Abigail Heringer Reveals What Not To Say To A Deaf Person
In a new video, deaf Bachelor alum Abigail Heringer reveals things you shouldn’t say to a deaf person. Keep reading to find out what they are.
Bachelor Features Second Deaf Contestant Ever
Abigail Heringer broke barriers in 2021 as the first deaf Bachelor contestant in the franchise’s long history. She didn’t find love with Season 25 lead Matt James but found her person on Season 7 of Bachelor In Paradise.
Abigail fell in love with Noah Erb on the beach in Mexico. They briefly broke up before the season ended but reunited after filming.
The couple is now engaged and renovating a home they share in Oklahoma.
Three years after Abigail Heringer’s breakthrough appearance on the ABC dating show, another deaf contestant is on Season 28.
Daisy Kent has already formed a connection with Joey Graziadei. Like Abigail, Daisy wears a cochlear implant, which provides her with some hearing.
‘Bachelor’ Alum Abigail Heringer Shares Advice For Daisy Kent https://t.co/uK6yODQgrB
— TV Shows Ace (@TVShowsAce) January 31, 2024
Abigail Heringer Reveals What Not To Say To A Deaf Person
Since her start in the Bachelor Nation franchise, Abigail Heringer has been on a mission to raise awareness about deafness and cochlear implants. The social media influencer doesn’t know sign language and relies on her voice to communicate.
Unfortunately, internet trolls sometimes leave rude comments about Abigail’s voice. She also gets comments “complimenting” her for being able to talk well… for a deaf person.
In a new episode of her Instagram series “Hear Me Out,” Abigail addresses why that’s actually insulting and shares more things not to say to a deaf person.
“This one is tricky because I know most people have good intentions when they say this to me, but if you want to compliment my progress with my speech therapy, just say that I speak really well,” she said about the back-handed compliment.
The reality star suggested that people leave out ‘for a deaf person’ when complimenting a deaf person’s speaking voice.
Telling a deaf person. ‘Wow, you don’t look deaf’ is another no-no. Abigail said, “This one confuses me because what is a deaf person supposed to look like?”
Another faux pas is apologizing after finding out someone is deaf. “It sort of conveys that you pity us and a lot of us don’t see our disability as a negative thing,” she explained.
Finally, Abigail Heringer hates when people deny her accessibility by saying they hate subtitles.
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Her Followers Chime In
Abigail Heringer is an inspiration for both deaf and hearing people. Her Instagram video on things not to say to deaf people received comments thanking her for bringing awareness to the issue. The comment section was also full of more tips from her followers.
- The “you don’t look deaf” comments ALWAYS catches me off guard
- Adding mine- when people shush me or tell me to quiet down/im being too loud.
- all of this! my teens also hate when they ask someone to repeat something and the person says, “never mind. it’s not important!” That is isolating. (and unkind)
- The one I hate the most “never mind”. I feel so isolated when people dont repeat the things they said and just say never mind.
- Another thing that bothers me is when I’m trying to understand something that a person said to me and they say just forget it instead of repeating it clearly 🙂
As you can see from the comments, one common problem is telling a deaf person, “Never mind,” instead of repeating yourself.
What do you think about Abigail’s “Hear Me Out” series? Do you find her videos helpful? Sound off in the comments.
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