Compassion – …And the Truth Shall Set You Free.

Deaf Community: Rehabilitation Over Retribution

June 16, 2018 The Last Hiccup1 Comment

Life in Deaf community can be challenging, but it can be particularly harder for Deaf returnees whose bodies and minds are being pushed away by ignorance, bullying, and hatred. Deaf returnees serve the principal purposes of punishment: retribution, and rehabilitation. Whose old bones suffer from exile in Deaf community, who are forgetful, suffering human compassion, mocked, and ignored.

Ignorance does not make society safer. Ignorance hurts Deaf returnees, not dangerous people. Ignorance locks up Deaf returnees who have been convicted of a crime. Ignorance hurts vulnerable community that is known as Deaf returnee community, the world’s smallest human population.

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I lived 30 minutes from Mt. St. Helens, the famous eruption in 1980. I am also a Deaf returnee. I found myself in trouble with the law; I had to face my past. As a teenager in the small town in state of Washington during my junior high days, I suffered and experienced a horrible tragedy.

Now I am 43 years old. The horrible tragedy was 32 years ago. Stories from a time when as a child myself did not learn or taught lessons what was right and wrong who were responsible for my early learning.

A Greek philosopher, Aristotle once wrote, “Memory is the scribe of the soul.”—In this case, writing is the mirror to my soul and the doorway into my existence where I was told that in Deaf community, I do not exist.

I had thought when I traded my life as a dedicated suburbanite for a life in Deaf community I had experienced about as radical a transition as I would ever face. As you read this it is good to realize that empowering Deaf returnees is the highest human compassion. By all reports life behind the fence as Deaf returnee is very different, and is often a much more degrading and dangerous experience.

Malthus who was born in 1766 and died in 1834, he studied at Cambridge and was selected to be a fellow at Jesus College in 1793. Five years later, he published Essay on the Principle of Population in which he argued that population would outrun food supply and would increase population. My point is that Deaf returnees are hungry for circle of support, empowerment, compassion, and higher education in the eyes of human population.

Do they deserve a second chance in Deaf community? Do they deserve being shunned? Rehabilitation should be number one priority over retribution in Deaf community.

-JT

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Why Mental Health Awareness Month is Important for Deaf Community

May 23, 2018May 23, 2018 The Last Hiccup1 Comment

This is the making of mental health awareness month. This is the Deaf community, which aims at presenting a view of awareness of how important Deaf-centered counseling in perspective.

The theme is the making of Deaf community. The discussion will be in two parts; for instance, the tension between hearing therapists and Deaf-centered therapists: continuity and change in mental health awareness community, the principles of social respect, the society, the differences between the hearing and Deaf people.

It is important that the mental health awareness month need to be understood. Deaf centered counselors makes all the difference: how it influenced, and been influenced by, the world of Deaf-centered thinking.

Today and tomorrow we need to push and recognize higher awareness about mental health on the edge of Atlantic and Pacific Ocean to empower Deaf community in America. We need to remember that mental health awareness is representative of Deaf community.

The mental health awareness symbolizes the individual journey we each must take to find our own path. Within the mental health awareness and Deaf-centered counseling, there are two directions. Circle of life, and center of the circle, is a symbol of strength, endurance, and vision.

Can we also understand that it is important to recognize that Deaf-centered counseling signifies the renewal of life and the compassion?

Please check out the only Deaf-centered counseling:

http://www.deafcounseling.com/

-JT

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Well-Being: The Hallmark Way of Deaf People for Holidays

December 31, 2017 The Last HiccupLeave a comment

World Kindness Day: Escape from Stigma

November 14, 2017November 14, 2017 The Last Hiccup2 Comments

Today, November 13, 2017, is World Kindness Day. Seriously, it is. Good time to remind yourself that for next year and for the reminder of the humanly lives. Be kind. Remember that everybody is fighting his or her own personal battles that you know nothing about. Stop hate please. I am writing about Deaf returning citizens.

Currently, I am reading a book, Stand up to Stigma: How We Reject Fear and Shame by Pernessa C. Seele, has helped me to think and questions that we need to analyze more about community accountability. We also need to recognize in a hierarchy who do a good job that would be promote to the next level. If they are not competent, then they do not get promoted and remained at that level. We also have responsibility to break the cycle of stigma, too.

Seriously, this book is damn good! I’ve read few books about Stigma, but this one is the top of all! I write to you that it will worth every dollar of yours to read this book and help break the cycle of stigma, and guide you to see the personal stories and it is only $17.95, of course with taxes.

Remember great literature George Orwell, that guy was brilliant for creating a shared language for educational equity, to understand the glossary of an important term:

Doublethink: The power of holding two contradictory beliefs in one’s mind simultaneously, and accepting both of them.

Then does it leads to a compassion that is any and all thoughts that serves the actions of seeing ourselves? Do we ever wonder that we do not talk enough about compassion?

Compassion is enhanced wherever and whenever consciousness displaces repression and unconsciousness and reality replace unreality.” Compassion & Self-Hate: An Alternative To Despair by Theodore Isaac Rubin, M.D;

Be kindness. Like I wrote above, everybody is fighting his or her own personal battles that you know nothing about. Let’s celebrate World Kindness Day!

-JT

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From Rejection of Deaf People in Hollywood Industry

October 25, 2017October 25, 2017 The Last HiccupLeave a comment

Ah, people has asking me what are my thoughts about the latest movie, “Wonderstruck” from what I understand that there were hearing people who pretended to be Deaf– has shed light on what hearing privileges really mean when they attack Deaf people and steal the image from them as well as free speech, too. I am not writing about the law or the Constitution, I am writing about how hearing actors or actresses hijack the system and using it to amplify oppression as a message. The illustration above was drawn by Brian Selznik.

I continue to be amazed by the unnecessary cruelty of the Hollywood industry, which has again taken aim at the most vulnerable members of the society in the name of language hegemony. Isn’t Hollywood industry was supposed to be the “civil rights and human rights” safeguard to protect Deaf people from unequal treatment? Obviously not. It is not the first time what Julianna Moore has continue to be ignorant about the importance of Deaf Studies in recent memory.

A graphic created by Amber Zion–Deaf person with plenty of talent!

This is the time to think about that there are plenty of Deaf talent can do to stop exploitation of Hollywood to hire hearing actors or actress to act as Deaf. We need to educate them in anti-bias and anti-bullying discourses. Can we educate them with effective tactics that defuse exploitation before they can trigger over time into the kind of systematic oppression?

When Deaf people show the world that they have talent in acting with better eye movements, learns of people with hearing privileges and deceit, they essentially disowns Deaf citizens and implore them to shut up and stay in the cell in order to allow them to beat their appearance up and harm their reputations. Again, when Deaf citizens learn that the oppression in Hollywood have been returned to be practiced, they are suffering in the hands of oppressors. Oh, the sentencing of their fate!

We are tired of the worst oppression over the past year that a well-known Hollywood actress has again stepped over Deaf people just like stamped out Audism! Did Hollywood really acknowledge their errors? No. Instead, in the days since, oppression of Deaf people in Hollywood scenes, they would probably refuse to acknowledge their mistakes. All evidence to the contrary, Hollywood have continued to insist on Julianna Moore’s false version as a Deaf person, ignoring the grief of Deaf community, who are trying to make an attempt to educate the society that there are plenty of Deaf people who can show their talents.

Even a Deaf administrator and moderator for Deaf Talent Guild News wrote, “I do not wish to see any more posts critical of Julianna Moore for taking the deaf adult role nor discussing plans for a boycott of the movie Wonderstruck, which frankly in my opinion would be counter productive. I know some of you may not have fond opinions of her after reading the news of what she did…she may have already realized by now she made a mistake; let her be.”

Umm, excuse me, what about the pain what Deaf community has suffered? Where is the compassion? This is a disgrace. We are talking about the opportunity—no longer in the invisible hand. Isn’t Hollywood supposed to be the land of the opportunity? Deaf people on Mother Earth have a reason–know no life other than America. Can we even recognize Hollywood’s America?

I want to make it clear that this is not hoax or an exaggeration. I have been personally embarrassed by this whole ordeal, but out of continued frustration, I find it now necessary to write about what occurred in Hollywood. I feel that least writing this post could help start healing process. When I had been chosen to as an actor for Deafhood Monologues in Washington, D.C.—I understood the importance of Deaf talent where Julianna Moore has twice oppressed the Deaf community—with the quote below:

You will know you are completely done with something when you give it up and feel freedom instead of loss”.—Emily Maroutain

-JT

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References:

https://www.neh.gov/humanities/2012/januaryfebruary/feature/deaf-meets-wonderstruck

Beating the Online Bully: How To Take Action

October 17, 2017 The Last HiccupLeave a comment

The Twitter account “Deaf Access to Justice” operated and moderated by a Deaf returning citizen, Maria Nicole Dollhopf has a strange message of her own—an “obsession” and that is not healthy. It is harmful. It does not mean she is qualified enough to make expert label about my life and claimed that I have “mental issues”. Is she qualified enough to be a doctor, psychologist, or psychiatrist? As cool Hollywood star, Will Smith, makes a strong message:

Never underestimate the pain of a person, because in all honesty, everyone is struggling. Just some people are better at hiding it than others.”

Judging and labeling people indicate that we are not doing enough to protect the basic right to life enshrined in our Constitution. There is also the problem of stigma associated to mental issues, and there is not even enough serious attempt to recognize this issue.

To understand the full “hate” terminology, it is not going to be easy. With her hatred, goals were launched on a grand scale to rip into pieces. The chunk of anger very much visible, the civilization of hatred is more powerful, and the fundamental problem of the hatred also help to avoid guilty by destroying the evidence of my life and stop my success story by turning my life around. Is an obsession a form of mental issue? When a Deaf returning citizen attacks a Deaf returning citizen is the reason why it leads the path of ignorance.

My life struggles are not a mental issue. It is a human struggle. It is a huge difference. Who started the “war” in the first place?

As I had written in older blog posts, the word, “war” is derived from the Old English, “wyrre” which means, “to bring into confusion“–and that is the problem that leads to a psychological process under-minding my truth. When a Deaf returning citizen personally attacks my Deaf friends and tells them not to be supportive of my character and my hard-working to change my life around.

Obsession brings into confusion often that triggers for a war. The extension of compassion, Maria has lacked in this area. Her practice of hate remains of the past and present, triggered by anger must be seen, written, and examined. Continuing to do personal attacks against my character shows the weakness on her part and add more fuel to stigma by posting mugshot of me and leaving it there to have me suffer humiliation and pain by using my full birth name. It does not have to work that way.

Mental issues addresses one of the critical missing links identified by thousands of health advocates. I strongly believe the human ingredient for people with mental issues can lead productive lives by getting rid of hate. The success will be the best tool for human compassion. Maria has no right to say that my mental issues needs to be verified and stay away and protect for the sake. Hate is not cool. My energy is forwarding towards positive steps instead of living in negative environment. The first step is awareness, stand up, and acknowledge constructive and beneficial to stop the cycle of hate.

I wish to leave in peace and harmony. Sure, mental issues for Deaf returning citizens may not enough adequate, Deaf community struggle for more Deaf-centered mental health professionals, although the system is not funded or resourced accordingly. I leave the thought of the day below.

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-JT

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