Page 114 - Reading Between the Sign Intercultural Communication for Sign Language Interpreters

American Deaf Culture 99

go into another room than for hearing people in a similar situa-
tion to put their hands over their ears or shut the door, because if
a hearing quarreler’s partner yells loudly enough, he or she can
still be heard.
While Deaf people who deliberately close their eyes in the
midst of an argument are guilty of intentional rudeness, an unin-
tentional rudeness occurs more frequently in conversations be-
tween Deaf and hearing signers. If there is an unexpected loud
noise in the vicinity (e.g., the screech of brakes, a scream, or a
crash), it is an automatic reflex for hearing people’s eyes to dart
away in the direction of the noise. We are probably not even aware
of this behavior when we are talking to another hearing person.
However, if this eye-darting happens repeatedly while we are en-
gaged in conversation with a Deaf person, it can be very distract-
ing, especially if we never explain what drew our attention away.
Fortunately, we can train ourselves to control this instinct most of
the time. Meanwhile, the most polite solution is to inform the Deaf
person (before we look away) what we have just heard. If this is
not possible, then we need to explain after the fact the reason
that our eyes strayed (“Sorry, I heard a siren over there.”). And if
our attention is drawn away for a moment by someone else in the
room speaking to us, it is polite to hold up one finger, which indi-
cates “Excuse me, my attention will be back with you in a mo-
ment.” If this annoying interruption occurs more than once, it
may prompt the Deaf person to wonder why it seems that he or
she never gets priority. Why don’t we hold up one finger to the
hearing person and make him or her wait instead?

Connectedness:
The Deaf Community as Family

Deaf people often refer to their schoolmates as their sisters and
brothers. This may be due in part to growing up together in a
residential school setting. It may also be due to the fact that their
Deaf friends are closer to them than their own hearing siblings
who do not sign or appreciate Deaf culture. The experiences of
growing up deaf in a hearing world, the frustrations of daily com-
munication struggles with the hearing majority, and the ease and
delight of communicating in a visual language give Deaf people a
lot in common before they even meet. This is one reason why

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