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Hello, Ryan. I’m Gina. I’m a coda.
Not a Deaf coda - I’m a coda who can hear.
I wanted to share with you my thoughts and perspective
on your discussion surrounding Wink and the
issue of whether or not he collaborates with
and includes Deaf people in his business of producing
and selling signing DVDs and other things,
whether or not he invites Deaf people to partner
with him or solicits their feedback and input in the process.
You have responded in saying that this is
disheartening to you. And many people have posted
their comments on the matter. I have read the comments and seen the
discussion and would like to offer my thoughts and my perspective.
First I’d like to explain the
Three Levels of Truth.
I’ll begin with the third
level, which is called Subjective Truth.
Subjective Truth is based upon one’s
own set of experiences, upbringing, influences,
observations, feelings and various encounters which
register in our minds to form and become our beliefs.
The mind takes in and processes information based
on our beliefs. And these beliefs influence our actions,
decisions, discourse, etc.
That is Subjective Truth.
Objective Truth relies upon facts and evidence.
Subjective Truth is housed within Objective Truth, which is housed
within the highest level of truth, Absolute Truth.
Some call this Absolute Truth God’s Truth, some
call it universal truth or spiritual truth,
among other names. So Absolute Truth, in its totality,
encompasses all truths. Absolute Truth is a mystery.
There is no proof that we are all really
here, physically experiencing life on earth.
Maybe we are all actually in The Matrix, believing that
this is life and going about our daily routines when
in fact we are just plugged into a machine and only
living a mental dream state of a life, an illusion.
It’s certainly possible.
The one thing we know
to be true about Absolute Truth is that it
is all-encompassing. Everything is a part of
this truth; feelings, thoughts, your Truth, my
Truth, the Truths of others ...
it’s all encapsulated there.
The one truth that joins us all; animals,
insects, people, things - all housed there.
All thoughts, all feelings - within this one Absolute Truth.
So let me explain how the
Three Levels of Truth apply to the issue at hand.
In looking at the three levels, we know
that each person has his or her Subjective Truth
and that no two of these Truths are the same.
There is no right or wrong truth on this level because,
remember, all of these Truths reside within Absolute Truth.
Each Truth is a part of the next larger level of Truth.
But the problem is that SubjectiveTruth can trick us.
In order to know which is the true Truth, we need
Objective Truth, we need those facts and bits of evidence.
Let me give an example to more clearly
illustrate Subjective and Objective Truths.
Let’s say I’m on a camping trip. I pitch my tent.
Night is nearing, so I build a fire close by the tent.
I’m relaxing by the fire when it occurs to me
that I need to run and get something from the tent.
So I go over to the tent and just as I am pulling
back the flap to go in, I am startled by what
I believe it to be a spider and stumble backwards, retrieve my lantern
and go back to the tent for a second look.
Now I see that this “spider” was in fact just a wadded
up pair of underwear! And it gave me such a scare!
Sent my heart racing. What I thought I saw was in
fact proved different to me by shining the light on it.
Objective Truth is this light.
Subjective Truth is what we think and believe for ourselves,
which may in fact not be true. So it occurs to me
that this is what causes conflicts among us and the
disagreements about how we interpret situations.
This is why we need Objective Truth - to bring things to light.
Let me speak to how the concept of Three levels of Truth
applies to the discussion in question.
By way of your Subjective Truth,
you believe that any Hearing person or codas who hears
who is engaged in anything having to do with ASL or
Deaf culture, that is built upon the existence
of Deaf people, should include Deaf people.
Deaf people in equal partnership with an equal role in
creating these projects or endeavors, working and
building these side by side and being asked for
their input, opinions, and for their approval.
So these are your beliefs. That it is necessary to
include Deaf people here due to the fact that these
projects exist because of Deaf people, therefore Deaf
people cannot be discounted. That is your goal - to stop the cycle
of marginalization, of oppression, to put an end
to these and instead, embrace one another and work
collectively to better all of us. This is what
you hope for and what you are working to create.
That is my view of what you (Ryan) are trying to convey
(And I certainly could be mistaken.)
Now our individual Subjective Truths may be
in alignment with yours, or we may disagree. Out of
the many comments posted
on Facebook, I chose one to speak about.
This comes from a coda who had
posted many comments, all from his Subjective Truth.
His Subjective Truth
tells him that Wink is himself a coda.
He was born into the community, is a
part of Deaf-World and inherited Deaf culture,
his native language is ASL, his life experiences are as a
member of the community and Deaf-World is in his blood.
He has Deaf Heart.
Deaf Culture is at the center of his being, of his mind.
He has journeyed with Deaf people,
with his parents, and witnessed the oppression
they experienced by Hearing people and was thereby
oppressed himself. So he can certainly conduct his
business on his own accord and does not have to
partner with Deaf people in the process.
He doesn’t need an ASL coach because
he is quite fluent in ASL. In fact he signs more
fluently than many Deaf people, even better than
the Facundo Element people sign in your vlogs.
His signing abilities blow you all out of the water.
That is this coda’s view.
That Wink, having been born to the Deaf community
and brought up in that environment,
relieves him of the expectation to include Deaf folks in his work.
Do you expect that Wink would hire an ASL
coach or a Deaf accountant or attorney?
What is it you want? Just leave him be. As a coda, he is
certainly fluent in the language and culture of the Deaf.
We codas are a part of Deaf- World, so
do not cast us out or shame us. You should shame those
Hearing people who know nothing of Deaf culture and
learn a few made up signs and post videos of themselves
just to gain attention (like that girl, Kristin).
These are the comments coming from this particular coda.
But the one thing that we codas tend to
leave out, the one missing piece, is the fact
we are not Deaf. We are born to Deaf and raised
by Deaf, surrounded by and immersed in Deaf space and
given their culture, but our ears still work. We hear.
And that plays a part in creating our Subjective Truth.
It gives us a perspective that is different from someone who is Deaf.
Your world view, your experience as a Deaf
person, is not something we can have. And that is
your rationale for stating
we should include Deaf people in our work.
It is necessary because our work is based upon the
language and culture of Deaf people and we cannot
exclude them. So here is where your view and
that of this coda are at odds. And this makes me
sad, this chasm and division in our should-be partnership.
How do we resolve this? Each of our Subjective Truths can lead
us into this cycle of conflict with others. We can
resolve this by letting Objective Truth help us see
and to come together. It’s important that we consider what
Objective Truth has to offer.
To bring in the light and let it illuminate the evidence.
So let's look at the evidence...
When the very first Deaf person came into being
on earth, there was no Deaf Space. It wasn’t
until that very moment that Deaf Space could
even begin its creation. Over the passing
of time, Deaf people married, had children
- Deaf and hearing codas - families grew, Hearing people
took an interest and joined the community, programs
and services were established and we had this
expansion of the community, all for Deaf people. And
yet we see that only a small percentage of Deaf
people have actually had a voice in their own history.
Things have been led by and controlled by,
for the most part, Hearing people and codas who hear.
Deaf people have not been asked to play a
part in creating the things that effect their own lives.
Let's look at another piece of evidence
The creation of this plethora of
institutional programs and services for the Deaf
- schools, social work services, mental health
services - all created for the purpose of serving
Deaf people, largely employ Hearing people and codas who hear.
They are at the helm. Not Deaf people,
save for a tiny percent. Those who teach Deaf children
in mainstream public schools are by and large
Hearing or codas who hear.
Interpreter Training Programs (ITPs) are run by Hearing
people or codas who hear. The majority of people
out there teaching ASL classes are themselves
Hearing or codas who hear.
The vast majority of working interpreters are
Hearing or codas who hear.
There are incredibly few Certified Deaf Interpreters
or Deaf Interpreters.
This patten is a fact.
And the third and final peice of evidence...
Access to financial opportunities and financial gain within our community
are largely afforded only to those who hear.
These are the facts at every level of Truth.
Those who hear make more than those who do not.
Some codas who hear are out there making a good living
and a name for themselves as performers, storytellers
or comedians, gaining celebrity and fame -
they bring in their Hearing friends to to teach ASL together.
And where are the Deaf folks? Swept off
to the side, time and time again.
These codas believe their intimate familiarity with Deaf people
and Deaf-World lets them off the hook.
Given the light that shines from Objective Truth,
what should be done?
Do we push the Deaf community aside? Or do we
engage in serious self reflection, and ask
ourselves if we truly wish to partner with Deaf people?
partner in true collaboration and solidarity?
align ourselves with Deaf people in roles of equal status?
or do we wish for our positioning to be inconsistent?
Sometimes engaging and sometimes not?
It is human nature to think of oneself
first, for survival, to watch out for our own needs.
That is the function of ego.
Ego functions out of fear and self preservation,
leading us into denial. Into believing that we
do in fact partner with Deaf people, that we do
in fact have Deaf Heart. But in fact this partnership
wavers depending on whether or not it is
convenient for us. It is simply time for us to look
at this Objective Truth and consider what it is we want.
Do we choose to hide ourselves from the
light of it and remain in denial, remain in these cycles
of finger-pointing and conflict?
Or do we choose to embrace one another?
The feelings and beliefs we have within our own
Subjective Truths are questionably unreliable.
They hold little power.
That feel-good moment of having won the point when
we make a comeback in response to someone else’s
comment is just fleeting. It’s just a moment of
temporary peace. It’s a
temporary satisfaction that cannot last.
Deep within ourselves, we are still hurting.
And that hurt will surface time and time
again until we face and accept the light that
Objective Truth brings. We need to accept it and make
a wholehearted commitment to making that change - to
no longer marginalizing Deaf people for our own
personal gains, to working
hand-in-hand with Deaf people, with CDIs,
to bringing in Deaf people as co-performers/comedians
and to create this change in paradigm.
And to feel content and at peace for the right reasons
so that it becomes possible for all of us to be
lifted up higher than we imagined and to truly transcend.
I would like to thank you, Ryan, for laying
out a challenge for us. We need that.
We need more people like you, Ryan,
powerful and brave Deaf truth-tellers.
You may often get labeled as the angry Deaf person,
the militant Deaf person. But in fact you are our teachers,
helping to open our minds to something that will
propel us towards higher Truths. We need to push one
another to see Objective Truth because it is knowledge.
And knowledge has no end.
We must keep pushing against the boundaries and not become
complacent to remain where we are. We must transcend.
Transcend through the boundaries and up to higher levels of Truth
until we embrace Absolute Truth in true purpose with one another.
Thank you. (***Text by Jessie and Nancy***)