How to Raise Awareness About Deafness

Many in the deaf community actively campaign to protect their rights and raise awareness about issues facing people who are deaf or hard of hearing. Several organizations are committed to advocacy and educating the public about deafness in an effort to raise awareness. Read on to learn how to raise awareness about deafness.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderate

1. Raise awareness about advocacy issues related to deafness. Issues range from education and captioning to air travel, infant screening and emergency preparedness. Find out more about advocacy issues concerning the deaf community on the National Association of the Deaf (NAD) website. See the Resources section below for a link.
2. Promote the use the terms "deaf" and "hard of hearing" rather than "hearing-impaired," which is considered negative by many members of the deaf community. "Deaf" and "hard of hearing" became official designations used by the World Federation of the Deaf in 1991.
3. Promote the understanding of the difference between deaf and Deaf. The uppercase Deaf refers to a group of people who share a common culture and exclusively use American Sign Language (ASL) to communicate with each other. The lowercase deaf refers to the condition of not being able to hear and the greater deaf community as a whole.
4. Participate in events like Deaf Awareness Week, also referred to as Deaf World Week or International Week of the Deaf. It typically occurs in late September and is a worldwide celebration of the deaf community, promoting arts, culture and education. Read more about it on the NAD and WFD websites.
5. Participate in awareness events such as Talk.Walk.Run, a deaf awareness event sponsored by the Alexander Graham Bell Association for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing (AG Bell). Learn more about this event and others, including conferences, conventions and a golf tournament by clicking the "Programs and Events" tab on the AG Bell website. See the Resources section below for a link.
6. Become active in organizations such as the World Federation of the Deaf, the National Association of the Deaf and the Alexander Graham Bell Association for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing to stay current on issues facing the deaf community. See the Resources section below for a link.

Tips & Warnings

• Stay current on issues facing the deaf community by reading "Volta Voices," a bi-monthly magazine published by the Alexander Graham Bell Association for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing.