"CODA Is A Beautiful Reminder That My Deafness Is Not A Deficit"

Erin Schoen Marsh takes a look at the new film CODA and how it relates to her experience in an opinion piece for Refinery29.

Image from the film CODA

She writes:

For many of us, deafness is not a deficit as it has typically been portrayed in film. I see our strength in Ruby’s deaf parents, Frank (Troy Kotsur) and Jackie (Marlee Matlin), who must navigate an inaccessible world created for the hearing. I recognize myself in their everyday interactions as they politely smile and nod despite not being able to hear. I feel the anger and frustrations of her older brother (Daniel Durant), who is also deaf, when he exclaims, “Let them figure out how to deal with deaf people! We’re not helpless.” I felt seen, which is rare in a society that largely centres around sound for communication.

Read the entire piece here.