Deaf by Decision?

     After watching the film "Sound & Fury" as well as reading the article "Deaf by Design", I was introduced to a community of deaf people in which I'd never heard of before. This particular group views being deaf not as a disability, but rather as a foundation for what allows them to have a rich culture through sign language with the use of hand shape, position and movement, facial expressions and other visual cues. This undoubtedly brings up the largely controversial argument of just what determines if a person can be considered as disabled. By definition, a disability is: "a physical or mental handicap, especially one that prevents a person from living a full, normal life or from holding a gainful job." (dictionary.com). Taking this into consideration, why then is this topic so debatable? The question lies in one's interpretation of the word "normal". What is "normal" to a certain individual may not necessarily be the same for somebody else. If the norm for this particular group of deaf people is, well, being deaf, then who are we to label them as disabled?

     In the article "Deaf by Design", we are educated about certain deaf couples that prefer to have deaf children and would even go to the extents of having abortions after finding out that their child will not be deaf. Our society, too busy being disgusted by something that we find to be so out of the ordinary, never stops to try to understand things from their point of view. If we are able to have the choice to abort a fetus we consider "abnormal", then what stops these individuals from doing likewise?

     In the video "Sound & Fury", we learn that Heather a deaf child, is interested in getting a cochlear implant. Heather's father, also deaf, quickly rejects this idea, too proud of his deaf culture to even consider Heather's request or try to understand why she would want or require such a thing. When looking at the situation from Heather's father's point of view, I can understand his confusion towards Heather's request, since being deaf is "normal" for him. He sees no benefit in getting a cochlear implant and instead finds it scary and unnatural. Regardless, once stepping into Heather's shoes, it isn't difficult to see why she would want an implant. Being surrounded by other children that are able to both speak and hear (excluding her siblings), one can easily imagine the kind of frustration and irritation Heather must go through on a daily basis when she struggles to communicate with her friends and peers. In my opinion, it would indeed be in Heather's best interest to get the implant. Doing so would allow her to communicate verbally with her friends and classmates while still being able to communicate with the rest of her family through sign language. 

     Although we've come far, we still have a long way to go until we are able to fully stop discriminating against individuals we believe are out of the norm. I would even go to the lengths of saying that being close-minded could be regarded as a disability in itself, preventing us from understanding or getting to know others that may be slightly different from us. As cliché as it may sound, I believe that we will eventually be able to achieve a society in which these small differences  no longer has any importance.

Normal: adjective; conforming to the standard or the common type; usual; not abnormal; regular; natural.