The Unheard

Malawi, 2020 - 2022

“Deaf women and young girls have the potential to become anything they want. They can work and create a good life for themselves and others just like anybody else. What pulls us down is that we are looked down upon. We appear to people as failures who can’t do anything for ourselves, who have no dreams or desires. But they are wrong, we have dreams, we are talented in different ways. But how can we show how good we are when we are not given a chance to prove our worth?” - Chimwemwe Kamkwamba, Miss Deaf Africa 2019 

In Malawi, Deaf people are often overlooked. There are only two ear, nose and throat surgeons and three audiologists in the entire country. A chronic shortage of sign language instructors means that most Deaf people have no way of communicating with colleagues at work, teachers at school, employers, police, healthcare workers etc. Their ability to find work, learn a skill, or live independent lives is severely impacted. Women are particularly badly affected due to Malawian society's dynamics of masculinity and patriarchy. Their dual status as Deaf and female means they are automatically dismissed and disenfranchised, often even in their own communities. 

In an attempt to help change this narrative, I teamed up with Miss Deaf Africa (herself Malawian) to create a series of portraits that break with the negative stereotypes that surround deafness in Malawi. The hope is that portraying Deaf women as a source of pride will result in better treatment of the Deaf community in Malawi.