Māori deaf: perceptions of cultural and linguistic identity of Māori members of the New Zealand deaf community

Abstract

Historically Māori Deaf people have been described either medically or in terms of their linguistic and cultural membership of the New Zealand Deaf community. However, recent studies and anecdotal evidence show that ethnic minority individuals within Deaf communities increasingly aspire to explore and assert their multiple identities. The Māori Deaf construction of ethnolinguistic identity has not yet been researched. This study explored Māori Deaf people's perceptions of identity as shaped by their experiences of socialisation into the Deaf-World, Te Ao Māori (Māori world), and mainstream society. Ten participants were interviewed in New Zealand Sign Language (NZSL) by the researcher, who is a hearing Māori daughter of a Deaf mother. Participants discussed their experiences of whānau (family) relationships, schooling, participation and learning in Deaf and Māori communities, their access and attitudes to NZSL, Te Reo Māori (Māori language) and English, and asked to identify aspirations for themselves and the collective of Māori Deaf. Findings were consistent with Foster and Kinuthia's (2003: 278-289) model of fluid situational and contextual identity in Deaf individuals from minority backgrounds. Māori Deaf perceived themselves as having dual or multiple identities, constructed through social interaction in whānau and Deaf community environments. The need for access to a visual language (i.e. NZSL) and for recognition of the social meaning of deafness determined their experiences of isolation or inclusion in hearing/Deaf environments and the extent of their opportunities to develop a cultural identity as Māori and as Deaf. Participants' experiences in Te Ao Māori reflected universal Deaf experiences in hearing environments - i.e. communication and attitudinal barriers to participation. In the Deaf-World, participants found a naturally accessible context for social and linguistic development; however, they reported that the New Zealand Deaf community generally lacked insight into or recognition of their Māoritanga (Māori identity). As a result of the contrasting cultural environments which Māori Deaf navigate from childhood, participants reported some identity conflict and confusion and expressing differing degrees of resolution of such conflict. Collective aspirations included: bridging gaps of linguistic and cultural understanding between the Deaf-World and Te Ao Māori, at the level of the individual, whānau and as communities with agendas for empowerment; access to formal and informal learning opportunities through sign language; and finally, developing Māori Deaf as a 'kaupapa whānau' (a group of non related people with common goals who function as whānau), as expressed in their desire to connect with previous and future generations of Deaf and to establish a firmer 'place to stand' (tūrangawaewae) for Māori Deaf within both Deaf and Māori worlds.