With the help of social media, more people are aware of Deaf people and their culture. Current viral videos of Deaf people hearing for the first time have made people realize that Deaf people do exist. Also, signed languages have been the new "cool" thing, especially after watching videos of popular signed songs. Now, there is even a television show featuring Deaf people and their experiences. While it is good that people are becoming more aware of who they share this world with, not all publicity is as good as it seems.
Fig. 11
Recently, I have seen many videos shared through social media of Deaf people hearing for the first time. Often, these videos spark the same emotion: happiness. Many comments express how this is a miracle and how it has caused tears of joy, but this follows the perspective that Deaf people need to be fixed. To keep this short, those videos fail to explain many the factors that contribute to making an extremely personal medical decision. In addition, they leave out the feelings, thoughts and aftermath of the individual. If the individual has chosen this path, that is their decision, but consider a different perspective before judging their experience.
For more information: http://www.thewire.com/politics/2014/03/why-you-shouldnt-share-those-emotional-deaf-person-hears-for-the-first-time-videos/359850/
For more information: http://www.thewire.com/politics/2014/03/why-you-shouldnt-share-those-emotional-deaf-person-hears-for-the-first-time-videos/359850/
Paul and Tina's videos provide some more food for thought. Tina Sirimarco, an American Sign Language Interpreter, and her husband Paul, create videos of themselves interpreting songs. In total, they have more than 45 videos and over 3,000,000 views. Though many people enjoy these videos and think they're cute (I'll admit I did at one point), their audience is geared to be hearing people. A non-Deaf person would be curious to see how a song they've heard before is expressed in American Sign Language. On the other hand, Deaf people don't have this same experience because they don't know the songs that Tina and Paul are referencing. In addition, these videos do not use full American Sign Language, and follows the incorrect ideas that ASL is not a real language. To conclude, these song interpretations take advantage of the language of the Deaf, for non-Deaf enjoyment.
This show on ABC Family has become extremely popular in both the Deaf and non-Deaf communities. In the Deaf community, this show has sparked a few debates. Instead of being an opportunity to share Deaf experiences and mesh the Deaf and non-Deaf worlds, the show created an unrealistic generalization of Deaf people. For example, Rob Nielson, a Deaf ASL Teacher, explains that the show should have culturally Deaf script writers. Instead, the non-Deaf writers researched what it's like to be Deaf and wrote the scripts from an outsider's perspective. Unfortunately, this will never capture the true essence of Deaf experiences. In addition, Nielson describes the result of common misconceptions of Deaf people, due to a non-Deaf actress playing the role of a Deaf woman. One of the biggest assumptions about Deaf people is their ability to lipread. In the show, the actress does this flawlessly, but this does not accurately reflect the experience of all Deaf people. Also, she speaks, which isn't something all Deaf people do. This actress often speaks and signs at the same time, which isn't normal for someone who grew up in the Deaf world. Though this show may seem inclusive and informative, the shadow it's casting on the Deaf community isn't completely accurate.
For more information: https://www.change.org/p/abc-family-and-the-switched-at-birth-series-create-responsible-accurate-and-family-oriented-tv-programming
For more information: https://www.change.org/p/abc-family-and-the-switched-at-birth-series-create-responsible-accurate-and-family-oriented-tv-programming