NAD, only for the oppressed?

Is NAD (National Association of the Deaf) only for deaf people who suffered and were oppressed against?

Are you unqualified because you might not have suffered or experienced oppression as a deaf person?

That is what I was told by a deaf gay man. To begin with I thought it was a laughable notion until I realized how serious this man was and that he really believed it.  And then I realized something.  It's the root of a culprit within the big D society.  This man actually believed it and he was so disappointed with his own life.  He's like many unhappy and disappointed big D people I knew.... always busy whining about how they have suffered and experienced oppression in a horrible way.  Read below and see what I just learned from this deaf gay man who wanted to ask me these questions directly.

*quoting this man*

Do you remember there were times when you went online and watched a video and then find out that the video isn't captioned?

Do you remember the time when you looked at the facial expression of a hearing employer, knowing that they're not interested in you?

Do you remember the time you were bullied because you were Deaf? 

Do you remember the time where your parents don't sign or encouraged you to use your speech?

Do you remember the time when your hearing family members left you out of their conversation?

Do you remember the time that Deaf people couldn't get married?

We, as a Deaf people, sometimes take things for granted. We forgot what it means to be Deaf. We forgot what it meant to be discriminated. We forgot what it meant to be oppressed. We forgot what it meant to be a minority. To this day, we are still struggling for our rightful place in our society. 

*end quote*

I told him I honestly did not remember this kind of life. I told him I grew up having weekly captioned films in my own home.  Told him I never applied for a job because at age 18 I went straight into corporate world and made a name for myself. I told him I was never bullied. I grew up in a big deaf family so signing were everywhere. Told him I never felt left out.  Told him deaf people could always marry and that my seven generations of deaf family were all married to deaf spouses.  Told him as I  grew up I've never felt oppressed by anybody.  Told him that it probably had to do with one's attitude and that I thought I probably had the right attitude. I told him I was sorry if he had a different experience.

His response was, "It was not because you had the right attitude. It seems like you have never experienced oppression, discrimination, rejection and bullying. That explains everything. You are unfit to understand the minority and the oppressed.  

I replied and told him that was precisely my point.  Not every deaf person experienced oppression. Not every deaf person have exactly the same struggles therefore I asked him not to speak for me or others.  I suggested that he speak for himself. Otherwise he would be a fool.

He replied and said, "Fool... I am going to show you who's the fool.  You just proved my point. Just  because you have never experience such struggles, does not give you the place to say that NAD is wrong for endorsing to end the injustice, struggle, and oppression. Sir, this is called ignorance. I am through with you."

I replied and told him that NAD was not only restricted to those who suffered, struggled and were oppressed against.  I asked him to show me a statement where NAD might have said that the organization was only for those who suffered, struggled and were oppressed against.  And I repeated my point that not every deaf person suffered.  I suggested that he learn to speak for himself and respect others who might have a completely different journey and perhaps learn how one could lead a productive and happy life as I have.  

But no, he was not interested in hearing successful stories. He was not interested in learning about some of the happy and productive deaf people out there in this world.  He did not want the recipe for success I had offered. He was only interested in unsuccessful stories.  He was actively pursuing recipes from those who suffered and failed.  His energy feeds off negativity because his lifehood and deafhood depended on it. Negativity seem to validate his inferior esteem.

After having this conversation with him I gained a better understanding of what was wrong with the big D society.  They're not interested in successful stories because it offends them greatly.  They only want to hear about those who didn't have a good life in order to feel validated.  I thought it was rather interesting.  It gave me something to think about.  

Is NAD strictly for those who suffered and those who were oppressed against?  If so, I apologize. I had a completely different view of NAD. I saw it as a a place for all deaf people who could share their experience, the good and the bad, including unsuccessful and successful stories.  Why reject successful and happy deaf people who did not suffer in this world?  Don't they see these happy and successful stories as an asset to the deaf community so that deaf people are able to learn from them?  Is it a sin to say I've had a great life as a deaf person?  Is it a sin to live and tell about it?

Apparently it is the ultimate sin as far as the culturally and linguistically big D deaf people are concerned.  Could it be the reason why they are not winning very many battles?  Is it why their world's becoming rapidly small and smaller?  Are they the reason why young deaf people are not engaging themselves into the deaf community?  What made these 'desperate and angry' big 'D' people think that deaf youths would find them interesting and appealing if they didn't host a wealth of successful and happy deaf people.

Ever heard of this saying... "you are who you hang out with"?  What will happen to you if you constantly hang around out with angry deaf people who felt  that they have suffered and were oppressed against? Sooner or later you'll begin to sound like them and eventually, you'll be one of them.  Not kidding you here.   And that's what happened to National Association of the Deaf.  There seem to be no shortage of negativity in this organization.  They seem to lack positive and successful role models because they were chewed out for saying they didn't suffer or were not oppressed against.  

In short, NAD has been infested and is desperately in need of being disinfected.

I want to take few moments to thank this deaf gay man for giving me a new insight on this matter.

Thank you GLBT, our Trojan Horse!

In my recent blog post titled "Dear NADQ (National Association of the Deaf Queers)" I began to realize something quite essential.  The Trojan Horse has invaded NAD!  Much to our surprise this Trojan Horse was filled with GLBT warriors. I'm not kidding you here. The GLBT has invaded NAD (National Association of the Deaf) and applied enough pressure and changed their long held course.  NAD's former course used to for and about deaf people.  But now, thanks to GLBT warriors and their Trojan Horse, they have managed to seize NAD and possibly permanently altered their course.  There might be no opportunity for them to reverse their course unless they quickly take corrective action by publicly recognize every deaf minorities including deaf Christians, deaf Muslims, deaf Islamists, deaf Blacks, deaf Women, deaf Hispanics, deaf Native Americans and every other deaf minorities.  And yes, they should also recognize minority deaf Buckaroo like me.  You know, we got our own lifestyle as well as culture and language as well.

But in all honesty I sincerely hope that NAD does not correct itself.  Most deaf people I know do not recognize or appreciate NAD. Most of them do not see NAD as a representative body.  Many see NAD as nothing more than a small group of Deaf elitists.  It would not be a major loss to us if GLBT seized NAD and controlled their affairs from this point and forward.  GLBT would be doing us, deaf people in general a huge favor.  We would be free of NAD oppression.  We would no longer be of an interest to NAD because we're not queers. For those who tries to be a queer, be aware... you might not be queer enough.  Believe me, NAD has done this to millions of deaf people who were not culturally and linguistically deaf enough. They were not the big "D".  In essence it would not surprise me if they start a new 'not queer enough' saga.  It would be the least concern of mine but they've done this before.

I look forward to the day when GLBT controlled NAD are going to dismiss us (straight deaf and Deaf people as well as d/Deaf Christians) because we're not queers or because we're not queer enough.  That'd be the day... the day of our liberty... the day when we would no longer be oppressed by NAD's false representation.  Not kidding you here. I can see this happening, really.

Back to the point of this blog... I'm having second thoughts.  I think that this GLBT Trojan Horse is probably the best thing that has ever happened to deaf people in general who have been snubbed by NAD. They're doing us a huge favor.  They've infiltrated NAD and turned them into something more... something else that has nothing to do with our deafness.  Who would have thought of mixing our national deaf organization with our sex lives and/or sexual lifestyle.  That's really creative, just like the Trojan Horse. I'm so impressed. Just brilliant! In all honesty I could see myself rallying behind this GLBT Trojan Horse pretty soon, if not already.

For those who have low opinion of National Association of the Deaf, kindly take your hats off and bow towards GLBT community.  We give them our blessings.

(Disclaimer: This blog is not humor-based. There is no humor in this.)

Dear NADQ (National Association of the Deaf Queers)

Dear NADQ (National Association of the Deaf Queers),

I apologize for my tardiness in the coming but I was able to catch a whiff of what has just developed over at NAD on the subject of queer deaf people.  I thought it was rather interesting because I didn't know that NAD had a vested interest in people's sex lives or people's sexual lifestyles.  I've read some of the pro-active queer advocates who wrote letters to NAD, encouraging them to recognize and support their sexual lifestyles.  I read them with an open mind and heart but I could not connect the two.  The logic was simply not there.

I'm not sexist. I do not discriminate against those who prefers a different sexual lifestyle.  The choice is theirs but does that mean I have to be a conformist and approve their lifestyle?  No, it does not. I can disapprove their lifestyle but yet respect their choices.  I see queer people's desperate effort to confuse the two. If you don't approve their lifestyle then you're a sexist...  if you don't approve then you hate them... if you don't approve then you are against them.  This is far from the truth.  I don't hate them and I do not disrespect them.  It's just that I do not agree with practices of sodomity.  So, kindly do yourself a favor and don't take my comments out of context.

By recognizing deaf queers NAD has just invited quagmire and basically dug their own grave.  Allow me to explain why.  When we were born, we came in the form of human beings before we were anything else.  This much is assured.  It mattered very little whether we were males or females. When a new human being is being born, there was a great cause for celebration. And then human nature would kick in and we'd become piqued about the sex of the baby.  Male?  Female?  It was no longer sufficient being a simple human being. People's quest for power would kick in almost instantly and seek baby's second identity, that of male or female.  This is done for the sake of power hungry society.  Although their initial intentions might be good but it actually pits down the female as the less superior being and the male as the superior being. Worse yet, it became some kind of 'male over female' tradition. That is where and how we have shamed ourselves and our beings. Later on in life we begin to feel insufficient and powerless with our original identity as a human being and then we begin to feel insufficient and powerless with our second identity as a male or a female.  So, what do we do next?

People would begin to seek their third and fourth identities in search for greater power that would make them something more than the rest of human beings. It was no longer sufficient or satisfactory being a simple human beings and no longer sufficient being a simple male or a female.  That's where deaf identity kicks in for some people who could not hear.  Aha... now they believed that they were something special and that it would separate them from the rest of human beings. They formed advocacy based organizations to protect their civil rights as deaf people as if they lacked their first and basic rights as human beings.  Remember, they didn't feel that being 'human beings' were satisfactory enough. And then they didn't feel that being a male or female were satisfactory enough.  They staked a claim on "deafness" and called themselves "deaf", as in their third identity because they wanted something more. They saw it as a form of 'new power' that was up for grabs.  Now that they have three identities, what next?

They develop their skills and talents.  They get their education and then they become specialists and professionals in their own rights.  Let's say this 'power hungry' human being turned into a female being, turned into a deaf person became a teacher.  She is now a teacher and prefers to be seen as teacher because it represented greater 'status' in the society.  Such notion lead people to think and believe that a simple human being is now a lesser being.  It also lead people to think and believe that male and female beings are also lesser beings.  It also lead us to our quest for deaf identity when we were younger.  But it didn't stop there.  We became culturally and linguistically Deaf people who think and believe that being a simple deaf person is a lesser being. And yet this pursuit and hunger for greater status and power does not end there.

That is when, where and how we've become destructive and done more harm than good for our beings.  It's becoming a competitive world where dogs would begin to eat dogs. You see a lot of this in the deaf community these days.

This begs the question.  How far do we really want to go with our never-ending hunger for greater status and power?  NAD was never about anything else but civil rights of deaf people. It has nothing to do with their race, age, gender or sexual lifestyle. Not long ago I could walk into NAD if I choose to and participate just because I was deaf.  That would have sufficed.  It may not be sufficient today.  I almost have to be culturally and linguistically Deaf.  NAD hosts this mentality that it's better to be culturally and linguistically Deaf. Otherwise you are not deaf enough. This brings me to the underlying point... the term 'deaf' is now seen as a lesser being than 'Deaf'.  In this power-hungry society one has to be something more than the rest of the crowd. So what comes next after being culturally and linguistically Deaf?  Deaf Queers!  The birth of Deaf Queers made possible by NAD.

NAD's message is, Deaf Queers are something even more special.  Pretty soon, if not already, Deaf people in general will be seen and noted as a lesser beings due to influx of new identity, that of Deaf Queers. Oh, how special they are. All the more power to them. Congratulations. Apologies to Deaf people in general but you are no longer special.  No longer the focus of NAD because your sexual lifestyle do not promote or practice sodomity. If you wish to be recognized and respected in a special way by NAD then you need to reconsider your sexual lifestyle.  

Am I supposed to walk into NAD and say I'm a Deaf (culturally and linguistically deaf) Great Basin Buckaroo? Does that give me a greater power and footing within NAD?  Does that give me a greater status than the rest of the Deaf, deaf people and Deaf Queers?  How many Deaf Great Basin Buckaroo are out there?  None according to my knowledge.  That makes me extremely special!  Even more special than Queer deaf people. I believe I deserve the recognition from NAD for being the only Deaf Great Basin Buckaroo in this nation.  I deserve the civil rights protection as a Deaf Great Basin Buckaroo and I demand it now.  Recognize me!

I mean, where does it end?  Is it not sufficient to say we are human beings first before we're anything else?  Is it not enough to recognize ourselves as deaf people whether we've been culturally and linguistically raised?  Why do we continue to marginalize ourselves as Human Beings?  Why do we marginalize deaf organization and reject deaf people that were not linguistically and culturally Deaf?  And especially now, why are marginalizing Deaf people in favor of Deaf Queers? I mean, what does NAD have to do with Deaf people's sex lives?

In short, everybody's world just became smaller.  It will become even smaller when the Deaf Queers begin to find it unsatisfying with their so-called "queer" identity. What identity will they seek next?  It won't matter because whatever they decide to do they are going to continue to marginalize themselves.  This is a recipe for self destruction.

And NAD did not see this coming?  Pretty soon, if not already, NAD is turning into NADQ.  Who knows what the future has in store for them. All the more reason for me not to join and become a member. I know I won't be treated fairly there because I'm not queer. Heck they may even start "not queer enough" saga in the future.  This whole thing is so unfortunate.  We lost NAD when they meddled with Deaf people's sex lives.  I just don't see what our ears, our deafness, our deaf culture and language might have to do with our sex lives.  This is beyond stupidity.  No pun intended.