Silent Roar: My Deaf Experience

For many years, deaf Nevadans have experienced a  lack of access, as well as a lack of transparency about decisions being made for them without their voices being heard. The Deaf community were told things would improve from town leaders, but nothing has been done to improve their ways of life. Many deaf Nevadans wonder when things will change for the better.  The Deaf community’s fear of losing one of their biggest services, Deaf Centers of Nevada, came true when they officially closed in 2020, with only their social media open for archive purposes. A lack of resources can be very dangerous for the deaf community. When the Hawk Fire happened, the local news failed to connect to the deaf communities because the news was not captioned word for word and the American Sign Language (ASL) interpreter was not shown on the screen consistently. The city and the state say that they care about the community, but leave the Deaf community in the dark. For many individuals in the community, it felt like they were outsiders to their world because they were deaf at birth or gained deafness over time, but within the community they are each other’s chosen family. Some members in the community grow up learning ASL, while some, like myself, have learned SEE (Signing Exact English). SEE is different, as I sign word-for-word, while in ASL, traditional sign language, the grammatical structure is looser and incompatible with what I know.  Some backstory on my own personal life: I was the youngest child among my siblings, who all grew up hearing. I was the only one who became deaf due to genetics as a CODA (Child of Deaf Adults). I struggle a lot with things, like watching TV, school and even making friends. I remember not knowing what sign language was as I was taught speech therapy through my one good ear. I learned to read lips to navigate the world I live in. I was often made into a joke and bullied by my peers. For the longest time, I felt like nobody wanted to know me. Then one day, I was at home watching TV and I saw a strikingly gorgeous woman, and she did not say anything, but kept moving her hands. I asked my mom what that was. She said she was using sign language. From that moment on I gathered books, YouTube videos, anything to practice with, even if I did it by myself. In my junior year of high school, I discovered there was a school for the Deaf that taught students from kindergarten to high school located not too far away from my family. I wanted to go, so we made an appointment to see if it was possible for me to attend. After some tests were done, as I was waiting, I signed with a kid that I didn’t know and made a friend for a brief minute.  I felt like I found a place I belong. Unfortunately, they told us that since I grew up learning home sign, it would be hard to learn this late in the game. “Home sign” is informal signing and rather different from structured sign languages. I was saddened because I didn’t fit in either world, but that gave me strength to finish school and to continue studying sign from then on. If only I had known that school existed sooner, I can only imagine what my world would’ve turned out to be. To make better access for the Deaf community is to make a better world for all of us. Just because we as a Deaf community can’t hear, that doesn’t mean we can’t function in the world. All we are asking for is a helping hand and to have our voices heard, loud and clear. On that note, town halls to discuss issues facing Nevada’s disabled community will be held on Monday, Oct. 5 at 11 a.m. and the following Monday, Oct. 12 at 2 p.m. by the state’s Bureau of Vocational Rehabilitation over Zoom.