Audism

Question 1

What is audism?

Answer 1

The notion that one is superior based on one’s ability to hear or behave in the manner of one who hears.

The bias or prejudice of hearing people against deaf people or even some deaf/ hard of hearing people against other deaf people
= leads to ‘d’ + ‘D’ divide

= form of discriminatory behaviour
= based on mentality that to be able to hear + speak is better
= leads to a higher quality fo life, done MOSTLY by hearing people

= reflects the medical view of deafness as a disability that must be fixed
= It is rooted in the historical belief that deaf people were savages without language, equating language to humanity.

Because many Deaf people grew up in hearing families who did not learn to sign, audism may be ingrained. Audists can be either hearing or deaf. This attitude can also be present among Deaf individuals.

Question 2

When was audism coined?

Answer 2

Commonly used and discussed in the USA

Though first coined in 1975 by Tom L Humphries

it was used once by Lane (1992) but revived into regular usage from 2003 by Paddy Ladd

Question 3

examples of audism

Answer 3

1. Jumping in to help a deaf person communicate.
2. Asking a Deaf person to read your lips or write when s/he has indicated this isn’t preferred.
3. Making phone calls for a deaf person since they “can’t.”
4. Refusing to call an interpreter when one is requested.
5. Assuming that those with better speech/English skills are superior.
6. Asking a Deaf person to “tone down” their facial expressions because they are making others uncomfortable.
7. Refusing to explain to a Deaf person why everyone around him is laughing – “never mind, I’ll tell you later, it doesn’t matter.”
8. Devoting a significant amount of instructional time for a Deaf child to lipreading and speech therapy, rather than educational subjects.

Question 4

types of audism

Answer 4

• physical audism
• linguistic audism
• cultural audism
• internalised audism
• dysconscious audism

Question 5

physical audism

Answer 5

• when a deaf person is judged incapable of given behaviour, skill, job, ability or achievement due solely to hearing loss
• Partly a reflection of natural belief by people who can hear in their own superiority
• Physical Audism is partly responsible for higher unemployment rate

Example – Helen Keller’s socialist ideals were criticised stating these were of less value and to be taken less seriously than those of someone who can hear!

Question 6

linguistic audism

Answer 6

• Not as common as Physical Audism, but mainly linked to education
• Discrimination against the use of sign language, i.e. banning of signs at schools, leading to oral education
• Also it can be disparagement or persistent denials that sign languages are scientifically proven to be proper languages

Question 7

cultural audism

Answer 7

• Rejection of the Deaf person as a cultural entity
• It can be criticism against the rights of Deaf people to have a culture as a whole
• Subtle examples is minimisation of Deaf people in history [e.g. Anne Sullivan, Francois Truffaut, Princess Alice of Battenberg, Granville Redmond, etc.]

Question 8

internalised audism

Answer 8

• Discrimination within Deaf community
• Deaf people may discriminate based on what they thought to be “right” behaviour, use of language or social association
• Example is SSE supersedes BSL as it is linked to English, i.e. to the outside world
  “Hearing knows better” mentality

Question 9

dysconscious audism

Answer 9

• Dysconscious is a word that describes how someone thinks
• In this case, it’s when someone has a belief that is so deeply part of them, they may not even recognise it exists
• It is applied by those Deaf people who choose not to use sign language or joining into the Deaf culture or community
• Main reason for this is that they feel themselves to be “better” than those who do use sign language, embrace deaf culture
• Sometimes they form own support groups