[JE] Hello I'm Jenna... [JI] ...and I'm Jill.
[JE] This is ASL Stew! (hand slap)
(♪ funky electronic ♪)
[JI] So, today we're going to be talking about
what is the difference between D/deaf or hard of hearing?
Is there a difference?
If there is, what is the line between them?
First we want to give you the medical part.
Is there a medical difference between D/deaf and hard of hearing?
Really.... yes, kind of.
To be labeled deaf, d-e-a-f, with a small "d",
that means you are profound...excuse me... profoundly deaf.
You have a profound hearing loss,
meaning 90 db or above.
Anything less, there's different labels like
mild... severe, mild, or low.
So anything under 90 decibels, from 0 to 90,
is hard of hearing if you have a hearing loss.
Above 90 decibels mean that you are deaf, d-e-a-f, with a small "d".
Really that's the line between hard of hearing and deaf.
However....
[JE] Now, like she mentioned that's the medical perspective,
which is great and all,
but there is another perspective, which is the cultural perspective, or an identity.
So in the cultural, that line is kind of blurred
and there is some overlap.
There are some people who may use the medical point and say they are hard of hearing
but they might still have a strong cultural identity of being Deaf.
They're within the Deaf culture, the community,
they use ASL and they feel strongly about that.
There's some people within the community that still call themselves hard of hearing.
Maybe they have the ability to speak or use the phone or whatever.
So they say "I'm hard of hearing" for whatever reason.
That's what they feel comfortable with in their identity.
Maybe they feel both.
"I'm within the Deaf community but
I'm in the hearing world as well.
So I'm hard of hearing. I can switch back and forth."
Which is perfectly fine!
There are some people who are strongly Deaf saying,
"I am Deaf. I'm proud of being Deaf.
I have a very strong cultural identity."
So there's a lot of variety
and none of those are wrong.
It's all about who you are as an individual
and where you feel you belong in your identity and what fits you.
That's great, sure!
Whatever makes you happy.
Some people want to be considered both.
"Yeah, technically I'm hard of hearing
but I'm Deaf too." That might have different meanings.
But they still feel like they're both, and you can do that.
Or some people don't identify with either of those
and they identify with something else. So you never know.
Maybe for example, they're Deafblind
or they can say "No I'm not D/deaf or hard of hearing, I'm hearing",
and that's OK too.
Be respectful of whatever they want.
There's no right or wrong.
As long as you feel comfortable and what matches your identity.
[JI] Right, whatever the medical viewpoint is...
really if you're discussing cultural, it doesn't matter.
If I meet you and you say "I'm D/deaf",
you can't assume they're 90 decibels or above deaf.
Or, "I'm hard of hearing".
Maybe they're actually 90 decibels or above
but they consider themselves hard of hearing. You don't know.
But like I'm saying, the medical perspective really isn't important unless I guess for...
I don't know. I don't know what reason it's important.
[JE] I guess the only reason is if you want to get hearing aids
or something like that, then yes it's important for your audiogram.
But that's about it.
[JI] Right
Really, when you meet a person don't assume anything.
If they can speak for themselves or hear a little bit,
don't assume they're hard of hearing. Maybe they're not.
Or if they don't use hearing aids or don't speak for themselves,
don't assume that they're D/deaf.
They may be hard of hearing.
Really it's up to them and how they identify themselves.
Their identity might change over time.
Identities are fluid.
So maybe you start by saying, "I'm hard of hearing",
or you start saying "I'm Deaf"
and then later "actually I'm hard of hearing".
You never know where your journey is going to be.
So just be respectful of people and their identity.
[JE] Right!
[JI] So, now you know the definition of D/deaf or hard of hearing
has a medical and a cultural perspective!
So, hopefully you enjoyed this video.
If you are D/deaf or hard of hearing,
how do you identify yourself?
Do you identify yourself as D/deaf, hard of hearing...
you don't care... let us know!
Leave it in a comment below.
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It helps us to continue doing this.
[JI] We'll see you in the next video. Bye!
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