You can’t do that! You’re deaf!
April 30th, 2007, 4:46 pm · 11 Comments · posted by
Nothing gets my hackles up faster than hearing “You can’t do that! You’re deaf!” said to either me or a fellow deaf/hard of hearing person.
First of all, I know I’m deaf.
Secondly, I don’t appreciate people informing me that I can’t do something that I am already doing.
Granted, I haven’t heard those words very recently. The last time I heard it was when I was living and attending accredited college in Los Angeles. But local residents have reported hearing it as recent as a few weeks ago. Kim Dethlefsen reports getting incredulous looks when some people ask her how she got to this or that place and she replies, “I drove.”
I’ve heard similar stories from other vloggers/bloggers all over America. Some have given smart-aleck replies like “No, I FLEW.”
My story occurs when I was a student at California State University Northridge and my roommate, who is also deaf, needed a ride to the nearest DMV to get her California driver’s license. She had relocated to Northridge from Maryland and wanted to become a California resident by taking the California driver’s test and registering to vote.
Los Angeles is famous for long lines at the DMV and it was no exception this time. We stood in line for almost two hours. We passed time in the line by chatting in ASL. All of a sudden, I get a tap on my right arm. I turn and look. It’s an elderly lady waiting in the line with us.
“You’re both deaf?” she says.
“Yes Ma’am,” we answered.
The lady said to us, “Deaf people can’t drive.”
I guess if we could hear her tone of voice, she was probably saying it in an tone like “sorry to break the news to you honey, but you can’t do that. Maybe you should leave the line.”
I looked at my roommate. She rolled her eyes at me. We both pulled out our California and Maryland driver licenses and showed the lady. I informed her that I had been driving for more than 5 years and I have never gotten a ticket. She carefully inspected our licenses. I suppose she expected them to be fake.
We took our licenses back and explained that hearing is not a requirement to drive, and that we rely on our eyes to be aware of what’s going on around us, including seeing sirens. The elderly lady watched my roommate go through for her exam. I stood aside in the waiting area and watched the elderly lady go up to a station and ask one of the DMV clerks if deaf people can drive, “like the deaf girls back there,” pointing at my roommate and myself. I gave a bright smile when they looked at me.
The clerk answered politely, “Yes, as long as they pass the driving and vision exam,” pointing at the sign above with the letters in various sizes.
My roommate passed her driving test with flying colors. In fact, my roommate went as far to go up to the elderly lady again, and show her her scores. The lady turned to a companion and said, “Wow, deaf people can drive.”
I had to pull my roommate away before she could shout in perfect speech, “Told you SO!”
Deaf people have been driving for as long as the car was invented. Statistically, the Deaf have driving records at least as good as hearing people.
“Deaf people make better drivers than people with normal hearing — and they could be the world’s safest motorists, a fascinating new study shows.
“That’s because they compensate for their disability by concentrating on watching the road, the research showed.
“‘They’ve got it all over us hearing people when it comes to driving,” said a spokesman for the National Association of Driver Educators for the Disabled.
“‘They’ve always taken in everything with their eyes and as a result they tend to see everything when they’re at the wheel.”
“And not being able to hear ambulance and other emergency sirens doesn’t make deaf drivers unsafe at all. The study found that deaf drivers check their rear view mirrors frequently and can tell immediately if they should pull to the side of the road.” — Weekly World News, Lantaria, FL, April 25, 1995.
There is no law against the deaf to drive, as long as we have excellent eyesight and understand the rules of the road. Some states want you to buy a panoramic mirror. I got this suggestion from a New York DMV clerk when I applied for a New York driver’s license in 2000. Of course I didn’t get a panoramic mirror because it cost too much for my budget. As long as I had the two side mirrors and rear-view mirror of a good size, I couldn’t justify buying a panoramic mirror.
Another favorite is, “You can’t get a good job because you’re deaf.”
There are many deaf/hard of hearing webmasters, IT, software engineers, computer systems administrators, and others in white collar jobs. I remember one deaf young man, a first generation Chinese-American who was a CSUN graduate. He went on to take a job at SUN Microsystems as an IT Manager.
We have a history of notable deaf and hard of hearing people who changed America’s history, and living legends. They are chronicled in several books such as Movers & Shakers: Deaf people who changed the world by Cathryn Carroll and Susan M. Mather, printed 1997.
This list was borrowed from a web page listing common misconceptions of the deaf and hard of hearing:
- You, as deaf, can’t have a relationship with a hearing person - they would snub you.
- You, as deaf, cannot be manager or boss to other persons in a business.
- You cannot use the phone.
- You, as deaf adult, cannot be entrusted with responsibility to a group of children.
- You should take with you an hearing person (not an interpreter) to interpret for you when you are being interviewed for a job.
- You must stick with whatever lousy job with lousy salary you are having, and not dream about looking for a better job.
- You cannot be self-employed and be successful in it.
- You cannot drive a car.
- You cannot pilot an airplane.
- You cannot be a physician.
- And much more.
It’s like telling Stephen Hawking he can’t be a brilliant theoretical physicist because he’s in a wheelchair.
What has your experience been locally?
11 Comments
Leave a Reply
-
Contacting Hana
Got a question? Something you want to bring to my attention? E-mail me! -
Looking for Deaf Events?
Deaf Calendar Events are being listed on
CalDeaf Events Calendar, please visit them for the latest Deaf Events.
Also, if you are on Facebook, join the Deaf Californians here.
Tell hearing people to “GET L O S T !!!” if they tell us we can’t do anything.
I have had some expeirence with hearing people telling me I can’t do anything and I said “Watch me.”
I had been pulled down by some managers when I kept climbing up the ladder at the company where I worked. I fought and fought till I was promoted.
Some clerks at the grocery store abruptly stopped me from scanning my food at the self-checkout and took over just after she saw me talking with my husband in ASL. I said I will talk to the manager next time she stops me again.
They need to learn to trust us.
My Drivers’ Education textbook said that Deaf drivers had BETTER driving records than their hearing counterparts. Oh how I wish I had a copy.
Loved your story! When I was young and married, we were living in an college apartment for married students. One young couple became interested in befriending with us. I never forget the lady’s shocked expression when she tried to offer me rides to places, and I looked at her and said I can drive to places. That was back in 1975! It continues to amaze me that people still think that deaf people can not do this or that.
Yeah, you hit the nail right on its head!
=)
I recall a long time ago when I was 16 years old at high school back in 1968, I was in driver’s education class. The teacher did mention that deaf are safest drivers than hearing. Deaf use eyes 99 percent of times while hearing depend on ears to do the job… Hello?
I do remember the rude questions that hearing people did ask me through the years. Some did not believe me that I can drive so I had to pull out my driver’s license and in my thoughts….” I could have shoved it in your face! and say what a stupid F–K you are?”
We have NAD (National Association of the Deaf) fought with the Congress to remove the upcoming legislation back in 1950’s that they were going to ban deaf people from driving.
We are the luckiest country in the world.
When I was in college during 1970’s , there were nice friends from Hong King. They were cool and I felt sorry for them that they were still NOT allowed to drive. Even tho, the son of a banker (wealthy family) cannot drive. He came to America and he enjoyed the freedom to drive.
There is lingering problem that deaf drivers face! The police misunderstandings and brutality from coast to coast are still rampant!
*Sigh!* We need to remind them we have rights to equal communication. If they cannot sign, they need to get sign language interpreter!
You know the famous story about a deaf driver and a hearing friend.
I do not have to repeat it as you know it! The hearing guy tried to cheat and ended up meeting the signing cop! Hee! Hee!
We can educate them and help reduce the ignorance!
=)
As a Deaf Oralist - My parents wouldn’t let me to drive when I became a sweet 16 during in ‘80. My sisters who are twins and a year older then me got a learning permit when they are only 16 - 17. I was very frustrated … struggled in trying to explain my parents til FINALLY my VR counselor told my mom. Deaf are the safest drivers than hearing. She gulped. I finally got my learning permit at 19. It is soooo late! I did sneaked out a few times driving around with one of my sisters. — It is because I was in college at the time. Can you imagine that one of my sisters flunked the driving test FOUR times! I passed the test with the flying color. It is funny that we took the driving test under the same cop! (but different time thou). I was thrilled and told my dad .. I got my license. He stunned and walked away. Still today some hearing people asked me if I can drive or not. *eyes rolled*
Oh yes, this is one of the audistic things that peeves me the most!
I can relate. I am now studying to get my pilot’s license, and man, I’m telling you, a deaf person trying to become a pilot is HARD! Even worse than deaf people driving in the ’50’s. It is quite difficult to find a flight instructor who’s willing to teach a deaf student, and when I finally found one, it cost almost twice the typical cost, geesh..
i wonder how that lady would have felt if you had told her she was too OLD to drive (which they usually are) and that you would like to see her eye test scores…we in america unfortunately still have all of these prejudices and hang ups that other countries don’t…and we wonder why we’re so unpopular…
I grew up as Deaf in a Hearing World because my family are hearing. I got my license when I was 19 since my mother thinks that I shouldn’t be driving because of my deafness. Well, I showed her that I can drive a car plus found a pamphlet from Insurance Agency that said Deaf drivers are the safest than Hearing drivers. That’s when my mother gulped after she read it.
Problem is though most cops thinks we shouldn’t be driving because we sign. Oh please, we all never have problem with that. Also I even leave the overhead light on at night while driving for over 20 years, so there is no law against that either, I should know because my brother’s a cop.
I’m sure many of you are safe drivers, but not all deaf drivers should be on the road. A deaf driver smashed into me on my bike just six weeks ago. I suffered extensive injuries, spent two weeks in the hospital and have medical bills totally over 300K. I will be unable to walk for another three months. This man was not fit to have a drivers license. I’m not opposed to the deaf being licensed - I just think the standards for issuing licenses to the deaf should be tightened up so someone like the man who hit me is estopped from getting a license.
I wonder if deaf drivers have a more difficult time obtaining auto insurance…
Anna, accidents happen everyday and most of them are caused by hearing people. You are right “not all drivers should be on the road” but being deaf has nothing to do with that. And no, accident statistics do not justify different criteria for a deaf person applying for auto insurance.
HELLO EVERYONE I AM DEAF ALL MY LIFE TOO YES I HAD SOME HEARING POEPLE TELL ME THAT I CANT DO THIS AND THAT , WELL THAT THEY PROBLEM IF THEY DONT THINK WE CANT DO ANYTHING , WE CAN SHOW THEM WHAT WE CAN DO ANY WAY WE CAN , NO ONE CAN STOP TO DO ANYTHING AT ALL , MAYBE WE COULD TRUN THE TV SOUND OFF FOR THEM AND LET KNOW WHAT IS LIKE TO BE DEAF PERSON , THAT WILL GIVE THEM AN IDEA WHEN THEY CAN T HEAR THE SOUND FROM TV , HEY GOOD IDEA WHEN SOMEONE SAY WE CANT WE DEAF AND THEN WE SAY OKAY WATCH ME BUT HOW ABOUT THIS WATCH AND LEARN .
YES SOME PEOPLE CAN BE RUDE SOMETIME , SOME DAY THERE WILL BE MORE DRAF PEOPLE AS MANY HEARING LISTEN SO LOUD MUSIC AND SOON OR LATER THEIR EARS DRUMB WILL STOP WORKING AND CANT HEAR ANY MORE THEN THEY WILL WANT TO LEARN ASL . HOW MANY PEOPLE OWN IPOD MUSIC TODAY HUH ? THINK ABOUT IT .