Should Deaf communicate oral with hearing family and friends?

I think it is wrong for hearing people to expect us to be oral, regardless of how good or bad our speech may be. Turn the tables, and sign. Let them put the same effort into understanding you with sign language as you do/have with being oral. If people really want to take interest in you and what you are communicating, they will take the time to figure it out, even if it is just to get the gist of what you are signing. Believe me, sign language is so much easier to grasp that spoken language. It is said that 80% of our communication in general society is non-spoken anyway.
 
since i been learning more and more sign each day (still very slow and rusty), i been using it a little more each day in front of my family. But it can get frustrating because they just ask what did i just say lol.

For me, I'm always oral with both sides of my family, besides my aunt who knows sign very well cause her son is Deaf.
 
bbaseballboy123 said:
since i been learning more and more sign each day (still very slow and rusty), i been using it a little more each day in front of my family. But it can get frustrating because they just ask what did i just say lol.

For me, I'm always oral with both sides of my family, besides my aunt who knows sign very well cause her son is Deaf.
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cool. so does that mean he is your cousin. have you chat with him by signing?
 
Frisky Feline said:
cool. so does that mean he is your cousin. have you chat with him by signing?
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I mean great aunt, so hes my parent's cousin. But No i rarely ever talk to him because he lives a thousand miles away. So its kinda like talking to a stranger since I only met him once in my life
 
bbaseballboy123 said:
I mean great aunt, so hes my parent's cousin. But No i rarely ever talk to him because he lives a thousand miles away. So its kinda like talking to a stranger since I only met him once in my life
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I understand. maybe one day you and him will have to meet again under the strange situation. :) keep signing if you want to. :)
 
Interesting. I will give my perspective on languages in general, because I have been on both sides of a language barrier. I can speak Spanish, because I had a very good friend who was learning English, and so we learned the languages together. When I invited her to an event, I tried to translate everything for her because she was like my sister, and I wanted her to understand everything. It was hard, and it was complicated... but she was happy and so I was happy.

I also tried to learn Arabic... ended up being invited to a lot of parties with Arabic friends, but when we all got together they would forget that I was there... one time I left when my friend and I invited another Arabic person to sit with us... and then those two talked in Arabic for 30 minutes and literally forgot I was with them! I made and excuse and went home. I considered it really insensitive, because I remembered trying to make sure my Mexican friend felt comfortable and understood things... but maybe other people don't think it's important to include others? I just don't understand. To me I'm not happy if someone else is left out.
 
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