By: Corey Axelrod, guest blogger
A new show on ABC Family has taken the signing community by storm. Switched at Birth juxtaposes two teenage girls who discover they were accidentally switched as newborns in the hospital. Bay Kennish grew up in a wealthy family with two parents and a brother, while Daphne Vasquez grew up with her single mother, Regina, in a working-class neighborhood. When Daphne was a very young child, she lost her hearing from meningitis.
The plot has an added twist as Daphne and Bay compete for the love of a boy named Emmett – a classic love triangle. Much like the love triangle between Bella, Edward, and Jacob in the book turned screenplay Twilight, Switched at Birth viewers have been forced to pick between Team Bay and Team Daphne.
As a person with hearing loss, I understand where Emmett is coming from when needing to decide between Daphne and Bay. However, if I were in his shoes, I would have probably picked Daphne over Bay. As Emmett’s mother, Melody (played by Marlee Matlin), says, “…relationships are already hard enough,” it makes sense to opt for the “easier way out” and go for comfort over challenge. Despite his mother’s warning, Emmett chose Bay over Daphne.
Whether this will remain the case over the long run only remains to be seen, but the season’s finale is only a precursor of the drama that is about to happen in the coming episodes. My inkling is that in spite of the show’s many subplots, the writers had Emmett select Bay over Daphne mainly for drama, as the show uses subplots (like cultural assimilation, and the parents’ continued battle over power and money) to seemingly stir-up controversy.
However, the drama does not stop there – it has spilled into real life. ABC Family has caused an uproar in the signing community by asking people on Twitter how proud they were of Emmett speaking on the show’s finale (http://bit.ly/mOROca). I don’t want to be critical of ABC Family or of anyone handling the Switched at Birth Twitter account, but it is important that sensitivity is taken into consideration when considering a large number of the show are viewers in the signing community.
Regardless of the tweet from ABC Family’s twitter account, I’m okay with Emmett speaking as it is his prerogative. However, from a deaf person’s perspective, it is slightly condescending of ABC Family to imply that a deaf person should be applauded for attempting to come out of their comfort zone by means of speaking. A more appropriate question ABC Family could have asked is, “Were you surprised Emmett decided to speak?” While either question would likely elicit similar types of discussion, it is unfortunate that ABC Family had to take a patronizing view of deaf people, essentially taking a step backward after taking two steps forward.
ABOUT COREY AXELROD
Corey received his Master’s in Business Administration (MBA) degree in Marketing and Sales Management from Rochester Institute of Technology in 2010. With a profound interest in marketing and brand management, Corey started Synergetic Business Solutions to provide start-up and small businesses with creative and strategic approaches to creating solutions specifically for smaller organizations. Corey also spends his time working at Hager Productions as the Director of Strategy and Business Development, and at Rochester Institute of Technology as an adjunct instructor. During his free time, he enjoys reading, writing, listening to music, and playing and watching sports. You can find Corey on Twitter at @coreyaxelrod and @synbizsol.