Deaf-initely Proud
Christopher
Luna describes what it's like being deaf, bisexual and Latino.
 There
is much more to diversity in our Latino community than just
skin color and age. Take, for example, 21-year-old Christopher
Luna of Huntington Beach, California. Christopher is a deaf,
bisexual, Latino. He's just your everyday guy, who enjoys clubbing,
making new friends, dating, surfing the internet, and even collecting
stamps. Christopher is also a student at Santa Ana College. On
an e-mail interview, Chris talked to us about his life and gave
us a glimpse of what it's like to be a bisexual deaf Latino:
What's your ethnic background? Mexican American.
What age were you when you first discovered
your sexual orientation? I think
I found out about my sexual orientation when I was 14 or 15.
Whom did you first tell about your sexual
orientation and what did they say?
I told a close friend. He said it didn't bother him because he
knew other people who were the same way.
How do you meet guys? Is there an organizations where deaf QV/bisexual
people can meet each other? Yes, there are a few organizations
for deaf QV and bisexuals. One is called SCRAD Special Interest
West Hollywood Friends. Another organization is Deaf Queer.
What do you prefer to call yourself?
Hearing-impaired, deaf, or something
else? Deaf-many deaf people don't like people to call them "hearing
impaired."
Are you open about your sexuality in
the deaf community? Yes, I'm open
about my sexuality. Some of my friends who are bisexual or QV
are open about their sexuality in the deaf community, too.
Is it hard to be open there? It is hard to be open in the deaf community because
many (straight deafs) are not cool with it.
What do you mean? The
deaf community is very tricky. Sometimes, they'll say they're
pretty cool with the QV and bisexual community, but some of
them QV-bash. Sometimes they are very two-faced, and you don't
really know what they are really thinking. Some are cool with
it, some are not.
Being that you are bisexual, do you
prefer men, women-or both equally?
I prefer both equally men and women.
If you do settle down with someone,
would you like that person to be deaf or not? I could settle down with either one. I have had
ex's (men and woman) who were hearing.
And how has or how are those hearing
relationships? It's not easy being
in a hearing relationship because of communication. If the hearing
person knows how to sign, then it's no problem. If not, I can
teach them sign language.
Do you ever get discriminated not only
for being deaf, but for being bisexual?
I don't get discriminated for being deaf, but I have been discriminated
for being bi from my ex boyfriends. They tell me not to fool
around with women.
What is the best thing about being deaf
and bisexual? Having friends who
are the same way as I am.
Check out Christopher's site on the
internet at www.baggyboy.com.
by Danny Beltran
Resources
for deaf Latinos
According
to the Deaf Queer Resource Center, there are an estimated 2.8
million deaf QV, bisexual and lesbian people in the United States.
If you are interested in learning sign language, you may either
buy a sign language book at your local bookstore, contact one
of the organizations below, or sign up for American Sign Language
classes at your local community college.
Resources:
California Latino Council of the Deaf and Hard
of Hearing, Inc.
P.O.
Box 65591 Los Angeles, CA 90065 TTY: (562) 634-4112
Email:
CLCDHH@aol.com Internet:
www.deafvision.net/clc/
Deaf Aztlan:
P.O. Box 14431 San Francisco, CA 94114
Email:
aztlan@deafvision.net
Internet: www.deafvision.net/aztlan/
Deaf Queer Resource Center: www.deafqueer.org
The Deaf QV & Lesbian Center: 150 Eureka St., Suite 108
San Francisco,
CA 94114 TTY: (415) 255-0700
<<Previous
Article<< | >>Next Article>>
qv10
Table of Contents | Main Menu
|
