Being a Good Person Does Not Absolve Anyone of Responsibility

Intent matters, but impact matters more

Jun 13, 2025

“If you knew them…”

Sometimes when a person gets called out publicly after they mess up (often, these days, it’s a content creator on social media) their “fans” or supporters come to their defense. Even in cases where it’s clear the person made a mistake, and the supporters acknowledge this, they still come back with statements like, “don’t be so quick to judge, they’re such a good person!”

Great. Glad to hear it. So what? If they’re a good person, they’ll want people to make them aware of their misstep, and will want the opportunity to make amends or correct their error. We all mess up, including “good” people — regardless of what people think of our character, we still need to take accountability and repair any harm we have caused, however unintentional.

For example, a Deaf content creator named Eric teaches ASL, performs ASL poetry and theatre, and coaches Deaf performers as well as ASL Interpreters. He has made a number of videos (stitches/duets) pointing out mistakes that people have made in their signing. It’s important to note, these people are often hearing signers who are benefitting financially from their videos — either through monetized content, or by advertising ASL courses, or both. They’re presenting themselves as experts in some way, and are earning money by appropriating a language and culture they don’t fully understand, then perpetuating inaccurate information and teaching incorrect signs.

I noticed people defending the person based on the fact that “nobody’s perfect” and perhaps they’re “still learning”, or by saying we shouldn’t be “gate-keeping” sign-language. Nobody is saying people should be perfect, that they shouldn’t learn, nor that they shouldn’t use sign language. Two very important and distinct points many people in the Deaf community are trying to express, and have been saying for a very long time, are (1) don’t teach ASL if you’re not Deaf — learn it, absolutely, but don’t teach it, and (2) don’t profit off a language and culture that isn’t yours.

I also saw hearing people coming to the “rescue” of their fellow hearies, saying things like, “I heard the voice-over (or heard what the person said themselves), and their signs were correct” or “close enough” and we don’t need to “nit-pick” mistakes. No, we don’t need to “nit-pick”, but if Deaf people can’t understand your signing, then for whom are you signing? For yourself and for fellow hearing people? To make money and gain attention (clout, followers on socials, etc.)?

Not only does teaching or using inaccurate signs cause those who are learning ASL to pick up incorrect vocabulary, it also detracts from what these content creators claim they’re trying to do: increase accessibility. If Deaf people can’t understand your signing, and you’re teaching people signs that are not correct, you’re creating more barriers – including confusion, frustration, misunderstanding, and miscommunication — barriers Deaf people already face every single day of their lives.

The hearing saviour complex is real

Worse still, when hearing people come into the comments and tell Deaf people to stop criticizing and complaining, you’re speaking over Deaf people who are negatively impacted by this behaviour, and trying to speak for the Deaf community when it’s not your place. That’s ableism, specifically audism. You’re acting as a spokesperson rather than an ally, and in fact, your behaviour has the opposite effect from that of allyship. An ally would make space for the Deaf people to speak for themselves, would support the Deaf community and listen to what the Deaf community is trying to communicate, not correct us in matters that we know about firsthand and you do not.

I even saw an Interpreter — someone whose entire career is based on increasing accessibility for Deaf people! — complain that videos like Eric’s (which are not personal attacks, they’re respectful and fact-based, focused on increasing accurate communication) are the reason they feel they can’t post videos of themselves signing online. No matter what, they decried, someone will always disagree with the way they sign something.

First of all, this isn’t about regional variation or personal preference. The critiques are based on a lack of clear and accurate communication, pointing out when someone’s signing does not actually convey its intended message, and when the signing is not able to be understood by Deaf viewers. This isn’t about the feelings of hearing people, especially those whose job it is to facilitate communication for the Deaf community. It’s about accessibility.

Also, it's one thing to post a video as an average social media user, and quite another to do so as a “public figure” with potentially large(ish) followings. Content creators who are profiting off their videos must be willing to be held accountable for appropriating a language and culture that isn't theirs for their own benefit (whether that be clout, followers, financial gain, or all three). That's very different from posting a video as an Interpreter, for example, to share information about a service or event.

Lastly, returning to my original point, I saw people commenting that these content creators are “good” people. Their intentions are good, so we should not “attack” (actually, respectfully and politely criticize) them when they’re “trying their best”. This is a situation in which impact matters more than intent. While they may be good people, their intentions may be good, the real-life impact of their behaviour is harmful. If they’re truly “good” people and true allies to the Deaf community, their impact should be their primary concern, and they should want to change their behaviour in order to ensure they are supporting and advocating for the community rather than harming us.

Nobody Owes You Nice

Linguistic Appropriation on Social Media

Language as an Exploitable Commodity