"Using original sources, A Place of Their Own: Creating the Deaf Community in America" traces the history of deaf people in America. It views deafness not from the perspective of pathology, but of culture, not as a disease or a disability to be overcome, but as the distinguishing characteristic of a distinct community of individuals whose history and achievement are worthy of study. Focusing on the development of the American deaf community during the nineteenth century, "A Place of Their Own" brings history to bear on the reality of deafness and provides fresh and important insight into the lives of deaf Americans." -Back of the Book
I started this book thinking it was something else. I asked my husband about it and he recommended it and, considering the his job as an ASL Interpreter as well as a highly sought after presenter and teacher (for interpreters and ASL classes), so I decided to give it a go. This nonfiction work was quite an eye-opener. I had been aware of several aspects of Deaf History based on my ASL classes in college and my exposure to the Deaf Community as the wife of an interpreter but fully understanding the struggles they went through, and continue to go through, was somewhat surprising.
Many people in American culture view Alexander Graham Bell, the inventor of the telephone, as a great man. Indeed many people discuss in detail how amazing and insightful he was and I can't disagree if we are talking about some pieces of his life. Others, though, I would have to disagree with. Ironically Bell's mother was deaf and he married a deaf woman but he spent a large part of his life (after inventing the telephone - if I remember correctly) working to 'cure' deafness, undermining the community indicating that they were not intelligent enough to hold jobs other than those taught at residential or day schools. He spent time undermining the residential school system in an effort to seclude deaf individuals from others with deafness. When I look at this I can't help but wonder what he was so afraid of.
Like so many other cultures and minorities this book concentrates on their struggles. In many areas of the text they were compared to others who have been attacked with the sole purpose of eradication (Jews) or enslavement (Blacks). An interesting point that the authors pointed out was that unlike other minorities the Deaf would never be able to communicate in the native language of America (English). There are many who are oral (lip read), others who use American Sign Language (ASL), a combination of the two, as well as other methods of communication. But those that lip read only grasp at a low percentage (I think around 20%) of what is being said. Interpreters are used to ensure that the true message and intent is received and given.
This book was so interesting that I was annoyed at how it ended. One of the most successful protests by a minority group (in my opinion) was the Deaf President Now! protest/rally at Gallaudet University in Washington D.C. The university was over 100 years old, the only Deaf school of Higher Education in America (and the world?) yet it never had a deaf president. The students, faculty, and staff expressed their desire for a Deaf President but their request was ignored and a hearing woman with NO experience with the Deaf Community was hired. The protesters closed campus and refused to attend class, allow others on campus, etc. until their demands were met. Eventually they were and a Deaf president was hired (I. King Jordan). The reason I was annoyed by the ending is that it was so abrupt. They only gave a small preview of the rally and didn't talk to anything else that was going on at the time (late 1980s). The first printing was 1989 which explains a bit but the fifth printing was 1998...I mean seriously...couldn't they update the text? Give us more information?
This book is great if you are interested in history, minorities, pathology, Deaf Culture, America, American Universities, education etc. It addressed everything from some of the methods used to cure deafness (including puncturing the eardrum with a needle!), educating those that are deaf, creating a purely deaf State, organizations, American Sign Language (both the inception and the attack), the attempt to bar Deaf people from marrying other Deaf or at all, employment, and the brief view of the Deaf President Now! rally. I will definitely be reading more on this topic. I promise you'll be surprised at what you learn!
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