Yo! We got a super cool character! Aunt Amaya is badass, fights with a shield, is sexy af, and she’s deaf! How much cooler can you get? Not much, that’s for sure!
Now I’m not deaf myself but I studdied ASL, Deaf culture, and was active in the Deaf community. So, I thought I should share a little bit about it.
Firstly, Deaf and deaf are not the same. Capital D Deaf is the culture, the community, the identity. Lower case d deaf is the disability. Deafness (the disability) is considered an invisible disability because you can’t look at someone and see deafness.
The Deaf community and being Deaf can be very important to a person and Deaf people do not think it’s a bad thing to be deaf. Fixing deafness though cochlear implants can be a source of tension because being Deaf is important to them.
Now onto deaf, deaf and dumb, hard of hearing, and mute.
Deafness is total hearing loss through birth, illness, or accident. The level of deafness varies per person and ranges from mild to profound. Some deaf people can still hear high pitched noises; for example my ASL teacher could tell when the girls in the class were talking, but couldn’t understand them.
Deaf and dumb is an archaic phrase that is rude and does not apply to any persons.
Hard of hearing (HOH) is partial hearing loss. A person who is HOH might speak ASL or talk with an accent but can hear in certain registers and may or may not be involved in the Deaf community. HOH persons are not deaf and usually developed hearing loss later in life. Though if they lose more of their hearing they may become deaf.
Finally mute. Mute is a person that cannot speak. Most deaf people’s vocal chords work just fine and can talk. Mute does not equal deaf. A person could be mute but not deaf or deaf and not mute, they have nothing to do with each other. They are two separate disabilities. Calling someone with hearing loss mute is inaccurate.
Finally as a last reminder blind is the inability to see, which also has its own spectrum. But I know some people who may not know deaf or blind persons may mix up the terms since they are not in their everyday vernacular.
If anyone has any questions about the Deaf community I’d be happy to answer as best I can, but again I was an outsider, hearing person in their community for a few years, I’m not deaf. But I will do my best. If any of my info is out of date or if I’ve made any mistake I’d be happy to correct them. I did my best to give as accurate info as possible!
Also please take a look at this video if you ever have a chance!
ForLoveFromFear 