Effects of Culture on Deaf Communities 1

Regional Cultural Differences and their Effect on Deaf People and their Ability to Interact

in National and Global Communities

Rylee Montalvo

Tallwood High School

Global Studies and World Languages Academy

I think Alexander Graham Bells greatest crime was keeping deaf people apart from each other. It wasnt so much
that he thought speech was important... He didnt want them to be near each other. He wanted them to be apart.-
Gina Oliva
Effects of Culture on Deaf Communities
2

Table of Contents

Abstract...... 3

Introduction... 4

Literature Review .....5

Limitations.7

Discussion.. 8

Conclusion .......17

References....18

Abstract
Effects of Culture on Deaf Communities
3

Every region has its own distinct culture which can affect smaller communities

differently. Deaf communities are highly affected by the culture of a region. The culture of a

region is made up of their social norms which can consist of political preferences and religious

beliefs. Social norms directly affect the ability of Deaf people to learn a common language which

can limit their interaction in national and global communities. When Deaf people are able to

come together and use their language, they form a subculture that heavily influences interaction,

whether it is social or political. Most national interaction occurs on a political level which can be

limited based on the openness of civil society in a country. There is much more social interaction

within global communities than there is political interaction. However, all interaction is limited

when there is a lack of a common language. Language is the gateway for interaction within

national and global communities.

Introduction
Effects of Culture on Deaf Communities
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Being able to communicate in the common language of an area is vital in order to be able

to participate within the community. A common language enables the members of the community

to partake in local elections and public forums. It allows them to go to school and get an

education, whether it be at primary, secondary or post-secondary levels. It is an essential factor

when attempting to engage in civil society or organizations that exist outside of the government.

The most well-known example of communication barriers limiting participation in communities

is immigrants who have yet to learn the common language. There are, however, over 70 million

Deaf people who face the same language barriers even though a majority of them are bilingual

(Sign Language. n.d.). Often, Deaf people are able to read and write in the common language of

their area but use a form of sign language to communicate without writing. Even though they

know the common language, the lack of awareness of sign language, in conjunction with the

inability to communicate orally, leaves them unable to interact within the community. Typically,

Deaf communities are vibrant and tight knit because they are able to interact with other people

who know their language and understand the difficulties that arise with being deaf.

Unfortunately, it can be hard to find a common sign language within a country and, sometimes,

even in a city. As a result, the culture of a region affects the ability of Deaf people to learn a sign

language, thus impacting their ability to interact within the national and global community.

Throughout this paper the word deaf with a lowercase d indicates people who are

medically deaf or hard of hearing and the word Deaf with a capital D will be used to indicate

those who are deaf and align themselves with Deaf culture (Connors, R. 1994, Summer).

Literature Review
Effects of Culture on Deaf Communities
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There were many sources that were reviewed throughout the duration of the writing

process to allow for the presentation of factual unbiased information. The first thing that needed

to be established in the paper was a clear and concise definition of Deaf culture and how it can

vary in different regions because of different cultural influences. An article titled Deaf Culture in

America by Connors was used to define deaf culture and state the difference between Deaf and

deaf. It also stated the lack of knowledge the general public has for the Deaf communities around

the world.

There were several sources that were used to validate the claim that Deaf culture is

different from the culture of a region and establish that sign language is a language. One of these

sources was Language Barriers: Exploring the Worlds of the Deaf by Butler, McNamee,

Skeleton, & Valentine. It stated that British Sign Language (BSL) is its own language separate

from the common spoken English and, thus implying that those who are proficient in written

English and signed BSL are bilingual. It also stated that there is a Deaf culture that is associated

with BSL. Another article written by Skelton & Valentine titled It feels like being deaf is

normal': An exploration into the complexities of defining D/deafness and young D/deaf people's

identities states that those who sign are just another linguistic minority rather than a community

of disabled people. This article also goes in depth into how being deaf and being apart of a Deaf

community affects one's identity.

Peterkin wrote a blog post on a website called Eurokulture that described Deaf culture in

several different regions including India and France.This source indicated several of her sources

in the text that when looked into proved to be credible. This source lead me to a research study

that was conducted by The Joshua Project in 2012. This study looked at the impact of religion on

the deaf community in India. The Joshua Project found that in the Indian community where a
Effects of Culture on Deaf Communities
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majority of people are Hindu, religion drives the interaction between the hearing and Deaf

communities. By synthesizing the information from the two sources, the author was able to

establish that the religion does not encourage the independence of the Deaf populations; thus,

limiting the ability for them to learn a common sign language. It is important to note that a The

Joshua Project (2012) is funded by and was conducted by a Christian organization and may have

a bias because of this. The author has taken measures to eliminate any bias from this paper.

In order to establish the importance of language learning the author used several sources

the first being Sign Language Use for Deaf, Hard of Hearing, and Hearing Babies: The

Evidence Supports it by Malloy. The second source was Discourses on deafness: Social policy

and the communicative habilitation of the deaf by Smith & Campbell. These sources gave an in-

depth review of how learning a language is critical for people to be able to thrive in a society and

how this is especially true in children. Smith focused on the people who are advocating for deaf

education, including sign language. Malloy wrote about how important it is to have early

education of a language. It is important to note, Malloys findings apply to all languages and

while her paper has a focus on deaf education her research was not sign specific.

How Deaf people interact in global communities was researched mainly through looking

into many of the international organizations for the Deaf and not from published articles. One of

these organizations is the European Union of the Deaf (EUD). This organization represents the

Deaf communities and fights for the rights of all deaf people. This organization has succeeded in

holding large scale conference translated in many different sign languages. One of the articles

that showed this was Multilingualism and equal rights in the EU: The role of sign languages that

was written by Hay. However, this organization only represents Deaf people in Europe. There is

another organization called the World Federation for the Deaf (WFD) that represents Deaf people
Effects of Culture on Deaf Communities
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worldwide.They are a strong supporter of the usage of sign language for all Deaf people. They

also have statistical data that was used in this research that came from an article titled Sign

Language that was published by the World Federation for the Deaf.

On a national level Burdiss shows in her article More About the Deaf Grassroots

Movement how the Deaf Community in the United States has become involved in political

movements and how they are able to be a part of their national communities and fight for their

rights as citizens.

A film titled Through Deaf Eyes that was directed by Hott & Garey gave a thorough

history on Deaf culture and sign language education in the United States. Its website

accompaniment published by PBS gave a more in depth view of the history of interaction

between Deaf people and the hearing communities.

Limitations

It is important to note that this paper focuses on how cultural factors affect Deaf peoples

ability to interact within a society and not specific regional cases of Deaf communities. This is

because of the time constraints placed on the research. To do an in-depth study of Deaf culture

and the involvement of Deaf people in a single region would take several years of intensive field

research through travels to complete. It would also require conducting studies in several regions

around the world with varying conditions to have a wide enough sample for comparison. It

would not be feasible with the time and financial constraints.

The majority of previous research done in this field has been conducted by researchers

who were from the United States of America or western Europe. Because of this narrow

perspective, it may have lead to problems regarding bias. However, measures have been taken to

ensure that bias has been eliminated from this research paper.
Effects of Culture on Deaf Communities
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For reasons of transparency, the author would like to note that there is a person who is

functionally deaf in her extended family. She does not fear that this will affect her research

because of the ties to this family member are not strong.

Discussion

There are many different factors that contribute to culture and how a culture will affect a

group of people. Culture is made up of several intangible beliefs that a group of people have

conformed to. These beliefs involve patterns in daily life and models for behavior and actions

(Damen, L., 1987). Some elements of these patterns and models include language, social norms,

values, and beliefs. There are some factors that heavily influence these patterns such as religion

and governmental influence.

Social norms are a very prominent part of every society. They are the unspoken standards

that are present in a community that act as rules and guidelines for behavior. In some regions

where the majority of the population practice one religion, social norms are based on religious

practices. This is true in countries like India and in a more extreme case, Saudi Arabia. India is

predominantly Hindu, which means that the majority of the people follow the social norms and

customs that are dictated by the Vedas. In Saudi Arabia, the social norms are based on the Qur'an.

It is different than India because these norms are also the law. This means that the Saudi Arabian

culture is largely dictated by government and religion.

When social norms are dictated by highly polarized institutions such as religion and

government, it is hard for smaller communities to thrive. Religion and government are

considered polarized because people are heavily inclined to believe that their way is the right

way and can become very violent if their values are not upheld. Religion and government are the

most common sources of social norms in a society.

Effects of Culture on Deaf Communities
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When social norms in a society are restrictive of smaller communities they can be

harmful to the community and it can restrict the freedoms of the members of those communities.

In many regions, Deaf people form small tight knit communities because of language barriers

that are in place because of their hearing ability. In the United States, it was found that the Deaf

communities and Deaf culture initially began to form in residential Deaf schools. This is because

the schools were the only places that were really available to Deaf people to communicate and

learn American Sign Language (ASL) without hinderance. These deaf schools allowed the

language to thrive and grow because it was the first time that Deaf people were interacting in a

large scale fashion on a daily basis (PBS 2007).

In the United States there were two distinct times when the social norms of the majority

of Americans caused distinct hardships and oppression for Deaf people. The first was in the early

1900s when many reformers thought that it would be best for Deaf children to learn in an oralist

manner instead of using sign language. Oralism is the use of lip reading and mimicking mouth

shapes and breathing patterns to speak rather than sign. This push for oralism in Deaf schools

divided the Deaf community greatly because children were not learning to sign, while outside of

the schools sign language was the main way of communicating within the deaf community.

While Deaf children could be taught sign language at home and in Deaf community centers it

was not enough when they spent the majority of the year at the residential schools. The push for

oralism in schools effectively began taking language away from Deaf children and creating a

large cleavage in the Deaf community. (PBS. 2007).

In the United States at this time there was a large influx of immigrants from other

countries around the world. The influx caused job shortages and food scarcity among a majority

of the citizens in the country. American people to became very fearful and hateful towards those
Effects of Culture on Deaf Communities
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who were not the same as them. Deaf people received some of this hate because they did not

speak English. These ideals of hate were furthered by notable figures like Alexander Graham

Bell. Bell claimed that English was the only language that should be used to communicate in the

United States and because ASL was a foreign language it should not be allowed. This movement

even went as far as to seek legislation to outlaw the marriage of two Deaf people because they

might have Deaf children and continue to spread sign language (PBS. 2007).

The oralist movement eventually died down with the rise of the civil rights movement

when the Deaf community fought for their rights to be educated and communicate how they

wished without interference. As a result of the civil rights movement schools were required to be

integrated. When this happened in schools for the Deaf, the effects of segregation were very

apparent. Segregation in the 1960s was an extreme social norm that was allowed and enforced

by state governments in the United States. Racial segregation in the United States was a large

part of the culture in that time period. The social norm of segregation impacted the evolution of

American Sign Language. (Hott, L., & Garey, D. 2007)

The segregation of people in America further divided the Deaf communities this time by

race. The Deaf communities in America have had many hardships because of the social norms

that were imposed upon them by the values and beliefs of society which were backed by the

government. Many people struggled to learn a common sign language thus inhibiting their ability

to interact with each other and participate in civil society.

When the Deaf schools were integrated, the students and teachers noticed that different

signs and different body language were being used when signing the same things. Most of the

signs were the same but the manner in which they signed them were different. The black students

had a more relaxed style and body language while the white students had a more formal style of
Effects of Culture on Deaf Communities
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signing (Hott, L., & Garey, D. 2007). This may not seem like a big deal but gestures, body

position, and facial expressions are very important part of sign language. These things in

combination, are used to convey grammar and to differentiate between different signs (Baumann,

K. 2009).

Now there are a wide variety of measures taken to help Deaf people learn how they are

most comfortable, in residential schools for the deaf or in mainstream programs. Unfortunately

this is not the case for other regions of the world. For example, Deaf people in India are much

more hindered in their ability to learn a form of sign language.

The majority of people in India practice Hinduism and follow the holy text called the

Vedas. Therefore, most social norms are religious in nature and come from this text. This

includes several supplementary texts one of which is the Manusmriti or the Laws of Manu. The

Laws of Manu is one of the oldest books of Hindu Law and is followed diligently by rulers. The

translations of the Manusmriti have been disputed in the past because it had been translated by

many different people and they all had a few variations. Even though there are many different

English translations the Hindi people have followed this text (Manusmriti...1999).

The Laws of Manu state that those who are deaf should not be allowed to own property

and they instead need to rely on the charity of others (Peterkin, B. O. 2015). This means that

Deaf people in India have trouble gaining access to resources to help them thrive because the

charity of others only lasts as long as they can afford to provide it. And the social stigma the

Laws of Manu creates for Deaf people means that hearing people are less likely to let them hold

positions where they could benefit themselves and others such as businessmen or store owners.

There are some other problems in India that, when paired with the social norms, lead to

devastating effects on Deaf people. Because of the Laws of Manu, many Deaf people are nervous
Effects of Culture on Deaf Communities
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about publicly acknowledging their deafness, Thus leading to many avoiding the use of sign

language because the are afraid of the consequences . There are several schools for the Deaf in

India but the majority of them do not use sign language instead opting to use the oralist method

(The Joshua Project 2012).

These factors greatly reduce the ability and the desire of the Deaf community to form a

cohesive community and interact with each other. This is because of the lack of a common

language. Many Deaf people in India use a basic set of gestures to communicate with others.

Typically these signs are only understood by the person's family and close friends thus alienating

them from the larger society. This system of household signs is more commonly found in rural

areas because they tend to be more traditional in regards to following social norms presented by

their religion. In some urban areas the Deaf community may use Indian Sign Language in

conjunction with a household sign language. The majority of urban Deaf communities use

dialects of ISL that are so varied that they would not be understood in other urban areas (The

Joshua Project 2012)

The Deaf in India are limited by social norms that are influenced greatly by religion.

These social norms inhibit their ability learn a common language. This is very important because

language is largely affected by culture and is crucial for people to be able to interact within a

community.

Language and culture avery very intertwined, changes to one will almost always affect

the other. Language is a doorway to culture. It allows people to have a commonality upon which

they create a set of value and beliefs which lead to social norms. However, an existing culture

can restrict the growth of a new culture or subculture. A subculture is a smaller culture that exists

alongside a larger culture of a region. They are distinct from the large culture but may share
Effects of Culture on Deaf Communities
13

values and beliefs (Encyclopedia, 1998). Many Deaf communities form a subculture commonly

called Deaf Culture. Language is vital in order for Deaf culture to thrive. This is because without

a common sign language they would not be able to communicate with ease.

The Deaf community is not a community of people with a disability they are community

of people who are in a linguistic minority similar to a community of Spanish speaking people. In

fact, a majority of Deaf people in the United Kingdom consider British Sign Language their first

language and English their second. (Butler, R., McNamee, S., Skeleton, T., & Valentine, G.

2001). Their culture is a reflection of their language and this is clear when their social norms are

observed. For example, many establishments for the Deaf are built with large hallways and

walkways so that people can walk side-by-side because they use a visual language and would not

be able to communicate walking in a single file line. Having a language that was consistent

across a country allowed Deaf people to build a nationwide social network in which they

developed a rich culture.

Interaction on a national and global level usually takes two forms, social interaction and

political interaction. While there is some political interaction for Deaf people on a global scale,

most people interact within social groups. The recent rise in technology has made it easier for

Deaf people to interact in national and global communities. Technologies such as video chats

allow people to communicate in sign on telephones and computers. And social networks allow

people to interact using written language. Technology is especially important for larger countries

like China and the United States where it is much more difficult for people to meet and interact

with each other on a national level because of distance. However, if there is no common

language sign language it makes the interactions more difficult, forcing them to use a form of
Effects of Culture on Deaf Communities
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written communication. The lack of a common language can limit the amount of social

interactions in communities around the world regardless of hearing ability.

Many subcultures take action politically through protests and petitions. They dont hold

public office because it is difficult to gain enough voters to elect a person who represents a

subculture. Government officials are often expected to be fluent in the the language of the

country where they are working. While Deaf people are usually bilingual in the common written

language and some form of sign language, they would still need an interpreter and other

resources to be able to hold office effectively (Butler, R., McNamee, S., Skeleton, T., &

Valentine, G. 2001).

When the culture of a region is open to civil society and does not restrict the ability for

the Deaf to form thriving communities with a common language, Deaf people have the

opportunity to interact within a national community. There are many instances where the Deaf

communities have taken advantage of the open civil society in their country and have become

involved. In Canada in 1988, the Deaf communities staged a large scale protest movement across

all 14 provinces. They were protesting the Deaf education system in their country (Smith, M. E.,

& Campbell, P, 1997). The Deaf people in Canada were able to be a part of their national

communities in a meaningful ways. They were able to do this because of the open civil society in

this region and their common language. In Canada the Deaf communities use American Sign

Language(ASL) or la Langue des Signes Quebecoise (LSQ). LSQ is sign language that is used in

Quebec but the majority of Canadian Deaf use ASL (CAD. n.d.). These things in combination

allowed them to interact politically on a national level.

1988 was a big year for political movements in the Deaf communities. In the United

States the students of Gallaudet University staged a protest that took the nation by surprise. The
Effects of Culture on Deaf Communities
15

students were protesting the appointment of a hearing president for the Deaf University. The

students rallied for a Deaf president and staged protests on the campus even going as far as

camping on the lawn (University, G. n.d.). The movement at Gallaudet sparked national interest

because the hearing community never thought that the Deaf community could or would rise up to

protest for what they believe in (Hott, L., & Garey, D. 2007). Since then the Deaf community in

the United States has been very active in politics usually in their local communities. These

movements happen all over the country and are a part of a movement called the Deaf Grassroots

Movement (DGM). DGM encourages the Deaf communities to congregate at their local places of

legislature twice a year to show their politicians that the Deaf still have needs that need to be met

and that they will not stand by and let their rights be violated (Burdiss, C. 2016, April 15).

The Constitution of the United States protects the rights of all people which allows them

to have and participate in these social movements that evolve from participation in civil society.

In countries that limit civil society such as China and Russia it is harder to participate in the

national community on a political level. When civil society is limited is harder for subcultures to

thrive because of the restrictions placed on the community. Linguistic minorities such as the

Deaf have it much harder where there is limited civil society because there is less chance for

them to interact using their first language and form a community. The director of the European

Union of the Deaf, Mark Wheatley, has made several claims that when sign language is not

recognized on a national level it creates many barriers for them and ultimately restricts their

human rights. He also is pushing for a standardization of sign language across Europe so that

Deaf people in Europe will be able to move freely throughout the continent without barriers

(Hay, D. 2016)
Effects of Culture on Deaf Communities
16

Interaction on a global community is difficult for hearing people and is even harder for

Deaf people. There are several reasons for this including distance and the large scale nature of

the global community. However, these factors have become far less limiting in recent years with

the rise of technology such as translator devices. The lack of common languages in Deaf

communities makes many of these technologies obsolete. Translator technologies work for

written language and can be useful for conversations that are between a few people but holding a

large scale gathering on a global level using mainly written text is not practical. There are no

translator tools for sign languages because of the vast numbers of sign languages that exist thus

making large scale meetings for Deaf people difficult.

While it is difficult to hold meetings on a global scale it is not impossible. There are a

few organizations that represent Deaf people on a global level. The European Union of the Deaf

represents Deaf people on a European level and there are many Deaf people that have leadership

roles in this organization. There is also an organization called the World Federation of the Deaf

that represents Deaf people on a global scale. Both of these organizations work to ensure that the

rights of Deaf people are not violated. Many of the Deaf people who participate in these

organizations do so as a career and were able to become involved in these organizations because

of the good language skills that they were able to develop.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the social norms of a society can negatively impact the ability of Deaf

people to interact with each other on national and global levels. The biggest impact that social
Effects of Culture on Deaf Communities
17

norms can have is on language learning. Having a common language is essential in order for

people to interact in large communities. When a language is restricted by social norms it has

many negative effects on the Deaf communities. It may lead to the formation of several different

sign languages which makes interaction without written language nearly impossible, thus

separating the Deaf communities from not only the hearing world but each other. This is the case

in India and it was happening in the United States prior to the civil rights movement. The level

of restriction on civil society that is present in a country directly affects the amount of political

interaction the Deaf communities have on a national level. Political interaction on a global level

is more difficult because of the lack of a lingua franca for sign language thus more interpreters

are needed. The culture of a region affects the ability of Deaf people to interact in national and

global communities by affecting their ability to learn a language.

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Effects of Culture on Deaf Communities
18

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