SW 3200: Cultural Diversity: Deaf Culture

Children's literature provides the opportunity for children to see both representations of themselves and of others in print and in pictures. Not only can engaging with picture books develop key literacy and language skills and a love of reading, but reading (and/or being read) high quality books also has the potential to foster an appreciation and respect for oneself and others

The purpose of the study was threefold: (a) to examine how the visual media have portrayed the subject of music and the deaf, (b) to verify the validity of these portrayals with members of the deaf community, and (c) to compare and contrast deaf and hearing audiences' impressions of these portrayals. An additional purpose of the research was to examine the results in light of possible misconceptions that may be construed by music therapists and music educators based upon the media's representation of the relationship between music and deaf culture

Position Statement On Portrayal Of Deaf And Hard Of Hearing People In Television, Film, And Theater
The National Association of the Deaf (NAD) recognizes that portrayals of deaf and hard of hearing people in film, television, and theater have a significant impact on the public image of our community. There is no shortage of professional deaf and hard of hearing actors to fill these roles.

The National Association of the Deaf (NAD) is the oldest civil rights organization in the country given that it has been in continuous operation since 1880 with the mission of preserving, protecting, and promoting the civil, human and linguistic rights of all deaf and hard of hearing people in the United States

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This tipsheet provides a description of Deaf culture and suggestions for effective communication.

from SignMedia inc.

6/1/2004 to present with a 12 month delay

1/1/2007 to present

Magazine for the deaf community

THROUGH DEAF EYES is a two-hour HDTV documentary that explores 200 years of Deaf life in America. The film includes interviews with prominent members of the Deaf community, including actress Marlee Matlin and Gallaudet University president emeritus I. King Jordan.

Interwoven throughout the film are six short documentaries produced by Deaf media artists and filmmakers. Poignant, sometimes humorous, these commissioned stories bring a personalized sense of Deaf life in America to the film. Through first person accounts and the film as a whole, THROUGH DEAF EYES tells the story of conflicts, prejudice and affirmation that ultimately reaches the heart of what it means to be human.

In 1976, Hubert Smith set out with a group of researchers to visually document Yucatec Maya society within the village of Chican. This project resulted in the 4-part series, The Living Maya. During filming, however, it was impossible to ignore the use of sign language in the village. Smith and his team saw a lot of the deaf residents, filmed them often, and went back to have these sign exchanges translated. Now it is time to share a story solely about them.

What would life be like without language? For too many deaf people raised in rural outposts, access to a sign-language community is denied and they are condemned to a life without words.

Deaf Jam is the story of deaf teen Aneta Brodski's bold journey into the spoken word slam scene. In a wondrous twist, Aneta, an Israeli immigrant living in the Queens section of New York City, eventually meets Tahani, a hearing Palestinian slam poet. The two women embark on a collaboration/performance duet creating a new form of slam poetry that speaks to both the hearing and the Deaf.

With unerring curiousity and sensitivity, director Philbert portrays the difficulties and joys of being deaf, offering vivid portraits of people of all ages coping with and surmounting their challenges.

Making Noise in Silence explores the richness and complexities of Deaf culture from the perspective of two Korean high school students who attend the California School for the Deaf, Fremont. Born and raised in South Korea, Jeongin Mun and Min Wook Cho have strong ties to their Korean heritage and learned Korean as their first language. However, what separates Jeongin and Min Wook from most children of immigrant families is that they are also deaf. When their families moved to the United States, their deafness automatically put them into an entirely separate cultural group with its own language, customs, and history.

from Gallaudet University Library Guide