Camryn Manheim Quotes

I think we really do need deaf people out there writing their own shows.

I know a little bit about deaf culture because a friend of mine has been in the deaf culture for awhile. Over the course of 25 years, she and I have talked about many of the issues and concerns for deaf people and deaf culture.

The deaf culture is portrayed very accurately on 'Switched at Birth' because the writers did the opposite of the norm. They did their homework before portraying anything on television.

I started to realize that there are a lot of people who are unaware of deaf culture, and I've been given a great platform to reframe the deaf community.

While taking sign language in high school, one of our assignments was to go out and participate in the deaf community, so I really got to know a lot of the group from that. I felt like they needed a little bit more of a voice because people treat them different just because they're hearing impaired.

I am one hundred percent ready to be a spokesperson for the deaf community.

I'm really excited to educate the world about what deaf people can do.

Deaf people are struggling to find their favorite show or something that represents them. It's hard. There are some examples of shows that have a deaf storyline in one episode, like Cold Case, or another show where they are focusing on the cochlear implant or the medical aspect.

The deaf community is hungry to see itself in the most positive way.

At the end of the day, 'My Deaf Family' is about a typical family that all of us can identify with but told from an unusual and what I believe will be a fascinating perspective.

I know deaf people. I have discussed the issues with them I've also thought about them a lot so I have some insights that go a little further than people who haven't had contact with the deaf community.

At some point we have to stop and say, There's Marlee, not, There's the deaf actress.

I know what it's like to be growing up, called 'deaf and mute' and 'deaf and dumb.' They're words that are very degrading and demeaning to people who are deaf and hard of hearing. It's almost... it's almost libelous, if you want to say that.

Most of the time, I get auditions for deaf characters where the scene has them communicating in really convoluted ways, like reading lips from across the room when the other person's back is turned or having other people parrot what they say.

I actually then went on to direct an after-school special where one of the characters was deaf. They hired me without even knowing I had any connection to the community.

Inequality within the deaf and hard of hearing community is something I feel really passionate about and always will do.

We have our own culture, our own community. A lot of people don't realize that. They just assume that deaf people are very unfortunate, very disabled, but no.

I'm ready to take the world by storm and have them look at me and say, 'Deaf people can dance.'

I don't know that hearing people have ever felt that experience of truly being left out. They have easy communication, while deaf people can't join in. It takes more time to communicate with us.

Say what you want about the deaf.

The deaf community is nearly never portrayed accurately on television/film because most writers never took the time to immerse themselves in the deaf culture before portraying it on television. They also never got to know their deaf actors.

How many deaf people do you know in real life? Unless they live in a cave, or are 14, which seems to be true for most people in this business, what could I possibly tell them that they don't already know?

I am fourth-generation deaf, which means everyone in my immediate family is deaf. So I grew up always having 100 percent accessibility to language and communication, which was wonderful and something so many deaf people don't have.

I was raised by a single black deaf woman, so I am as independent as they come.

At Gallaudet, deafness isn't an issue. You don't even think about it. Students can pay attention to accounting or psychology or journalism. But when a deaf person goes to another college, no matter how supportive it is, that person doesn't get the same access.