Deaf Culture?

I posted a comment under Candy's Blog and thought I'd blog about it as well. Here goes....

Candy's blog offered an interesting read again. I decided to post my thoughts on the subject because of the irony. Last night I was having an interesting ‘cultural’ discussion with members of K’amligihahlhaahl. They're also known as Nisga'a. This Native American tribe is located on the coastal side of British Columbia. They are people of totem poles. They’re one of the most traditional tribe you will run into today, culture-wise. The photo seen here is a wooden mask used by K'amligihahlhaahl.

We talked about culture and the rules that people of ANY culture must follow. In this discussion I made several references to deaf culture. The goal was simple. We wanted to understand the principle of rules behind any kind of culture. A K’amligihahlhaahl woman showed me a book called “From Time Before Memory, The People of K’amligihahlhaahl”. She opened pages 14 and 15 and brought my attention to the rules of ANY culture. Needless to say that the article captured my attention.

It explained about Family and Identity as the primary ingredients and source of a culture. Ones’ identity is developed after he or she becomes actively involved as a member of a group or something. If someone asked who you were you might say “I am Bob” or “I am Kate”. But what if they wanted to know more? You might say, “I like to read. I am a fast runner. I have two sisters. I am honest. I like the color green”. These are all facts about yourself and together they make up your identity.

The book also identified two facts that are always used to identify person's identity. It boiled down to person's "tribe” and “house”. In white man’s layman term it would mean 'group’ and ‘location’, where we were raised. Some of us were raised in the big cities. Some of us were raised in a small town or on a farm out in the country. Therefore the culture of the very location where we were raised will play a role in our identity. Approximately 5% of us were raised in a deaf family therefore the culture of a deaf child of a deaf family will not be the same as a deaf child of a hearing family therefore it is impossible for us to expect ALL of us to share the same ‘deaf culture’ that we hear so much about.

Because we all came from different parts of the nation where there are multiple cultural bases, as in cultures of western folks, traditional tribes, red necks, hilly billies, etc; Everything that we’ve accumulated through the years do play an important role in how our identities are developed. Therefore the folklife of a deaf person will always vary greatly when we compare the two.

The book also pointed out the very basic rules of ‘membership’. It laid out four simple things to follow in order to hold an identity necessary for a cultural value. 1) Family 2) House 3) Tribe (group) 4) Nation (location).

Upon reading these basic rules I could not help it but ponder about deaf culture. Do we all share the same family? No. Do we all share the same house? No. Do we all belong to the same Tribe (group)? No. Do we all belong to the same Nation (location)? No.

Now, why are these things important? The book had an answer and I’ll share them with you. It says, “There are important rules in a society about how members of these groups behave toward each other. They are much like the rules that people of any culture must follow. These rules help a society know how to behave in different situations and during difficult times. They help keep the society strong”.

In short, without these basic rules a society will never be able to reach its prime as a cultural group. This made me think and ponder about Deaf people who love to tout their so-called cultural values on daily basis. Are these people mindful of the basic rules? At this point I have my doubts.

Why? If deaf people really understood the basic principles here they would know how to behave toward each other. They would know how to behave in different situations and during difficult times". I'm seeing an exact opposite of how a culturally based group are supposed to behave. I think I'm beginning to understand why there is a long history of divisive behavior within the deaf community. It may be due to lack of 'rule' laid out by the People of K’amligihahlhaahl.

My life long journey with the Native Americans continues... because I know they have much to teach us.