It is an unprecedented era of access for a deaf person. Closed captioning. Mandated (if at times still largely theoretical) interpreter access. Pagers. Sidekicks. Rear window captioning. The internet. Blogs. Having intra-community contact within moments, not days.
So many voices. So many perspectives. So many backgrounds.
And I think, at the core of it all, wanting more. Our unprecendented access is not enough. There needs to be more. The knowledge of what more feels like has not led to a sense of contentment. It has led to knowing things could be better. That we need and deserve more.
And that is the reason for this protest, I think.
The world needs to be better. The deaf world needs to be better. Gallaudet needs to be better. More access to communication within our families. More access to mundane things, like the weather segment of the local nightly news broadcasts maybe finally being captioned. Automatic sensitivity to the need for captioning deaf-related radio broadcasts. Access to airport announcements. Fewer assumptions about deaf people, and a greater understanding of the importance of ASL.
Why do all these things matter? Why do they inflame so much passion?
Because not hearing is irrelevant. It’s thought about about as often as you think about the color of your eyes. What makes a person feel deaf is the lack of access, the barriers to communication, the resistance to understanding.
And it is now known how much better it is to have some. How much better would more be?
