Are you deaf?

Let me start by saying that the expression "are you deaf?" is very offensive to a person who is hard of hearing. Few people use "are you a retard?", "are you disabled?", "are you am amputee?" although I have heard people saying "are you blind?" with more frequency than I would like.  Especially in traffic.

The fact is, that although some people might think twice about calling somebody disabled, retard or blind, to jokingly call somebody's attention to something, using "are you deaf" is rather common.

It offends somebody who has lost some of his hearing, because it demeans us, it makes us feel subpersons. I am not going deaf because I want or enjoy it. And I take strong exception to people using deafness almost as a curse word.

So, next time you are about to say, "are you deaf?", when somebody does not acknowledge something you have said, for whatever reason, think twice.

Losing one's hearing is not a piece of cake, and in fact, it can occur to anybody. Including you!