ABSTRACT
I am a psychologist who administers an inpatient psychiatric unit for deaf people. I’ve made a career of touting culturally affirmative mental health treatment for deaf people. I am constantly thinking about the cross-cultural dynamics between deaf and hearing people, and I have done everything in my power to shape my program so that it lives up to the ideals I advocate. But I face an obstacle in talking about this issue, at least with a deaf audience: I am hearing. Over the years, deaf people have challenged me with questions like these:
These questions challenge my “cross-cultural legitimacy” (Pollard, 1996), the degree to which a culturally different community accepts one as a
helper. For example, if you don’t sign at all, promote oral education of deaf children, and encourage hearing parents to seek cochlear implants for their deaf children, you will not have cross-cultural legitimacy with the Deaf community. They will not accept you as a helper. Indeed, they may even see you as an enemy.
