Deaf Identity Revisited 151
Tales of Birth: Newcomers in the Community
This sense of beginning and second birth is almost literally present in the stories
of newcomers in the community. Young deaf people sharing their experiences of en-
tering the club and the community, learning Flemish Sign Language, and giving
meaning to their life, identity, and belonging were at the core of the Flemish Deaf
Parliament meeting at Piramime, Turnhout. During the interaction among youth,
elders, and board members, they all agreed that while clubs have “fat years” and
“lean years,” an open attitude was a crucial factor in attracting youth, as well as an
understanding of the life worlds of young deaf people. Paul, president of Piramime
at the time of Flemish Deaf Parliament, explains how the club tried to organize
shared activities:I remember that we used to promote our annual New Year reception, on the
second Saturday of January. We sent out the invitations through e-mail; it was
in our monthly journal, so it was promoted widely, but young members didn’t
come. We were seeing the same faces we had known from our time at second-
ary deaf school. Then our board thought about how we could attract young
people. We realized that we had to think differently and had to fit in with
their activities. They always had activities on the third Saturday of January,
such as golf and go-cart racing. So I asked them where they were having their
activities, and then we booked the New Year’s reception to take place at the
same venue on the same day. They were happy, because they could first do
their activities outside and then join us here. It has been like this over recent
years and that is why we have a full house now.The club’s openness toward young deaf people with oral backgrounds involving
mainstreamed settings and cochlear implants, and its identification with other axes
of diversity, were other elements mentioned in the discussion by young people such
as Marie:I grew up in the deaf school in Ghent and I also went to the youth club there,
as well as to other youth clubs in Flanders. This is the youth club where I feel
most welcome, because I am also a little oral because of how I have been raised
by my parents, but I feel more accepted and welcome here. It was easy for me
to contact people and make friends here. It was different and more difficult at
other youth clubs in Flanders.When I asked Marie about the things the club did to make her feel so accepted,
she said:I also live with Usher syndrome, and I think that there is more respect for
that here. For example, when I arrive and say that I can’t see anything, then
people will immediately get up and put the lights on. It’s not a big deal. That
does not happen so easily in other youth clubs. I have even seen people argue
about it, whether the lights could be put on or not. That makes me feel more
accepted here.