Jessica Kirkman introduces readers to her Deaf grandparents’ experience – and to Deaf culture – in her memoir. And Sam Drummond recalls growing up with pseudoachondroplasia (a form of dwarfism) in his.
Henry Lawson said deafness was ‘in a great measure responsible for my writing’. Wright said hers was ‘part of the conditions I live under’. Their disability was inherent to their creativity.
They are easy to get, and far less costly than prescription hearing aids. But over-the-counter devices are not the answer for everyone with hearing issues.
Families with deaf children often seek a lot of advice and help, but too rarely find the robust Deaf community in the US full of people with experience and expertise.
It’s refreshing to see disabled actors in disabled roles, but can’t the academy acknowledge films that highlight disability without falling into stereotypical representations?
Those with disaster experience said they hadn’t received proper warnings, which led to confusion, helplessness and panic. There was a sense that ‘we always come last’.
Rather than presenting a disability as an obstacle, life writing can explore the joys, frustrations and creativity of living with disability or Deafness.