Audism & Discrimination
Audism is "The notion that one is superior based on one's ability to hear or to behave in the manner of one who hears" (Harrington, 2002). Harlan Lane further describes it as “the hearing way of dominating, restructuring, and exercising authority over the deaf community” (Harrington, 2002).
The built environment is yet one more arena in which Deaf people must adapt to the customs and preferences of hearing people. CAD states, “Non-Deaf people authorize building codes, architectural standards, and safety rules that decide whether visual alarms and ‘Deaf-friendly’ building structural standards will be provided to Deaf people. Deaf people are not allowed the same power to make or influence decisions concerning their own lives that non-Deaf people routinely enjoy” ("Audism", 2012).
It is time for the Deaf community to have control over their own spaces. Visual alarms and doorbells are basic necessities that should be provided hassle-free to Deaf tenants in their homes.
Other spaces that are regularly used by Deaf people should go much further. As an example, I would like to consider George Brown College. According to its own website, “George Brown College has a 35-year history of serving students with a hearing loss” (“Services for Deaf and Hard of Hearing Students,” n.d.). In addition to the Upgrading Program and the provision of interpreters and notetakers for students in non-ASL classrooms, George Brown is also home to the ASL & Deaf Studies Program (ADSP) and the three-year ASL-English Interpreter Program (AEIP), soon to become a B.A. program.
Yet as any student in ADSP or AEIP can tell you, our classrooms are anything but Deaf-friendly. Almost every class begins with the rearranging of furniture into something approximating a circle so that everyone has the unblocked sight lines necessary to communicate effectively in ASL. Because the classrooms are either angular, cluttered, or have massive pillars in awkward places, this rearranging is far from an ideal or even adequate solution.
It seems ridiculous to me that there are not dedicated classrooms for programs that attract such a large number of students. At the very least, ASL-users should be able to enter a classroom without having to adjust the seating arrangements. With the prestige and added students - and therefore additional funds - that the B.A. program will bring, I certainly hope the College will rethink this situation.
With dozens of programs, it may be the College’s position that there is simply not enough space for dedicated classrooms. While I don’t believe this to be an acceptable response, if there truly aren’t enough classrooms at the present time then surely these classrooms could be shared with other programs or classes that also make use of conversation circles. I’ve walked past many rooms, typically holding Community Worker and Social Services classes, where the students and instructors have arranged themselves into circles. As proponents of DeafSpace have pointed out, better-designed environments benefit everyone. “This isn’t about accommodating,” LLHR6 architect David Lewis says. “It’s actually about using the deaf experience as a challenge to make better space. Not simply for the deaf, but for all” (Stinson, 2013).
The built environment is yet one more arena in which Deaf people must adapt to the customs and preferences of hearing people. CAD states, “Non-Deaf people authorize building codes, architectural standards, and safety rules that decide whether visual alarms and ‘Deaf-friendly’ building structural standards will be provided to Deaf people. Deaf people are not allowed the same power to make or influence decisions concerning their own lives that non-Deaf people routinely enjoy” ("Audism", 2012).
It is time for the Deaf community to have control over their own spaces. Visual alarms and doorbells are basic necessities that should be provided hassle-free to Deaf tenants in their homes.
Other spaces that are regularly used by Deaf people should go much further. As an example, I would like to consider George Brown College. According to its own website, “George Brown College has a 35-year history of serving students with a hearing loss” (“Services for Deaf and Hard of Hearing Students,” n.d.). In addition to the Upgrading Program and the provision of interpreters and notetakers for students in non-ASL classrooms, George Brown is also home to the ASL & Deaf Studies Program (ADSP) and the three-year ASL-English Interpreter Program (AEIP), soon to become a B.A. program.
Yet as any student in ADSP or AEIP can tell you, our classrooms are anything but Deaf-friendly. Almost every class begins with the rearranging of furniture into something approximating a circle so that everyone has the unblocked sight lines necessary to communicate effectively in ASL. Because the classrooms are either angular, cluttered, or have massive pillars in awkward places, this rearranging is far from an ideal or even adequate solution.
It seems ridiculous to me that there are not dedicated classrooms for programs that attract such a large number of students. At the very least, ASL-users should be able to enter a classroom without having to adjust the seating arrangements. With the prestige and added students - and therefore additional funds - that the B.A. program will bring, I certainly hope the College will rethink this situation.
With dozens of programs, it may be the College’s position that there is simply not enough space for dedicated classrooms. While I don’t believe this to be an acceptable response, if there truly aren’t enough classrooms at the present time then surely these classrooms could be shared with other programs or classes that also make use of conversation circles. I’ve walked past many rooms, typically holding Community Worker and Social Services classes, where the students and instructors have arranged themselves into circles. As proponents of DeafSpace have pointed out, better-designed environments benefit everyone. “This isn’t about accommodating,” LLHR6 architect David Lewis says. “It’s actually about using the deaf experience as a challenge to make better space. Not simply for the deaf, but for all” (Stinson, 2013).