistant to identifying with Deafhood, you sure like being in the culture and community of the deaf for you are here posting every single day.

The last sentence is what I have been thinking. It's like a paradox.

 

[jillio]

My ongoing journey in dealing with HEARING LOSS is now being reworded as a journey into deafhood?
Really?
Not mentioned by Harlan Lane et al in their book a Journey into the DEAF WORLD

.I don't consider that having become bilaterally deaf since 2006 as other than dealing with Silence which to me is a physical fact not a "ideological premise"

To date my Cochlear Implant has dealth with it.

Implanted Advanced Bionics-Harmony Sunnybrook/Toronto activated Aug/07

You asked, we answered. You have journeyed into deafhood (as in silence). You have not journeyed into Deafhood.

Is Lane the only author you have managed to read on the topic of oppression of the Deaf and the sociological consequences of deafness? He is the only one you refer to, and only one of his volumes, at that. If you are truly interested in the topic, there are numerous other informative texts that you are missing in your repertoire.

 

[jillio]

"who is real deaf?" - what does that mean anyway?

Virtually nothing...except as a way to categorize for those that resist the cultureal identity of Deafness.

 

[jillio]

How can it be empowering? Are you saying it's a measurement?

What the hell does that mean? A measurement is not empowering. A belief system, a value system, and a way of identifying and perceiving oneself is empowering.:roll:

 

[jillio]

Wearing a hearing aid doesn't mean one is identifying oneself as being "broken." Identifying how one perceives him/herself is a personal one in a journey. Not you or anybody else can make that determination. Sign language is NOT a prerequisite. Nor is being in a Deaf culture. Neither is being able to speak or hear. Or wear cochlear implants. I'm not in the position to tell people whether if they have gone through a "correct" journey like you have surmised about mine. That's exactly what I'm talking about. It's a way of labeling people on the basis of what that journey should be. You are using that as a way to measure people. Hence, the labeling trap.

No thanks.

No, one's attitude indicates the belief that one is broken. Shame that those that exhibit it the most glaringly cannot even recognize it in themselves. Oh, well...part of the whole pretense, I suppose.

 

[jillio]

You said you didnt consider it empowering. Fine for yourself but others see it differnet. That was what I was referring to so I dont know about any of the stuff you listed as being a perquistion. Didnt say anything about that nor did I surmise about your journey. I was talking about you saying that it is not empowering and I was saying that it was for me.


That's all.

It would appear that we have another case of one who claims not to need the culture at all, yet consistently argues against the validity of the culture for others. Complete incongruence. If one was truly secure in their position of not needing Deaf Culture, it would not matter at all whether it existed and provided empowerment to others. They would simply ignore the culture as being something not useful to them. However, when they continually seek to prove that it does not exist, and has not provided benefit to others, it shows that they are quite insecure in their position. The only way to reconcile the rejection of the culture is to pretend it doesn't exist.

 

[jillio]

It doesn't necessarily have to be "one or the other". One could still embrace the hearing world and still not necessarily perceive themselves as a "broken hearing person".

If one accepts, without questions, the values of a hearing society that is inherently audist, then one must apply those values to their own existence and identity. In other words, accept hearing society's definition of deafness, then you apply it to yourself. You are less than the hearing person.

So no, one cannot promote the vaues and norms of both societies at once without being a HUGE hypocrit.

 

[DeafCaroline]

Sad that. Speaking for myself, I've found that when I have EMBRACED Deafhood and all that that entails, I'm actually happier and far more comfortable being Deaf in a hearing world.

 

[jillio]

Actually, he is just starting the "process".

That could be as well. One only need question whether he will ever develop the insight to reach the end of the road: cultural identification.

 

[jillio]

Sad that. Speaking for myself, I've found that when I have EMBRACED Deafhood and all that that entails, I'm actually happier and far more comfortable being Deaf in a hearing world.

That is evidence of the empowerment.

 

[jillio]

You really are an argumentative fellow. No one is saying that you have to embrace anything. Your journey, your own choice.

Kokonut is not satisfied with his own decisions of which road to travel. He finds it necessary to belittle the choices of others in order to feel better about his own. Typical of the school yard bully.

Koko is the perfect example of the dis-empowered person.

 

[flip]

The last sentence is what I have been thinking. It's like a paradox.

Do we need a term for people who becomes part of the deafhood by entering it and refusing it? Some suggestions: "The Deafhood Paradox", "Stranded in deafhood", "Deafhood anomy", "Prisoners of deafhood".

 

[DeafCaroline]

"Do we need a term for people who becomes part of the deafhood by entering it and refusing it? Some suggestions: "The Deafhood Paradox", "Stranded in deafhood", "Deafhood anomy", "Prisoners of deafhood". "

how about "denial"?

 

[drphil]

Of course how does one "determine" the values of "hearing society" to those of the"deaf community"? A question asked many times. Can one be "audist" WITHOUT KNOWING ?
Is there such a "thing" as "hearinghood"? Does this get to "blindhood" as well?

Isn't getting a Cochlear Implant ONE WAY of dealing with the fact of deafness- Notwithstanding the '"apparent disapproval of deaf militants"?

More discussions in Sociology re culture.

Implanted A B Harmony activated Aug/07

 

[StSapphire]

Can one be "audist" WITHOUT KNOWING ?

Yep. It's called unconscious bias. You can have all sorts of attitudes like that without knowing. You can unconsciously be sexist, racist, homophobic, etc, and all of these will likely be quickly recognizable to their victims even if it's entirely unconscious and unintentional.

 

[jillio]

Do we need a term for people who becomes part of the deafhood by entering it and refusing it? Some suggestions: "The Deafhood Paradox", "Stranded in deafhood", "Deafhood anomy", "Prisoners of deafhood".

We already have one. Hypocrit.

 

[jillio]

Of course how does one "determine" the values of "hearing society" to those of the"deaf community"? A question asked many times. Can one be "audist" WITHOUT KNOWING ?
Is there such a "thing" as "hearinghood"? Does this get to "blindhood" as well?

Isn't getting a Cochlear Implant ONE WAY of dealing with the fact of deafness- Notwithstanding the '"apparent disapproval of deaf militants"?

More discussions in Sociology re culture.

Implanted A B Harmony activated Aug/07

Of course one can be audist without knowing it. One is not consciously aware of the many ways one is socialized to believe.

To be accurate, getting a CI is a way of remediating lack of audiological input. Does nothing to address dealing with deafness as a holisitic condition.

What deaf militants are you referring to? Haven't seen on of those around these parts for several years.

Of course there is such a thing as hearinghood. Look around.