This coming weekend I fly to New Orleans for the Early Hearing Detection and Intervention conference. It is good to see folks like Ben Bahan of Gallaudet giving presentations. I hope to discuss bilingual policies and the human rights approach to meeting new deaf babies. If one thinks of human rights and what a child needs, language is early on the list, and the sensible response to deafness is "Oh, a visual baby - let's match him/her to a visual language."
I'll be curious how many people will be talking from this center as opposed to: " What's WRONG with this baby?" That question leads to trying to fix and mold the baby to fit one idea of how we all are suppose to be. Turtles are deaf, and I've never heard of anyone suggesting fixing a turtle. Is accepting and honoring differences such a strange idea?
Onward,
susan
susanschaller.com
