The Internet as a tool for empowering the Deaf

Abstract

This article is dedicated to the process by which representatives of the Deaf community, exposed to oppression, gain effectiveness, independence and influence by using the Internet. I begin with a brief explanation of the concepts I use, and then I discuss the oppression of the Deaf, especially in the field of education, and their communication exclusion. The main part of the article is a description of my own research, which includes my conducting of 26 interviews with deaf people who are using the Internet. In presenting the results of this exploration, I take into account the fact that empowerment has three dimensions – personal, realizing in interactions, and public. It turns out that in the personal sphere, the Deaf use the Internet in a similar way as hearing people. This can be assessed positively, considering the fact that we are dealing with people exposed to exclusion. In the dimension of interaction, the Internet allows the Deaf to communicate remotely in their primary language – Polish Sign Language. This is of great importance for the functioning of the dispersed Deaf community. I present the Internet as a tool for the Deaf empowerment in the public and political dimension, not only by referring to my own research results, but also relying on the network actions of deaf activists: the Deaf Academy foundation and Bartosz Marganiec.