The idea of "privilege and power" has been rolling around in my head for a while now. It all started with an article I read about sign language interpreters and social justice. I have tried to find a working definition of social justice but it only complicates the matter. I understand the word justice but when it is coupled with "social" it apparently becomes something all together different. And in the context of sign language interpreters and Deaf people, it apparently assumes that interpreters as hearing people are the majority group and potentially oppressive to Deaf people. There is actually a name for this. Audism.
Audsim- The notion that one is superior based on their ability to hear...and that there is the belief that Deaf people should struggle to be more like hearing people; to exercise authority over them [Deaf people].
I am not sure why someone or, more correctly, a seemingly vast majority of interpreters believe this is a problem and that interpreters need to address this issue ASAP through our national organization, the Registry of Interpreters for the Deaf (
RID). Folks, both Deaf and hearing, want special positions on the Board of Directors for a Deaf member. They also want a special position for CODA's (Children of Deaf Adults.) Let me make myself clear, I do want Deaf people on the Board. CODA's too. But only if they want to be there. There are 11 positions on the Board and most often elections go uncontested. A Deaf person or CODA who is a member of RID can run for any position. Giving them a special seat is tokenism at best.
Tokenism- The practice of making no more than a token effort or gesture to offer opportunities to a minority equal to the majority.
Well, what if Deaf people or CODA's do not want to serve on a Board for sign language interpreters? When you look at the agenda for the week-long NAD conferences that are held biannually, you don't see a whole lot of workshops on the oppression from sign language interpreters. In fact, there are hardly any workshops at all about interpreters. Period. Even CODA's have a conference. They gather because they share a common experience in being the children of Deaf parents. Not all CODA's are interpreters.
Last time I checked, it wasn't interpreters who were the problem. Except for maybe that dude from South Africa. But he wouldn't have lasted a day in the United States. Deaf education in this country is not what it should be. And, here's something shocking information, 80-90% of parents to deaf children DO NOT SIGN. That's oppressive.
And back to the interpreters screaming about privilege and power. If you don't agree with the concept then YOU are the problem. As I researched this topic, I stumbled across a power point presentation given by Dr. Susan Shaw. I don't know if she is a Ph.D. or MD. Either way, what she is sharing in her community about "white privilege" borders on the ridiculous and references are hard to come by. Her examples of white privilege are laughable.
- "I can go into a hairdresser's shop and find someone who can deal with my hair" Deal with my hair??? Doesn't that sound like non-white hair is a problem??? I happen to have a problem with the hairdresser even though I am white. I have curly hair. It has been since the 90's (when I stopped getting perms) that I have left a salon with my curls. No one can give me great curls after a haircut. I always leave with a blow out. And if I ask them to do it curly? I leave with frizzy, wet hair.
- If I need to move, I can be assured that I can find a place that is affordable and that I would want to live there. And this is white privilege because...
- I can go into a bookshop and count on finding the writing of my race presented. Um, Fredrick Douglas, Maya Angelou (loved her books), Toni Morrison, Martin Luther King Jr., President Barack Obama, Khaled Hosseini, Salman Rushdie, Jorger Luis Borges. These authors were pulled from my own readings and from a list from Goodreads.
- I can easily find academic courses and/or institutions that give attention only to people of my race. Um, to my knowledge, there are no "white only" academic courses or institutions of higher learning. But there are classes dedicated to African American studies and native American studies.
Dr. Shaw's Power Point. Click here.
Privilege and Power? Social Justice? It's nonsense and convoluted. It's a force of control over people's behavior and it asks the majority person to disregard part of who they are. Just because they are seen as a member of the majority does not make them part of some oppressive collective. Be nice to each other. Follow the Golden Rule. Show love. Give grace. That is all.
Updated 1/13/2013: I discovered that Dr. Shaw based her powerpoint on an essay written in 1988 by Peggy McIntosh. She is an American feminist and anti-racist activist. Click to read essay here.
