The Mask of Benevolence: Disabling the Deaf Community

This is the kind of book that deserves its own category--it's one of those "life-changing" books, like "The Autobiography of Malcom X." If you read it, your view of the world will change, because you will see things in an entirely different light. You'll see it from the perspective of an oppressed minority, Deaf people. If you're thinking, what--Deaf people are an oppressed minority?--that's because you haven't read this book yet. It is essential that you read this book with an open mind. You will be surprised, astonished, disgusted (by the prejudice and oppression), and ultimately, moved by the tenacity and strength of a culture that survives despite every effort by the majority culture to stamp it out. If you are a hearing person about to enter a profession in which you will be encountering or working with Deaf people, this book is required reading. If you are a Deaf person, this is also required reading. If you have no clue about anything involving Deaf people or their beautiful language and culture, this is also required reading. Why? You need to know how (or if) you are part of the problem. If you educate yourself by reading this book, you can work on having a positive impact instead of a negative one. I can't give it more that 5 stars, but I would if I could. It's that powerful.

It was a long time ago...perhaps 15 years. My kid had been diagnosed as Deaf or "deaf" by the hearing community with a small "d." In those days, parents (especially a hearing parent like myself) had no options. Technology for "aided" hearing in all forms was the rage. ASL was not allowed even in the "deaf" school he attended. But my son could hear nothing even with powerful hearing aids. So, for me, a NJ criminal appellate attorney (for 20 yrs), I wanted facts-not-fluff. Dr. Lane's book in Hardcover was released in 1992. When I read the review in the NY Times Sunday Book Review section, I could not drive fast enough to get a copy. Holed up for a day, I read it front to back. And then I knew. No. My vocation was not going to be a criminal attorney, I needed to become an advocate or "the law firm" for one - my own kid. And we needed to move out of NJ so good-bye law practice and the money. Had it not been for this book, though, he would not be graduating to attend a great college next year. Please buy this book. Please do not let "them" tell you it is "radical." Go for it. I beg you....

I found this book to be engaging almost from the beginning; it is meticulously researched, well organized, logical, yet passionate in its defense of an oppressed language minority. One could certainly argue that Mr. Lane short-changes his opponents by not really addressing their arguments on the benefits of mainstreaming Deaf children, but the purpose of this book is not to present both sides of the issues; the purpose is to demonstrate the oppression of the Deaf language and therefore their culture. It provides strong evidence that the Deaf child is a minority, not an invalid, and that the tendency of hearing parents to see mainstreaming as the only option is a dangerous mistake. This is deep reading and scholarly writing, at times to the point of near inaccessibility to a mainstream audience. However, it is convincing and eye-opening if one is willing to put the effort into reading it. Sadly, the reader from New Jersey seems to have missed the point of this book. By condemning Mr. Lane as refusing to "recognize that different lifestyles are better for different people," he fails to see that Mr. Lane defends the Deaf as a different lifestyle that deserves to be recognized! This book is not saying that no Deaf (especially late-deafened adults) should try to learn lip-reading or consider cochlear implants. It is simply saying that those Deaf who wish to take part in Deaf culture, who wish to be Deaf, should be given that option as well.

Harlan Lane shows how Deafness is a cultural affiliation and only through the hearing world's oppression does it become a disability. Very well-written and researched, Lane digs deep into the Deaf culture and history to bring us this excellent resource. I believe that anyone saying that this work is biased and obsolete holds biased and obsolete viewpoints themselves. Come into this with an open mind, and you will leave a better person. Highly recommended!

This book written by Dr. Harlan Lane is more that profound. It has the power to solidify any HOH or Oral Deaf persons identity. His book is written as he sees the world though a Deaf persons struggle in a hearing world and goes well beyond to explain what it is really like to be Deaf. I highly recomend this book for everyone.