deaf anxiety surrounding cochlear implants etc, whether expressed in terms of matters of principle or in ostensibly objective...
deaf anxiety surrounding cochlear implants etc, whether expressed in terms of matters of principle or in ostensibly objective terms i think ultimately comes down to a fear that such measures ultimately threaten the existence of a distinct deaf community because most cochlear implant recipients, especially since those who receive implants at an early age, approve of the intervention and come to prefer verbal language to sign language (1/2)
it’s an interesting issue though from the ethical perspective, because a “cure” may be possible but not actually desirable, and i think it’s probably correct that humanity would be a little poorer without the difference that deafness represents. i think that, as a hearing person, i would prefer to give a deaf child of mine cochlear implants, but would refuse to do so were i deaf myself (2/2)
(3/2) obviously the synthesis of these divergent viewpoints is that deaf people should be able to ‘mint’ new deaf people as they see fit within a certain quota, so that their community can maintain a level of demographic representation that makes it possible for them to retain political influence and a distinct identity. this is also why vaccines should induce autism, if they don’t already