Te culture at the gatherings gives each
person a chance to communicate through their own means. Smith enjoys the time she spends with others there. She feels no need to be shy or uncommunicative. While Den- nis may miss her mother at events, she loves the fact that her mom has the opportunity to partake in the community. “I am happy for her,” Dennis said. “She is around everyone who signs and she feels really comfortable.” Dennis’s relationship with her mother has been strengthened through their usage of sign language. A big factor of the family comes from their communication. Te bond between them is not one that can be com- monly found. “While people try, they don’t always include her,” Dennis said. “It makes her more independent, but it’s just one more thing to love about her.” Growing up, school was a place of com-
fort for Smith. When she became deaf, her family chose to transfer her to the Georgia School for the Deaf in Cave Springs. In the new environment, Smith became
very involved in school. “I played basketball and I did cheerleading,” she said. At GSD, Smith took regular classes like math and science, but she also took American Sign Language (ASL) as a foreign course.
Even though Smith has been using sign
language since she was young, at times she doesn’t enjoy using her hands to communi- cate. “I don’t like it when I can’t understand and when I have to use sign language all the time because my first language was English,” Smith said. As a child, Smith was able to learn Eng-
lish before she lost her hearing. According to Robisch, that’s not the case for most deaf people. “ASL is typically considered the first language for the deaf,” she said. “Most people don’t u n d e r s t a n d that English really is a sec- ond language to most deaf people so sometimes just writing the message doesn’t help because it is still in English.” Smith uses her ability to write and un-
derstand English to help hearing people comprehend what she’s saying. She teaches anyone willing to learn how to sign. In family gatherings and other somewhat
uncomfortable environments for Smith, she does not let the the fact that she is deaf from being a negative influence on her life. Smith has grown comfortable with herself, and doesn’t let her surroundings discourage her. “Being deaf isn’t a disability, it’s something you can gain,” she said. In some ways, being deaf has become a
Denise Dennis is shown here as a toddler with her mother and her brother David.
tool for Smith. She can help others under- stand the deaf community better. “One thing people can do to accept the deaf community is to have a class,” Smith said. “Tey can learn ASL so they can be more sociable and interact with the deaf community.” Smith does not view her inability to hear as a disability. “She doesn’t need an interpreter when she goes out,” Dennis said. “She goes to restaurants, stores and clubs alone-her independence is incredible. If I didn’t have a deaf mom, it would be one less thing about me.” n
“I don’t like it when I can’t understand and when I have to use sign language all the time.”
– Latoya Smith, Denise Dennis’s mother
RECOGNIZE THIS SIGN? Find out more about
American Sign Language at
handspeak.com
OCTOBER 2011 • CARPE DIEM 39
Photos courtesy of Latoya Smith
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48