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Navigating Deaf Identities Along with Other Cultural Identities…
Navigating Deaf Identities Along with Other Cultural Identities
Identifying as Deaf
Many older deaf people describe themselves as being deaf upon being asked
Some individuals are born deaf. Some deaf people will accept or deny their disability.
individuals who identify themselves as culturally Deaf are individuals who use ASL or a signed language, who feel strongly that being Deaf is a benefit or a gain, socialize with other culturally Deaf persons, and live a visual way of life
Corker (1996) compares core identity to personal identity. Both are identities that focus on how individuals primarily identify themselves internally and feel who they are.
Personal identities start within the family of origin. The family of origin teaches the child about the family’s cultural and ethnic heritages.
For example, a deaf child growing up in a culturally Deaf family will absorb a Deaf identity because that is the culture of the family. Therefore, it becomes a personal or core identity.
How deaf children of hearing families integrate a deaf identity depends on how the parents and the family talk about the deaf part.
How much exposure the child has at school or at camps where there are other deaf children, many of whom may be culturally Deaf or use ASL, may also influence how the child creates a deaf identity.
If interactions with other deaf persons are a positive experience, and if the family is supportive of encouraging the child to be comfortable as a deaf child, it becomes easier for that child to feel a strong sense of deaf identity.
Categories of Deaf Identities
Big "D" Deaf means that the person accepts and takes part in Deaf culture. Little "d" deaf is a word used to describe the disability
Disability Framework: Weinberg and Sterritt wanted to better understand how deaf persons identify themselves and how this may be associated with psychological adjustment. They used the medical model of deafness as a disability to describe possible identity categories.
social identity theory: developed by Tajfel (1981), suggests that group relationships and social orientations are important for identity. If the individual is able to learn how to see that minority group as positive, that person will move to join that group.
Racial Identity Framework: how members of oppressed racial or ethnic groups develop a positive identity in difficult situations.
Deaf Identity Development Framework: deaf individuals are part of a minority group and share life experiences and oppression just as minority group members do. (Similar to racial framework)
Acculturation Model: This model is based on the immigration experience. In other words, this model focuses on how immigrants relate to their home culture while they are learning how to deal with culture in their new country.
The Narrative Approach: When people tell stories about their experiences and their feelings about themselves, researchers can get rich information about identities. They do that by examining themes from the people’s life stories to describe individuals and how their interactions with others influence what identity they have.
The Affects of Ethnicity and Race
when deaf children are born to hearing families, “deaf” may not be their core identity. Ethnicity/race as part of the family’s culture is more likely to be the deaf child’s first or early core identity (other than gender).
As the child realizes that when the hearing aid or cochlear implant is off, hearing sound or words is not possible, that is when the child begins to understand that she or he is deaf.
If the parents explain to their child that they are deaf and what that is , then the child will begin to internalize and develop that identity.
How well internalization of "Deaf" happens depends on the child’s exposure to family communication, support from the environment, and positive or negative reactions from people whom the child sees.
If the child has culturally Deaf parents who are also an ethnic/racial minority, it is likely that the ethnic/racial identity will develop at the same time as the Deaf identity.
often times Deaf people are minorities within minorities
It is complex to be of two or more minorities. All groups have different values, beliefs, and behaviors.
One way to solve the problem of how to integrate ethnic/racial identity and Deaf identity is to integrate the two identities, not keep them separate.
The Affects of Sexual Orientation and Other Disabilities
A lot depends on how accepting the family and friends are, as well as schoolmates and coworkers. A lot also depends on cultural perspectives about people who are LGBTQA.
there are cultures who are not accepting of LGBTQA communities
It is very difficult for individuals who live in nonaccepting cultures to feel safe about coming out and being open about their sexual orientation.
But if they are members of an ethnic minority, it probably will be much more difficult to find deaf GLBTQA individuals who belong to their ethnic minority group.
Statistics show that approximately 40% of the deaf and hard-of-hearing population may have additional disabilities
these disabilities interact with the deaf part and other identities the person may have.
There are also cultural perspectives on disability depending on ethnicity/race, social class, sexual orientation, and belief systems, with some cultures accepting them, some cultures hiding them, and some cultures rejecting them.
If significant others do not accept them, they may have difficulty developing a sense of trust in themselves and a strong identity that includes their additional disability,
Also, more likely, Deaf persons with additional disabilities may never see another person who is like them, such as another Black Deaf person with cerebral palsy. They may then feel more like they are the only ones in the world and no one else is like them.