Meeting the Deaf*

LIFE LESSONS

Meeting the Deaf*

A Partial Memoir, A Brief History and a Personal Invitation

Alta Johnson

*”Deaf” with a capital “D” was adopted by many in this people group as a cultural indicator of acceptance and honor and is used regardless of level of hearing loss. To distinguish between the culture of being “Deaf” from the label “deaf” as in hearing loss, the word is often capitalized.

“Mom, how are you always able to meet deaf people everywhere you go?” my son asked after we’d met a sweet young woman who bagged our groceries at the local Mariano’s. I honestly don’t know. It’s something God has prepared me for over decades, although I didn’t always realize or appreciate it. But my son is right. I have met people from this overlooked and unreached people group in every job I’ve held from an EMT in the emergency room to packing brown trucks at UPS to a nanny in Hong Kong. I meet them in Walmart, Chick-Fil-A and Target, at auto and RV shows, at museums or while traveling. I was even privileged to have deaf neighbors for many years at our most recent house in Wheaton. Of course, you meet them too, but you may not know it or know how to respond when you do. Continue reading and join me on this fascinating journey.

WHO ARE THE DEAF AND WHY ARE THEY CONSIDERED UNREACHED? You may have seen sign language interpreters next to state governors on TV during the COVID-19 pandemic or heard about the Academy Awards given to deaf actors. Marvel had included deaf characters in recent movies and the New York Times has featured articles on Deaf people recently. Who are the Deaf and where are they? Deafness is considered a "low-incidence disability" so it's rare to find groups of deaf in one family or community. You have pass them on the street and not realize it. However, if deaf people were gathered in one geographical area, they would be considered one of the least-reached people groups in the world for the gospel.

FAMILY

Often a deaf person has hearing parents and hearing children. This leads to unique challenges, including isolation from one’s family and community. Understandably, this can have devastating consequences.

Statistics show that 90 percent of deaf children are born into hearing families. And, perhaps from shock, a feeling of being overwhelmed, poor guidance or disinterest, a mind-boggling 90 percent of those families don’t learn sign language to communicate with these children. Many deaf people never have a meaningful conversation with a parent. If a deaf person has a deaf mother and father, they are considered lucky by other deaf people. Why? Deaf children who are born to deaf parents are given immediate acceptance and access to language.

SCHOOL AND CHURCH

In the first part of the 20th century, American deaf children were often sent to residential schools where they lived away from their families, but with other children and adults who communicated like them. These schools functioned like surrogate families and became a vital part of the rich culture of American deaf people, and American Sign Language flourished.

Within those schools, attending a chapel service on the weekend was often required so some of these students received a type of religious instruction. Beyond the reach of the deaf schools, however, typically no interpretation or instruction was provided in churches until the late 20th century. In fact, there is much evidence that deaf people were regarded as cursed and something to be ignored or fixed. Collectively, culturally Deaf people think of church as distasteful or irrelevant and are proud of being nonreligious, according to a post, “Deaf: An Unreached People Unlike Any other.”

It’s difficult for someone without hearing to learn to read well, so printed material is not always an effective way to communicate. It might be surprising to learn that the first sign language translation of the Bible was finished only in 2020 after nearly forty years of work.

In 1990, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) was passed into law. Well-intended, it mandated greater access to vital services such as medical care, employment and education for disabled people. In public schools, children who were previously grouped in distant residential schools were now mainstreamed with neighborhood children, allowing them to live with their families and attend the local school. Inadvertently, this resulted in greater isolation for deaf students, who, often being the only deaf person, had little communication with anyone except the school interpreter.

Also in the late 20th century, cochlear implants were developed. This recent technology requires surgery to bypass the inner ear and implant a device in the brain, destroying any residual hearing in the process. While continuing to improve, such devices have limited scope, require specialized training to understand sounds and may lead to medical complications. CIs, as they are sometimes called, are not a cure for hearing loss and have led to divisive controversy among the deaf. Unfortunately, some parents have relied on medical technology to bridge the communication gap between them and their deaf child.

BECOMING A PROUD PEOPLE GROUP

For decades, sign language use was discouraged or prohibited in the United States and other countries, partly due to the influence of Alexander Graham Bell and his destructive theories on working with the Deaf. An international conference of educators in Milan, Italy, in 1880 led to a global focus of teaching deaf children to rely on the difficult task of lip reading to communicate. This led to a generation of deaf people furtively using gestures to communicate and being ashamed of their deafness.

In the 1960’s, a group of professors at Gallaudet University in Washington, D.C. studied and validated American Sign Language as a unique and beautiful language, complete with its own grammar, syntax and idioms. Around the same time, a scourge of Rubella (German Measles) impacted pregnant women, causing large numbers of babies to be born with various disabilities, including deafness. When this generation of children was school age, special education programs were developed and mandated. Sign language interpreters, previously relegated to helpful family members or friends, became legitimized and trained. All this helped set the stage for a successful peaceful protest by college students in 1998 demanding a deaf president at Gallaudet University, the only deaf liberal arts college in the world. By the 1990’s deaf people had made great gains in being seen, supported and united. They proudly identified as a people group with a comprehensive visual language and unique culture. Note: The moniker “hearing impaired” is offensive to many in the Deaf culture. It focuses on a limitation rather than celebrating their identity. Many prefer the term “Deaf and Hard of Hearing.”

WHAT DOES THIS HAVE TO DO WITH US?

This is the point where my story joins the deaf world. As a child, my first exposure to sign language was in the mid-70’s when my first-grade teacher taught her class the chorus to “Jesus Loves Me” in American Sign Language. I was captivated by the ability to express concepts visually and kinesthetically. Still fascinated, I decided to become a Sign Language Interpreter in college. I was studying this distinct culture and language while their silent revolution was happening.

While there is beauty and strength in the deaf culture, there is also bondage and dysfunction. In part because of deaf people’s isolation and vulnerability, abuse of all kinds (physical, emotional, sexual, substance) is extraordinarily high, and there is a dearth of educated therapists and counselors familiar with the unique needs of the deaf. As a young interpreter in a higher education setting and willing to “help,” I was unprepared for the overwhelming needs of the deaf students around me. I decided to quit. But God, in his mercy, never let me lose my love for the deaf, nor totally leave the field.

As mentioned, I worked a variety of jobs over the years while I studied for another career and found ways to help support my family. I also returned to interpreting and discovered I love teaching about the language and culture of the deaf. My greatest passion is now alerting Christians to the immense needs in this field. This is where you come into the story.

SO, HOW MIGHT ONE RESPOND TO ALL THIS?

If your heart is broken to learn this information, you are in good company. God yearns for his precious creations to enter his kingdom and receive his salvation. He has entrusted his church with extending the invitation and equips and empowers us through his Holy Spirit to carry out the task. I see him raising up a new generation of people who embrace this joyful burden, including students of all ages in the Sign Language classes I’ve taught. God may be nudging your heart as well. There are some practical steps you can take right away.

Become aware of people who might be isolated due to hearing loss. Make a point of facing them, making eye contact, smiling and speaking clearly (without exaggerating or shouting). Understand that the majority of deaf experience isolation from their families, co-workers and communities, so reaching out with love is immensely powerful.

Learn a few signs. Even imperfect attempts at communication are encouraging, and those who depend on sign language to communicate will happily teach you more.

Accept the responsibility for clear communication. The burden to bridge the communication gap should not be on deaf people, who may be limited in how successful their interactions can be. Hearing people have the obligation to learn what we can, extend patience, give attention and make efforts at conversation.

Pray. Pray for the unreached deaf to be exposed to the gospel and find freedom in Christ. Pray for the Holy Spirit to draw people to Jesus. Pray for workers for the harvest. Pray for churches and mission organizations and counseling centers to have wisdom and resources to make accommodations.

Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing people are everywhere: in Wheaton, Lombard, Chicago, Washington D.C., in every country and on every continent. You meet them too. How is God preparing you to interact with these precious individuals whom he loves?

ARE YOU WILLING TO JOIN ME ON THIS JOURNEY?

Do you want to learn basic sign language or join a group that regularly prays specifically for deaf people? I currently co-host an international prayer meeting every second Sunday night on Zoom. I’m preparing to start teaching some fall classes and am looking for people to be a part of regular game and coffee socials in sign language.

I envision people within our church family learning sign language, our church hosting monthly social events to include both hearing and deaf people and developing counseling and prayer ministries for deaf people in our area. I envision a Sunday school class that is patterned after the adult STARS ministry—where the class joins the main service for corporate worship and then has a safe place to discuss the Bible in their own language and at their own speed. I believe our church is strategically located and has the resources to consider this ministry.

Again, are you willing to join me on this journey?