I went to a Deaf Chat last night for the community college class where I'm taking ASL. My teacher was there and several others from my college, plus students from a different college. But NO Deaf people that I could see. In fact, I believe my teacher and I were probably the only two deaf/HH people there. I'm not totally sure about this, because I didn't know all the students personally. Some students in my ASL class are HH but the HH/deaf students I knew weren't there last night. I have to say I was a bit disappointed. I've been to other Deaf Chats with deaf friends. This time I felt like an oddity being one of two deaf/HH people attending. The first student I sat next to knew **nothing**. He was from the other school. Believe me, I'm not fluent. This guy-- I'm not sure if he knew ANY actual words. He didn't even understand "baby." Really!! I tried to tell him something about my son. He didn't understand the word 'son.' So I broke it down. 'Boy' + 'baby.' He didn't understand either word. I've never met anyone who didn't get it when you signed baby. He didn't understand the difference between 'want' and 'have.' He didn't know 'mother' or 'father' or 'teacher.' He should have known these words even if he was taking beginning ASL 101, because it's already the middle of the quarter. He should have learned those words the first week. We ended up fingerspelling everything.
OK-- I was fine with someone who was a beginner. We all need to start somewhere and it was brave of him to show up. Plus I suck at fingerspelling, so I needed the practice. But he kept checking his phone. He got up and walked away several times without apologizing or saying anything. The thing is I never heard his phone ring and only knew he was talking on the phone because he pulled it out and walked away. Now I understand about Teresa's blog a few weeks ago when she asked how Deaf felt about others using their phones at Deaf events. It wasn't that I needed him to interpret his conversation for me. Heavens! He wouldn't have been able to anyway. However, even among the hearing, it's simple courtesy to say "excuse me." Better yet, unless it's really important to receive calls, you should turn your phone off while talking to others, or explain WHY you need to take that call. Did he want to be there at the Deaf Chat?? I think not. I guess it was part of his class "assignment" to take notes about what I said because I saw him write down some things about me. YIKES!! He never even asked if that was OK! He left early. After forty minutes of patiently showing him signs and fingerspelling with him, he simply got up and left. Good riddance too!! The look of relief on his face when his ride showed up was priceless. I know he was thinking 'Thank GOD, the torture of talking to this deaf woman is over!" He didn't even say good-bye or thanks or nod in my direction. How RUDE!! I felt like a specimen. The others from his school didn't try to communicate in ASL at all. They only stared at me and the others in my school signing away. If I had had a choice I would have moved on to talk to someone else, but I had arrived late and all the other chairs were taken, so I was stuck in this area surrounded by people from the other school. Soon after my guy left, the rest of them left too, so only those from my school were left.
Then we all closed in and I had a much better time chatting with the students from my own school. They all signed much better, and seemed to feel more comfortable about my deafness. In fact it didn't matter at all. After that we just chatted about funny stuff and we had some good **laffs.** We all noticed how the students from the other school seemed to be way behind. I know nothing about that teacher at the other school.Sometimes I wonder why people take ASL if they feel so uncomfortable around deaf/HH people.
On the bright side-- a nice surprise and more praise for Starbucks. This Deaf Chat was held at a Starbucks. I had a horrible time finding it. For those of you who don't know--- I live in the Seattle area and there are probably two Starbucks on every block, plus a couple other drive thru latte stands and coffee shops in-between. We drink a lotta coffee here-- OK??? Our winters are D-A-R-K. Coffee helps to relieve Seasonal Affective Disorder. Look that one up. We get weird in the winter without our coffee. I'm getting off track. . . So I was driving around and pulled into the wrong Starbucks one block away from the one I was supposed to be at. Wouldn't you know the kid at the counter knew a little ASL? A high school kid. I've run into this before at Starbucks. They look for workers who know ASL. Starbucks is SO Deaf friendly. So this kid knew about the Deaf Chat at the other Starbucks and told me how to get there and even signed a little while he was speaking as best he could. Sweet!
Since I have to go to this Deaf chat, I plan to take a deaf friend next time if I can convince someone to go with me. (sigh) Or maybe I'll talk to my teacher and see if it's OK to go somewhere else and sign with other people who are more advanced than me, so I can learn more, cuz I was really super disappointed about last night. 
18 comments:
Whew!
I too have a club that meets on 3rd fridays each month. Yes few deafs many hearies. That's the way it is going to be. Its not something to mope about but to take advantage of. Hearies have lots of money and they'd almost buy anything you try to sell them. Its an appropriate setting to do your small scale fundraising.
Richard
hahaha! Richard--You're too funny! Most of these people--not all-- but MOST were half my age. Poor college students who had NO money. My husband and I are both gainfully employed and make a decent household income. But-I'll remember to go to Deaf Chat and play on their sympathies next time I need to do some fundraising. (hehe) Might as well get something out of it!
I would be happy to go there and chat with you in ASL.
We deaf feel that hearing people who are practicing their ASL with us before they become interpreters and will make a lot of money interpreting for the deaf and we earn lot less than the interpreters. Its not fair. Thats who not many deaf people were intereted in deaf chats anymore.
My husband and I are willing to help some people who just lost their hearings and want to learn ASL for their benifits.
We deaf feel that hearing people who are practicing their ASL with us before they become interpreters and will make a lot of money interpreting for the deaf and we earn lot less than the interpreters. Its not fair. Thats who not many deaf people were intereted in deaf chats anymore.
I really hate my ITP for this reason. They require that we go out and socialize with Deaf people, and bring back proof for our class. No wonder Deaf people feel taken advantage of. BUT I do think it is really important to learn ASL from Deaf people. It's an akward situation because you want to socialize, not teach ASL. It's not your responsibility. On the other hand, don't you want your interpreters to be good? The best solution, in my opinion, is HIRE OUT YOUR SERVICES! Become ASL tutors, trust me you'll get plenty of money and won't feel taken advantage of. It seems that nobody is too interested in doing this, though.
Anonymous student, You're so right!!!
My teacher is HH/deaf and she's GREAT! I really think it's so much better to have a deaf/Deaf teacher than someone has isn't deafened. My son's high school ASL teacher was hearing and after I met her once she made a real snide remark about my inability to lip read. In the dark!! I'm like GET A CLUE! It was dark!!! To think she was teaching ASL just boggled my mind.
Anyway-- yeah just think how much money the Deaf could make tutoring terps. Maybe not as much as terps make per hour, but that's partly because there's a terp shortage.
This seems to mirror many UK deaf areas as well... our deaf club has BSL Lessons for hearies, but they do not include deaf people, and hold classes waiting until we have left the building, there is no attempt whatever to gain direct experience at all.
Basically they see sign translation as a job of work with a good wage, and there is no need whatever to gain actual rapport with those you assist, who are 'clients', 'users', 'communication-impaired', and 'stakeholders', not deaf people...
There was some backlash to this, where deaf people wouldn't use these people ! and went back to relying on family and friends, and this forced 'support workers' to 'hard sell' their services to the deaf and they have been lobbying welfare services here to tell people they are available, we KNOW !
We just do not like how they operate, we are deaf people first and last, not a cash cow for them, like doctors, they need people skills ! they really do not appear to see the person, just the deafness, and of the view we cannot manage without them, some have had a rude awakening..
MM
At last, I have time to catch up the DeafRead.
I enjoyed reading your posting which had me looking back in my life, at RIT, in 1980's... where the sincere-looking hearing students would hesitatingly come to a group of us sitting around the table in a college cafeteria, chatting/signing, whatever. He/she would ask if he/she could join us and then with a look of apology on his/her face, he/she would say that he/she was taking an ASL class, blah blah. We'd give a nod of understanding and scoot over to make room for the student and we'd sign slowly and use our voices more (Total Communication was acceptable and widely used in 1980's and 1990's... I don't know about today.) The assignment completed, the students disappear, never to be seen again, with an exception of very few who got addicted to learning more about the deaf culture.
I'm heading to Seattle sometime (hubby works in Seattle Mon-Fri) but we live in Colorado. When I get up there, I'd be happy to meet you! :-)
UGH! I just saw the word verification...I think I'm dumber than a 5th grader now!
I had that requirement when I was taking ASL classes.
We had to go to 'Deaf events or to Deaf clubs and then do two reports, both written in english and on video in ASL. I ALWAYS felt uncomfortable, like I was taking advantage of people or like I was a sort of spy.
My teachers were all Deaf and the classes were for people who were studying to become interpreters.
I was always the only HH/deaf in the class.
Though I didn't have much money I would have
loved to have someone to tutor me. At one club a man told me to get out. He was angry because I waited till I became deafened to try to learn ASL.
Hi Karen--Yeah I can see why the Deaf feel used by interpeting students. I've read blogs about this before, but this was my first experience with it myself since I've always had others to chat with.
Myelin-- Let me know when you're coming! YAY!! I'd LOVE to meet for lunch or dinner!!
MJC--I've heard similar horror stories, and have been at the receiving end of such comments on line, but not in person. It stems from misunderstanding of how we experience progressive hearing loss. When does one realize they're becoming deaf? No one ever tells you that. Has your audiologist ever labeled you 'deaf' yet?? My experience is they avoid that word, enabling us to remain in denial about our deafness. YOU were one of the lucky ones having grown up with a relative in denial. It took me a good long time to figure out I was deaf. THEN-- when we FINALLY get there-- and it's NOT easy-- a Deaf person gets angry with us or tells us we aren't "Deaf" enough because we speak or waited too long to take ASL. YIKES!! Makes your hair stand on end! This is the other side of the story-- thanks for sharing.
Boy, these comments are interesting. I was thinking myself, of going to a Deaf Chat or similar event, but, what do I say? Walk up and say
"me study asl" "i talk you please"?
I am so non-conversant in sign. But I want language not be a barrier, rather that sign being a reason to hang out. And I won't get much better in sign, without using it.
A tutor will help, and I may try that in conjuction with classes, but I really would just like to make some more deaf people, at least some of whom I may become better friends.
And yet, I respect that a Deaf Chat is a place for friends to converse, not for students to learn/practice.
What do I do?
Hi Bill,
I get the feeling the main complaint revolves around interpreting students who use Deaf people to practice their ASL skills. I've heard of interpreting students palling around with Deaf people leading them on as if they were friends, then after they get certified, the "friendship" is off and they get all professional and charge an arm and leg to their deaf "friends" for their interpreting services. You know-- that's just so slimy. But if you're really interested in friendship then I bet some will be open to you.
Thanks for the Starbucks tip, I didn't know they use ASL, how interesting. I plan to visit Seattle (Sammamish) this summer, perhaps we could go to deaf chat? My 6 year old niece signs too - and she's hearing!
I had a similar experience at college when I learned BSL. I was the only deaf student in the class, and the tutor was deaf. I stuck it out in that class for 2 years, and *no one* bothered to include me in classroom chat or coffee breaks. I had never felt so 'excluded' as I did over those 2 years. They even looked uncomfortable if I tried to strike up a conversation with them. Isn't that just amazing?
Tina :)
Sammammish is very close to where I live. Let me know when you plan to come! I will definitely make an effort to meet with you!! :-)
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