DBInews March 2005 * A publication of DeafBlindInfo.org. Sponsored by Minnesota Department of Human Services Deaf and Hard of Hearing Services Division. To subscribe, e-mail DBInews-subscribe@yahoogroups.com ***** Contents. - Is There Such a Thing as DeafBlind Culture?: John Lee Clark. - Graham "G-Force" Hicks: Adrean Clark. - Call for Submissions. * IS THERE SUCH A THING AS DEAFBLIND CULTURE? John Lee Clark. The question of whether there is such a thing as DeafBlind culture has been in debate. Some argue that deaf-blind people are merely a group within the main culture, just as other disability groups are classified. But take it from me, a second-generation DeafBlind native signer: DeafBlind culture exists. There are more than two hundred definitions of the concept ³culture.² They can be grouped into three general areas: cognition (how people think), behavior (how people act and respond to things), and materialism (what people use) You can tell that the people from Japan belong to a different culture because their have different manners (such as sitting on the floor to eat), materials (such as using chopsticks), and values (such as taking thorough and serious care of their elderly). Cognition, behavior, and materialism affect each other, and all three can often be traced back to forces such as climate, genetics, and economic elements. Now, I feel that signing DeafBlind people more than qualifies as a culture: We think differently from the mainstream; we behave differently; and we depend on materials that are not part of the mainstream culture. Some will argue that such things doesn¹t necessarily make us a culture. And they are right. Not all people with combined hearing vision and hearing loss can be considered culturally DeafBlind. What I mean by this is that sometimes groups will think and act differently and use different materials for UNNATURAL reasons, or in response to another culture¹s dominance. For example, many deaf-blind people do not sign, preferring to use speech and some form of receiving spoken information. But consider this: If there was an island inhabitated only by deaf-blind people. Would they communicate with each other through speech and artificial ³hearing²? They would not, because speech is inherently not accessible to deaf-blind people. The islanders would communicate in ways accessible to them, such as signing, fingerspelling, and other tactile signals. It is important to understand that culture and community are not the same thing. Cultures are far more strict with language use, values, and behavior than communities. A community, such as the deaf-blind community, can contain more than one culture. This may be a bit confusing, but to clarify, I¹ll discuss the difference between the terms ³deaf-blind² and ³DeafBlind.² The term ³deaf-blind² includes any and all people with both deafness and blindness. ³DeafBlind,² however, covers only those who identify themselves as culturally DeafBlind. The deaf-blind community means anyone who is both deaf and blind, no matter what their background or language. Oral deaf-blind people are part of that community as much as culturally DeafBlind people are. But not everyone in the deaf-blind community is part of the DeafBlind culture. I believe that it is important for people interested in advocacy to maintain the inclusive interpretation of ³the deaf-blind community,² because all deaf-blind people deserve equal rights and access to resources. It is also important, however, for us to recognize DeafBlind culture and its unique social needs and support its evolution. DeafBlind culture offers many things that deaf-blind people cannot find anywhere else: an understanding of deaf-blindness as a perfectly normal part of the human condition instead of a disability, full self-empowerment, and natural access to life. * GRAHAM "G-FORCE" HICKS. Adrean Clark (with thanks to Paul Deeming). A DeafBlind man based in England, Graham Hicks held two Guinness World Records for quad-biking and jet-skiing. His 'G-Force Challenger' quad-biking reached 104 miles per hour, an incredible feat. Hicks's jet-ski trip took him from England to Holland in world-record time. He accomplished both with navigational directions using a touch-based system with a passenger sitting behind him on the vehicles. He currently works for DeafBlind UK, an organization focused on providing services to DeafBlind people and raising public awareness of DeafBlind potential in the United Kingdom. http://www.deafblind.org.uk * CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS. Are you DeafBlind or do you have an article related to DeafBlind culture and community? Do you have an announcement from a DeafBlind organization? Send it in to comments@deafblindinfo.org and we'll post it here! ***** DeafBlindInfo.org is Minnesota's online resource about DeafBlind services and community. This project is sponsored by DHS/DHHSD. Questions? Contact Adrean Clark, webmaster, at comments@deafblindinfo.org .