Cochlear Implants were designed to help the deaf hear. This is an all together good thing. Science and technology have come up with this small little device that is implanted directly behind an individuals ear and helps them be able to fix what was lost--their hearing.However, the deaf find this offensive. They are "the hearing impaired" as if to say that there was something wrong with them. Study have been shown that the deaf don't concerned themselves to be missing anything at all. They were just born with out the ability to hear. But many believe that this is the beginning of a Cultural genocide.
This has been a debate for years. And reminds me of the discussion we had of truth. The hearing society says, "they need to be fixed", but the deaf say, "there is nothing broken." One culture believes that they are trying to help another, yet that culture that is being helped believes that they are being threatened. One person's idea of truth is different from the others. No matter how long this world survives human will not be able to agree on what the real truth is.
This is really interesting. It's true that the Deaf culture does not see themselves as damaged. And there is some truth to this. Deaf people "speak" face-to-face and can do nothing else simultaneously as their communication is 100% dependent upon them actively engaging with the other person. They can't be texting, doing their nails or watching T.V. In this regard, the hearing world is missing out. How often do we sit down and have a conversation with a person completely untethered to our electronics? I find this behavior increasingly annoying and disrespectful. The Deaf want to protect their culture and I applaud them for it. However, if a person wants the help of a cochlear implant they should not be accused of participating in cultural genocide. Otherwise, the Deaf community becomes something like a cult...or something. Great post!
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