This is a really good essay. Thanks for your insight from the perspective of a deaf person. As someone who also doesn't hear well, I've been annoyed at the comparisons of Fetterman to deaf/hard of hearing people who require closed-captioning. Not the same thing at all!
I have a question for you, regarding deafness/hard of hearing. I never know what to call myself. I feel a little like I'm "being a victim" if I say I'm deaf (because I can hear sounds and never had to learn sign language, though that might have helped), but "hard of hearing" doesn't seem like ... enough. Like you, I require hearing aids (well, just one hearing aid, since one ear is almost completely deaf and doesn't benefit from one). Even with the hearing aid, I avoid talking on the phone because it's exhausting, and I can't understand people with accents. Women's voices are especially hard for me to understand, and if there is background noise at all ... forget it! I depend on closed-captioning when watching YouTube or TV.
Over the years, I've learned to "hear" by watching people's mouths and picking up on context clues. That doesn't always work, so I'm a master of the smile and nod, though I've also gotten less self-conscious about asking people to repeat things or write them down.
Would you call that deaf or hard of hearing? Thanks.
I know just what you mean. I went with "deaf" because I think it helps avoid excessive focus on it and victim positioning, ironically enough. "Hard of hearing" leads to questions and sometimes negotiations. Negotiations usually require some level of "no, I need you to do X because I am disabled." People know what "deaf" means and tend to not ask questions and follow my lead. When I have tried saying "hard of hearing" in the past, I end up spending more time, energy, and focus on my hearing than when I say "deaf," which is weird but has been my very consistent experience.
That makes a lot of sense. And it's more cut and dry/less apt to invite questions than my usual, "I'm kind of deaf" or "I'm REALLY hard of hearing." Ha. I tend to minimize my disability because I don't want to sound like a victim, but there have been times when that approach has come back to bite me in the butt--usually when I've needed accommodations. Thanks so much for responding.
I found this a super helpful explanation of appropriate accommodations. Thank you so much for being so clear, it really helped me understand the issues better. I also really appreciate that you shared your story about requiring extra time to write your calculus exam. It just made so much sense to me and gave me an insight into your experience which is shared by others in my life. It helps me understand them and for that I am truly grateful.
Thank you!! Sometimes I tire of always talking about the ways my life has been harder than average, but when I find out it helps promote understanding that always makes my day. :-)
It was a great column and it prompted me to sign up for a year's subscription. I look forward to your insightful math-brain analysis of other issues. You will make me a smarter, more thoughtful person. (How's that for a challenge?)
Aw, thanks! My most read piece, by many orders of magnitude, is January 2022's piece "On the Destigmatization of Evil," for which you should take the content warnings seriously. They are not pro forma. Others that have unusually high readership are "How to Undo Woke Programming" from October 2021, "Words Are Not Violence" from March 2022, August 2022's responses to Sam Harris, and January 2022's take on Common Core Mathematics. Hope you stick around! :-)
Since I have a somewhat jaundiced view of conditions ending in ism or ist I'm a bit prone to be judgmental, so I am grateful for you taking the time to define ableism and ableist from the perspective of someone with firsthand experience.
Thanks! I hope the real-life examples of reasonable accommodations are helpful. Most people don't have any understanding of such things (understandably, as they have no experience).
> Not Ableist: requiring a type 1 diabetic to test their blood sugar and correct it before starting their shift as a bus driver, pilot, or other job where safety is on the line.
FWIW, one cannot have Type I Diabetes and be a bus driver, at least in the US. It is a disqualifying condition for a CDL. I imagine the same holds true for a pilot's license. I know one can have their flight cert pulled for high blood pressure. As it is, I have to have medical exams twice as frequently for my CDL just because I use a CPAP.
Color blindness is also a disqualifying condition for being a truck driver. I suspect it might be for pilots as well, because red and green lights are used on wingtips to distinguish port from starboard and thus let other pilots know which direction a plane is facing (and therefore traveling) at night from a distance.
I don't think anyone honestly, in their heart believes this is "ableism". I hope not, because it's ludicrous. I think it's people who spend too much time on Twitter who think discourse is like the high school debate team. Their only objective is getting "points" on the other side, not matter what kind of philosophical pretzel they twist themselves into.
Joe Biden recently said that Mrs. Fetterman will make a great senator...
If Fetterman wins big, I would suspect ballot funny business…
I’m not from PA but have encountered that kind of political thinking...Should be interesting 🤔
This is a really good essay. Thanks for your insight from the perspective of a deaf person. As someone who also doesn't hear well, I've been annoyed at the comparisons of Fetterman to deaf/hard of hearing people who require closed-captioning. Not the same thing at all!
I have a question for you, regarding deafness/hard of hearing. I never know what to call myself. I feel a little like I'm "being a victim" if I say I'm deaf (because I can hear sounds and never had to learn sign language, though that might have helped), but "hard of hearing" doesn't seem like ... enough. Like you, I require hearing aids (well, just one hearing aid, since one ear is almost completely deaf and doesn't benefit from one). Even with the hearing aid, I avoid talking on the phone because it's exhausting, and I can't understand people with accents. Women's voices are especially hard for me to understand, and if there is background noise at all ... forget it! I depend on closed-captioning when watching YouTube or TV.
Over the years, I've learned to "hear" by watching people's mouths and picking up on context clues. That doesn't always work, so I'm a master of the smile and nod, though I've also gotten less self-conscious about asking people to repeat things or write them down.
Would you call that deaf or hard of hearing? Thanks.
I know just what you mean. I went with "deaf" because I think it helps avoid excessive focus on it and victim positioning, ironically enough. "Hard of hearing" leads to questions and sometimes negotiations. Negotiations usually require some level of "no, I need you to do X because I am disabled." People know what "deaf" means and tend to not ask questions and follow my lead. When I have tried saying "hard of hearing" in the past, I end up spending more time, energy, and focus on my hearing than when I say "deaf," which is weird but has been my very consistent experience.
That makes a lot of sense. And it's more cut and dry/less apt to invite questions than my usual, "I'm kind of deaf" or "I'm REALLY hard of hearing." Ha. I tend to minimize my disability because I don't want to sound like a victim, but there have been times when that approach has come back to bite me in the butt--usually when I've needed accommodations. Thanks so much for responding.
Speaking as a complete rando layman on the internet... I would totally call that "deaf". Especially if you have one ear that doesn't work at all.
I found this a super helpful explanation of appropriate accommodations. Thank you so much for being so clear, it really helped me understand the issues better. I also really appreciate that you shared your story about requiring extra time to write your calculus exam. It just made so much sense to me and gave me an insight into your experience which is shared by others in my life. It helps me understand them and for that I am truly grateful.
Thank you!! Sometimes I tire of always talking about the ways my life has been harder than average, but when I find out it helps promote understanding that always makes my day. :-)
It was a great column and it prompted me to sign up for a year's subscription. I look forward to your insightful math-brain analysis of other issues. You will make me a smarter, more thoughtful person. (How's that for a challenge?)
Aw, thanks! My most read piece, by many orders of magnitude, is January 2022's piece "On the Destigmatization of Evil," for which you should take the content warnings seriously. They are not pro forma. Others that have unusually high readership are "How to Undo Woke Programming" from October 2021, "Words Are Not Violence" from March 2022, August 2022's responses to Sam Harris, and January 2022's take on Common Core Mathematics. Hope you stick around! :-)
Enlightening, thank you, Holly.
Since I have a somewhat jaundiced view of conditions ending in ism or ist I'm a bit prone to be judgmental, so I am grateful for you taking the time to define ableism and ableist from the perspective of someone with firsthand experience.
Thanks! I hope the real-life examples of reasonable accommodations are helpful. Most people don't have any understanding of such things (understandably, as they have no experience).
> Not Ableist: requiring a type 1 diabetic to test their blood sugar and correct it before starting their shift as a bus driver, pilot, or other job where safety is on the line.
FWIW, one cannot have Type I Diabetes and be a bus driver, at least in the US. It is a disqualifying condition for a CDL. I imagine the same holds true for a pilot's license. I know one can have their flight cert pulled for high blood pressure. As it is, I have to have medical exams twice as frequently for my CDL just because I use a CPAP.
Color blindness is also a disqualifying condition for being a truck driver. I suspect it might be for pilots as well, because red and green lights are used on wingtips to distinguish port from starboard and thus let other pilots know which direction a plane is facing (and therefore traveling) at night from a distance.
/nerd off :D
I don't think anyone honestly, in their heart believes this is "ableism". I hope not, because it's ludicrous. I think it's people who spend too much time on Twitter who think discourse is like the high school debate team. Their only objective is getting "points" on the other side, not matter what kind of philosophical pretzel they twist themselves into.
It's very Taylor Lorenzian.
You wrote a good piece.
I hope you're right. That would be a good sign for all of us.