For the past 5 months I have been working silently on creating a new brand/business; DEAF IDENTITY.

Growing up as a deaf person, I was always told how to be, how to behave, how deaf I actually am, I never knew where I belonged or how to fit in, and I always felt that my deafness was up for debate.

/ ‘Well you wear hearing aids so you’re deaf’. / ‘Well you don’t look deaf’. / ‘If you can’t sign then you’re not really deaf’. / ‘Turn your hearing aids up, I’m not repeating myself again’. / ‘You’re not that deaf because you can speak to me and have good speech’. / ‘Ugh, never mind it doesn’t matter’. ///

Since becoming more secure of my #DEAFIDENTITY and how strongly I feel in terms of identifying as a deaf person, I feel incredibly passionate about showing to the world that actually, there is no right or wrong way to be deaf, and that no matter how people might judge or speak to you, they can never take away how you identify as a deaf person.

Growing up, I never had a deaf role model, or a deaf group to identify with, and in today’s society and media where diversity is being spoken about strongly, I’m still yet to see any diversity when it comes to deaf issues and deaf awareness? I love fashion and mixing it whilst raising deaf awareness, is something I feel incredibly strong and passionate about!

Over the next week I will be releasing content over on @deafidentity ahead of its official release this upcoming Friday 27th September at 6pm, and I do hope that you will join me on my new journey, and to realise that it’s time that deafness got recognised, spoken about and more importantly - heard.