When you want to learn all about the Deaf community  and yet you are not involved in it, the rules can be a bit overwhelming. Be sure to keep your eyes open and be alert! The unique expectations in the Deaf community are not all necessarily bad - but they are different than one would expect.

Deaf Community Tells Where They’re Going
One of the strangest things some people encounter when being in an area where the Deaf community is strong, is that Deaf people announce where they're going. It isn't about being obnoxious, but being polite. Deaf people cannot hear you leaving the room.

Eye Contact in the Deaf Community
If you are talking to a Deaf person, it is considered rude not to make eye contact. Deaf people do not hear with their ears, they hear with their eyes. Everything on your face is important to people in the Deaf community, including facial expressions.

Eye contact is like having a polite tone and facial expression is similar to a change of pitch. The Deaf community has a language of its own, American Sign Language (ASL), and a big part of ASL is facial expression. That is why expressions are so important.

Excuse Me? Excuse You!
When two hearing people are standing around talking and somebody says “Excuse me” and walks between the two people having a conversation, that is fine. However, for a Deaf person, that is considered interrupting and is rude. We Deaf people do not always understand etiquette that is practiced in other communities or cultures, but in order to be accepted or welcomed in our community, respect the rules.

Never Call Someone “Hearing Impaired”
No matter what kind of hearing loss a person has, do not call them hearing impaired. It is polite to ask them how they identify themselves. Questions are welcomed and assumptions are not. Labels for any kind of disability, but especially the Deaf, are difficult and very confusing so that's something for another time!