Attitudes in Stereotyping Behaviors

Sorry I've not been back in while - so much going on.

Why is it that parents or other people experience stereotypical behavior based on one experience? I guess we forget that we're human, despite our differences. As humans, we make mistakes, learn from them, do better or worst eventually.

Adult stereotyping behaviors hurt children more than benefit them. We have seen that through racial discrimination behavior for over 200 years, we still have some stereotypical behavior going on, depending on where we live. We also have seen that through hearing people's oppression on deaf people's lives (again generalizing, there's also the Crab Theory). Only recently in the history of Europe and America, the freedom of the people who are black, deaf, ethnic or with disabilities have increased.

I was recently informed that two families who attended the Christmas Party that a local Deaf Club hosted, refused to participate in future activities geared for deaf and hearing children using ASL because of that one experience. Pretty much some mistakes were made, which we learned from; however, is the attitude necessary? Are the parents thinking of only themselves and their experience with the deaf community that their children will not be able to have the opportunity to experience two cultures and two languages anywhere and anytime.

As through out the postings, you know I'm deaf. As a deaf person who knows that I'm only human, there are occasional stereotypical attitudes that I may hold against hearing people; however, I would have to try hard to remember that not everyone is the same, nor should I expect them to be the same. Why cannot hearing people hold that attitude towards those in the minority status?

This Christmas party was our first time we've ever hosted and we wanted to go all out to reach the parents. Not a bad idea, is it? It could be a wrong timing for some activities planned, it takes us as a human to admit that occasionally we're liable to make decisions for the best of others, not ourselves. The event gave us an opportunity to look at what we could change for the future Christmas parties for children, the question is, will those whom participated in this event ever change their mind and think of their children? Maybe, maybe not.

I guess in my stereotypical perspective as a deaf person born and raised and loves all of her hearing members of the family (my side of the family are all hearing), people who limit or place a barrier in place for their persons with disabilities or of ethnic nationality really prevents those who are 'different' from them from experiencing the world as the world as it is. Barriers will limit the capacity of anyone from becoming well aware of how diverse the world is.

If an organization hosted the same type of party - let's say the organization's members are all hearing and they happened to have deaf people attend the event, the only problem - no interpreter! Mon dieu! There are many options that deaf people can do to ensure that they have equal access to the party as any other participant: do nothing about it, bring an interpreter with them, or ask the organization if they would be willing to provide an interpreter. The third option is really almost never acceptable for an organization (generalizing) because of the cost. Some deaf folks may never come back; however, what happens if the next party (same type) was hosted and the organization decided to provide an interpreter? You would still not go because of your last experience with the organization?

If you refuse to go, what kind of message is that for the organization, that both parties won't work together? The same applies to the deaf party and the hearing participants in the party - again we forget, who is losing all the benefits of the real world, the interaction between two communities composed of different cultural and lingual characteristics and behaviors performed by both groups. Not only that, the opportunity for discussion, feedback and information exchange, who loses all that benefit of the real world? Our children.

I am upset with those type of people than I am with my family members who occasionally have cause for embarrassment. The reason is that my family is diverse than most people will think of and yet the people outside of my family will shun the deaf community just because we happen to overdo something that we really believed in - something that not only benefits the children, but the parents or the people who participated in this particular event.

Yes, we're deaf (or of ethnic and disability, linguistic/cultural, etc), yet we're human. I guess that message has yet to be drilled into the minds of those who still have the sense of majority in this world. What we do now as diverse humans will impact our children presently and in the future.

Are we willing to take a step forward, make the world a better place, accept diversity over stereotypical attitudes and forge our children's lives to be better than ours? Up to the challenge?