External Perceptions

S: What is your view on the society’s perception of the deaf community?

L: People are a lot more open-minded now, compared to when I first started here. And I’ve been here since I graduated high school - this was my first job! Back then, people really held certain misconceptions about the deaf - “why do they use their hands (to communicate)?”, “They’re mute!” But we had to change their minds, even those within the deaf community! We have to constantly reaffirm them that they’re not mute! In fact, many of them can speak really well! Particularly with modern technology like cochlear implants, many hearing impaired people can speak fluently. With the advancement of society, the level of inclusiveness/acceptance has risen considerably whether you’re blind, in a wheel chair or otherwise impaired. We have gradually cultivated a culture of inclusiveness in which the hearing impaired are no longer seen as mute. The deaf community has received much more support from NGO’s and the government as the years have gone by. Would you be afraid of a blind person or a deaf person if you saw one?

S: [shakes head]

L: Exactly! But people used to avoid people who are disabled because there was such stigma surrounding them. At least that’s how it was when I first started at this job.

Situated between the hearing world and the deaf community, Ms. L certainly possesses qualities that more align with the hearers rather than the Hearing people (Napier, 2002). The distinction drawn here is critical because it distinguishes Ms. L as one who empathizes with the deaf, but more importantly, as belonging to the Deaf community despite not being deaf herself. The notion of empathy versus pity was something that was heavily discussed. While it was thought that the majority of the Hearing world typically pities those who are disabled or in this case deaf, we find that this is not the case especially among the younger generation.

"While I empathized with them, I realize I never really thought what more I could do as an individual from the Hearing world."

-Patricia

"from outside looking in, I am curious about how members of the Deaf community actually feel about their inclusion/exclusion from mainstream classrooms, and the society at large. "

- Sampras

"While I do not consider Deafness to be a disability in itself, I recognise that it becomes so due to its treatment by mainstream society, with a lack of aid leading to discrimination against the Deaf community, thereby creating a marginalised and silenced group."

- Heather

Interestingly, from the personal logs it was found that nearly everyone reflected some sort frustration at the situation of Deaf community in Hong Kong. This indicates an understanding of the issues and obstacles faced by members of the Deaf community. Along the way, something has resulted in this shift from pity to empathy for the Deaf community within the hearing world.

Ms. L's unique identity as a hearer can be attributed to her long-standing position at an organization that advocates for the deaf and the personal relationships she has built with deaf members, but it also emerged from the way she spoke about the Deaf community, and the role she played in shifting public perception surrounding the Deaf. Ms. L spoke to the misconceptions from the Hearing world towards deaf people, namely the false notion that deaf people are also mute. She spoke very resolutely when mentioning that she, along with other staff members, had to work hard to remove that particular misnomer of deafness even from the thinking of the Deaf community, that she had to 'constantly reaffirm them that they’re not mute'. Here, Ms. L clearly distinguishes herself from the Hearing world, despite being hearing-able, by underlining her position in the Deaf community as a hearer, and her role in conciliate misunderstandings between the two worlds (Bucholtz and Hall, 2005).

Having witnessed the shift in public perception towards the Deaf community and Deaf people over the years, Ms. L's comments reveal a gradual change in what the hearing world perceives as 'Deaf', and by extension, how the Deaf view themselves (Agha, 2006). Ms. L credits the modern advancements in technology such as the cochlear implants in helping the Deaf speak more fluently and become more integrated in the hearing world, while also citing a heightened sense of inclusiveness and acceptance in general towards people with bodily impairment. Within the framework of the Deaf identity emblem, the people making association has largely remained constant -- the Hearing, general public, et cetera. However, what has changed over the years are the signs or linguistic features (increased fluency and confidence in speaking) as well as the social persona (from deaf and "mute" to Deaf with the ability to speak). This is supported by evidence from the personal logs in which it is stated that:

"When my university first launched Sign language Level 1 as a foreign language class, they could barely fill up one class. Now, it is one of the most popular foreign language classes and they have even launched a level 2 and 3."

- Gillian

The improved perception of the Deaf community is in large part down to the empowerment of the members within the community, of which hearers like Ms. L are a big part of.