August of 2014 John Barrowman decided to do what many people studying Deaf culture do. He decided to be "Deaf" for a day.
Deaf for a day is when a person who has the ability to hear pretends to be Deaf for a day. They might wear ear buds, or in John's case he had silicone implants made by an audiologist. The silicone made it nearly impossible for him to hear. The entire day was to be spent wearing those silicone ear buds so that he could get the full experience of what it is like to be Deaf.
Why might someone want to take part in this experience? Well, for most people studying Deaf culture we cannot fully understand what they go through every day unless we at least try it for one day. In John's interest he is an ambassador for hearing dogs and wanted to experience using one.
A hearing dog is trained to assist the Deaf and hard of hearing. Hearing dogs learn to alert a Deaf person when there is an emergency, such as a fire. When the dog hears the alarm they will alert the Deaf person by lying on their belly. The dog's can also wake up the owner, alert when the oven/stove goes off, and if someone is knocking on the door. Along with assisting the owner with alerts the dog also offers itself as an emotional companion. Deaf people are often shut out by the public and ignored and need a companion to enjoy throughout the day.
John Barrowman wrote a blog, goo.gl/kmc7BB.
In the beginning of his blog he states, "I could no longer hear the sound of busy London traffic, footsteps walking behind me or the buzz of conversation around me. I was anxious just crossing the road. This was before John was paired with his hearing dog. He would most likely still have anxiety about crossing the road as most Deaf people do but the dog would add some assurance and confidence to these types of activities.
John also said, "But until I experienced it for myself, I hadn't realized the huge impact it has on everyday things we take for granted, such as buying a coffee, and how it makes other people treat you differently." Almost all American Sign Language Interpreter majors have experienced Deaf for a day at some point in there studies. I am included in this majority. For my Deaf culture class the students were all required to be Deaf for a day and write about our experiences. I can relate to John's quote here because during my experience I attempted to apply for a job at a fast food chain. I was treated as if I did not exist, they absolutely did not want to be "bothered" with a Deaf employee and had no intention of giving me an interview. I was "brushed" off immediately by a manager and felt so defeated.
John also talks about his experience as being frustrating for other people around him, that they had no patience. Several times throughout the day he asked people to repeat things that they said so he could try and read their lips but most people would get frustrated and do the tasks themselves instead of allowing John to do them. John said he felt like the power was taken away from him, he felt defeated.
At the end of John's blog he states, "Hearing loss is on the rise and hearing dogs change the lives of deaf people." This is the perfect example of John's perspective after his Deaf for a day experience. His perspective remains that Deaf people have a hearing "loss." He didn't say that he thinks Deaf people should get cochlear implants or that they should attempt to gain hearing back but he used the term "loss."
Many Deaf people see this term as insulting as it implies that they have lost something. John may not mean what he said to be an insult or to even say that Deaf people have in fact lost something but maybe this is his way of saying that being Deaf for a day was difficult and he acknowledges that. It's all about perspective.
So the question remains, is it a hearing loss or a Deaf gain?
No comments:
Post a Comment