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HEARING-MIND: The American Sign Language (ASL) sign that means to be "Hearing in the head" and/or "Hearing minded."
In ASL, there's a sign that people use to describe someone who is deaf but thinks and acts more like a hearing person. It's kind of like saying their body is deaf, but their mind is more in tune with people who can hear. This sign provides a way to comment about how someone fits into the Deaf community. The sign is done by doing the sign HEARING-(person) but doing it near the forehead instead of near the mouth.
HEARING-MIND is an idiomatic expression in American Sign Language (ASL) that serves as a cultural epithet within the Deaf community. This term encapsulates a complex and nuanced concept, referring to an individual who, although physically deaf, is perceived as culturally and linguistically aligned with the hearing community rather than the Deaf community. The term "Hearing-mind" reflects a deeper discourse on identity and cultural affiliation within the Deaf community.
The Deaf community is distinguished not only by the shared characteristic of being deaf -- but also by a rich cultural and linguistic heritage centered around ASL and unique social norms. The term "Hearing-mind" is used to describe a person who may lack the cultural and linguistic experiences or affiliations that typically characterize Deaf culture. It suggests a divergence between the individual's physical state (being deaf) and their cultural or psychological identity (aligned with the hearing world).
To understand the term "Hearing-mind" in a broader context, it can be likened to food-based metaphors used in other cultures to describe somewhat similar phenomena. For instance:
"Oreo": Used in African American communities to describe someone who is Black by race but is perceived to align with White cultural norms — "Black on the outside, White on the inside."
"Coconut": A term for individuals of Hispanic or South Asian descent who are seen as brown externally but culturally white.
"Banana": Applied to individuals of East Asian heritage who are perceived as yellow on the outside but white in terms of cultural identity.
"Apple": Sometimes used to describe Native Americans who are perceived as being 'red on the outside, white on the inside.'
Like these terms, "Hearing-mind" is a cultural epithet that signifies a perceived mismatch between external characteristics (racial, physical) and internal cultural identity.
As with many cultural epithets, the use of "Hearing-mind" in the Deaf community is not without controversy. It can be seen as a way of enforcing a homogenous view of what it means to be culturally Deaf, potentially oversimplifying the rich diversity of experiences and identities within the community. The term may carry connotations of exclusion or judgment for those who do not conform to the expected cultural norms.
The term "Hearing-mind" in ASL represents a complex intersection of physical characteristics, cultural identity, and linguistic affiliation. It underscores the importance of cultural and linguistic identity within the Deaf community, while also highlighting the nuanced and varied experiences of individuals within this community. As with all cultural epithets, the term is embedded in a broader social and cultural discourse and should be approached with sensitivity and an understanding of its implications.
HEARING-MIND is judgmental and tends to be used in an effort to enforce the signer's homogenous view of what it means to be Deaf "enough."
I recommend avoiding the HEARING-MIND sign. Instead focus on respecting the rich diversity of experiences, journeys, and identities within the community
(William G. Vicars, EdD, 2023)
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