THAT IS WHO I AM OR WHAT I AM

I lived in a hearing world, as all my family members were hearing. I understood I was different from a young age, but I did not know why. It was expected of me to be able to hear. I tried very hard, first with hearing aids and then with a cochlear implant. I only became aware of the Deaf culture recently when I started doing my sign language. I have SASL (South African Sign Language), BSL (British Sign Language) and ASL (American Sign Language). I now understand that I need to be proud of my Deaf culture! I had a lot of catching up to do.

It is important to note who we are and what it means to be Deaf. Deaf culture is our way of life. Language and cultural rights of Deaf people are important. It made me think about ‘Deaf’ as an identity. It made me want to learn and understand more about Deaf culture, so I researched a lot of the history of Deaf ideology and what it means to be Deaf.

I know now that I am part of an amazing culture called the Deaf culture. That is my identity. I am Deaf, and nothing is going to change that. I communicate by Sign Language. That is not going to change, no matter how hard I try. 

The Deaf Americans have progressed a lot with this. I am reading as much as I can – everything I can find about the Deaf culture. I hope that, in time, I can help other Deaf people like me. I also hope to change hearing people’s perspective of deafness.