Deafs in the military? issues of benefits.

http://www.deafdc.com/blog/shane-feldman/2007-02-15/deaf-soldiers/

 Shane wrote this blog. I was going to address a similar issue and thought this was the perfect time to mention it. Deaf people cannot enlist in the military because we cannot hear. What most people do not realize is, just how good the benefits are in the long run. There’s the G.I. bill in which you get I believe $40,000 to use toward college. You also get military discounts of all kinds from low interest rates in buying houses, cars or motorcycle for life. The military also has extensive online classes that you can take to learn about anything. I checked to see if ASL was included as one of the foreign language requirements and it wasn’t listed. I worked for the Army as a civilian for a short time so I learned what the benefits were.

If Deaf people cannot enlist in the military, shouldn’t the government grant these opportunities to all Deaf people then? Yes, we can get SSI/SSDI and vocation rehab assistant but if i was 18 years old, I would rather get the military benefits than get ssi/ssdi and go through all the bureaucracy with vocational rehab. I would absolutely love the low interest rates when buying houses or cars. The $40,000 G.I. bill is nice because it means that I would have the freedom of going to any college I want and not be restricted by vocational rehab. Every state is different, some states can’t afford to fully help out the deaf student or limits their choice of college.

I do not see a problem with Deaf people going through basic training just like everyone else. It’s not a program that teaches people how to kill, but rather a program that teaches people how to be mature and responsible adults. If education failed many deaf people and they do not want to go to college, why can’t they enlist in the military and learn so many skills on the job. After basic training, the choice to decide what to learn is up to them. Believe it or not, many veterans have gotten great job at microelectronic companies because of their electronics training during active duty.

 If the government prevents Deaf people from enlisting in the military, then what alternatives do we have in joining other than to be a civilian employee? If we are prevented with supposedly a good reason, why should we be denied benefits that veterans get?

Lastly, what is all this obsession within the deaf community about being the 1st deaf to do so and so? To me, that is extremely counter-productive and reinforces the notion that it is really tough to do all the things hearing people do. I am never impressed when anyone says I am the first deaf to do so and so, because I already have it in my mind that Deaf people can absolutely do anything. Yes, a deaf person can be a mayor, president of the USA and any other country, scale mount everest, sail around the world, get 10 Ph.D degrees, be the greatest basketball player ever, anything you think of, a deaf person can do it. We shouldn’t be working toward goals of being the 1st deaf to do this or that because that reinforces our belief we are inferior. I tell people all the time that there are over 100 lawyers in the USA who are deaf or HoH and they act shocked.  What does the ability to hear have to do with putting out fires? What difference does it make if you are the 1st deaf (insert label) to get a Ph.D from (insert college)? This needs to stop. We need to recognize and compliment people for their achievements, not because simply they were the 1st, and to reinforce the notion of that 1st deaf person’s superiority over others. I see an ongoing debate within the bowling community who the 1st deaf bowler to make it to the PBA was, and I could care less, anyone who makes it deserves the praise because it takes hard work to get there as a bowler, not because you are deaf and a bowler.

 I know people say being deaf is harder, but many people do not think that. I don’t think it is harder at anything because i am Deaf. I know my path is much different because I am deaf, and things become difficult for me because of old existing rules about deaf people such as enlisting in the military. If the military allowed deaf people to enlist, why do we care who the 1st deaf person to make through it is, as long as any deaf people can do it.

And no, I am not the 1st deaf person to point out this cultural phenomena about deafs wanting to be the 1st to do so and so.