What bother me is that this so called “Dr. H” has done nothing but use the bloggers and blogs for his own personal vendetta. People like “Mishka Zena” have given this mean, vindictive man a platform for his hated.

Calling us names and spewing his hate…does not get any points from me.

Revealing private information (IM messages), thus violating the basic tenets of Deaf Culture, does not get any points with me.

Mishka Zena and all the rest can rant about the DBC – I, for one, am disappointed that people like Mishka Zena and Amy C. has not spoken out against the tactics this mean man has use.

Only when they do-I will listen to their concerns about the DBC.

I frimly believe DBC IS NOT Deafhood at all. One of best example: If all core members ( gayhood/ lesbianhood ) of Gallaudet. Is Gallaudet gayhood/lesbianhood? No!!!! Then DBC WILL NOT be Deafhood period!!!!

The fuss about Deafhood, from where I’m standing and looking at it, involves several things:

(1.) There are some deaf and Deaf people who are comfortable enough with their own deaf identities that they find, after reading the book and/or attending Deafhood workshops, that they don’t need Deafhood to help define their deaf identities.

(2.) However, others, especially those who went thru the oralist program from the 50′s to the early 80′s and struggled to gain language and with a delayed education, only to discover ASL and Deaf culture at a later age, find Deafhood very empowering. It’s much like discovering the pieces of a puzzle and everything finally falls into place with a better understanding.

(3.) Some d/Deaf people find it disturbing that acquiring ASL is the one requirement that defines d/Deaf identity. It does not. CI-implanted deaf like Rachel will tell you otherwise. Oral deaf like me or Aaron Rose will tell you otherwise. In other words, language alone does not define deaf identity.

(4.) Deafhood as defined by the few like Ella, DE, and GG has been distorted from its original context to mean blaming of others for the state of d/Deaf people’s lives today. Especially the blaming on hearing people, AGBell, CI companies, the parents’ choices for their deaf children, the 1880 Milan Conference, etc. Gaaah! how much more blaming do we want to be known for???

Actually, the Hearing world is full of identity politics as well — Black people have their “are you Black enough?” debates, Hispanics have their “do you have a true Hispanic heart?” debates, even noncultural groups — environmental groups debate about whether one is “green enough”, etc. etc.

I agree, I wish it could be as simple as that — We are all Deaf. Deafhood is trying to help us all see that. So I really don’t see what the fuss about it is.

It blows my mind sometimes how many hatchets have gone left unburied. It blows my mind that deaf people have memories of an elephant, who-did-what, who-married-who, who-went-to-which-school, who-now-wears-a-CI, who-is-DOD-and-who-isn’t, whose-momma-went-to- which-school, etc. The amount of navel-gazing is like, over the top. I do realize it’s a small and closely connected community, but that amount of jealousy and rank-pulling creates a tremendous amount of negative energy. And for what?

As soon as the deaf community starts talking about unity, this pettiness comes out of the woodwork every time. It gets pretty old, at least from where I’m standing. Yeah, MZ, why does deaf identity politics have to be so damn complicated? We’re all one because we’re deaf. Wish it could be as simple as that.

I will also agree with lolypop. A lot of people, the protesters, the anti protesters, and the neutrals, were also harmed, too. The Deaf Unity applied to the majority, but it didn’t feel Deaf Unity to the minority. The healing process from that protest hasn’t begun, either.

I do wonder.. why does deaf identity politics have to be so complicated? Despite of our cultural and lingustic differences, we are all same deep inside: we are deaf

I have been arond in the Deaf world so long. Hey, I was born into it. I rebelled against it when I was much younger. Why? some of you do know why.

Heck yes its easier to live in the Deaf world than trying to navigate in the hearing world. BUT I’ve been around long, my parents have been around, my grand parents too. and before them too. That one man knows a lot. Yep. I know a lot, seen a lot, heard a lot from my grandfolks, and there are a lot more than maybe DonG really knows especially among specific people in the core.

But why spew out about what I know . . .only to hurt. I am keeping it all inside me. I am foraging ahead to a better tomorrow.

DonG, I am not sure if you are willing to realize that your beliefs may not be always accurate. Hmm?

finally, time has come.

Thanks to the internet, we all are deemed equals.

Only one person has been pushed out and that was Aidan Mack back right after Virginia rally last August. John Egbert paged Aidan Mack to leave DBC at the request of Amy Cohen Erfon! This person said that Amy emailed Barb DiGi to contact John Egbert while he was at the airport and then confused John thought that Aidan Mack was out of line and paged Aidan Mack that she was no longer part of DBC. It was Amy that “pushed out” Aidan Mack, not John Egbert and ever since then, he regretted very much for making that decision.

Should I believe this person about this story? Will John Egbert be willing to tell us if this is true? And is it true that Amy requested Aidan Mack to be pushed out? And was Aidan Mack the only person ever been pushed out?

I think that it is time to search for the truth and not listen to this person or those people that is spreading lies!

I think that it is time to find out more about Barry S. and if he does that to other group or people in the past to destroy their integrity.

Do your homework, search the internet, this person said that there are plenty of information about Barry.

Im sorry to disappoint you but the seeds of division in the deaf community was not planted by this one man. The division that we see today has been ongoing and it was very very apparent with the Gallaudet protest of two years ago. Its ironic that the protest was called a Unity Protest when all it did was divide the campus and the deaf community.

I dont have a problem with any one person embracing deafhood because as I understand it, deafhood is an inidividual experience with many different outcomes but the main outcome is acceptance of ones own deafness regardless of how they interpret their deafness.

If deafhood is about individual enlightenment how can any organization endorse or promote an ideology that has such vast reaching results and consequences.

My biggest issue here is that many in the deaf community truly have no idea what deafhood is really about including the so called DBC leaders who by the way cant even seem to decide on a simple encompassing mission for their organization.

No the division in the deaf community isnt the fault of one man who was brave enough to speak his mind, its the fault of an entire community that continues to pull itself apart opposed to standing together!