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others are saying, and must fill in the blanks for the rest of the conversation despite years of learning the skill.

There are also the obstacles of the person's mouth being blocked by a hand or their lips not moving clearly for the lip-reader to understand properly, or if a deaf or hearing impaired person's back is turned to a hearing individual, they may not be able to respond at all, giving the wrong impression that the hearing person is being ignored.

In any case, whether it is lip reading or sign language, it is important to keep one's face clear of any obstructions and face the hard of hearing or deaf person at all times when addressing them to avoid any problems in this area.

Another deaf/hearing impaired culture feature is that of marriage and family. Nine out of ten members of these communities usually marry others of the same group and many couples also wish for a child that is deaf to pass on their heritage and cultures. It is not only the language, but also the values; the same values that hearing parents want their own children to learn.

This very much explains the controversy we often hear about deaf parents refusing to let their deaf children receive cochlear implants.

Though these implants could open a new world for such children to a degree, it is their parents seeing being a part of the deaf culture as a source of pride and something to be passed on to their children. Of course, a cochlear implant would have no place in that tradition.

Though other cultures have traditions of dress, cuisine, religion or ethical framework, the cultures of hearing impaired and deaf, there are no specifically Deaf/HoH code of ethics.

They also have no mode of dress. Though the hard of hearing and deaf culture may design their own fashions along the lines of Deaf Pride or ASL-themed T-shirts, baseball caps, and badges proudly proclaiming their identities to the world, outside of that, they don't have a style to which they adhere on a traditional basis.

There are no comparable Deaf-cuisine customs, Deaf foods, no community-wide Deaf feasts. Deaf and hearing impaired people eat what their hearing families and friends enjoy what is popular in American cuisine.

In any case, they too can devise their own meal traditions and celebrate important events such as Deaf Awareness Week or Walk for Hearing, but they celebrate holidays and events such as birthdays and Christmas just like hearing families.

Appreciating the deaf and hearing impaired cultures are important; the strongest

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