Harlan Lane

Harlan Lawson Lane (August 19, 1936 – July 13, 2019) was an American psychologist. Lane was the Matthews Distinguished University Professor of Psychology at Northeastern University in Boston, Massachusetts, in the United States, and founder of the Center for Research in Hearing, Speech, and Language . His research was focused on speech, Deaf culture, and sign language.

Lane was born in Brooklyn, New York. Remaining in New York City for college, he obtained both a B.S. and an M.S. in psychology from Columbia University in 1958. He subsequently received a PhD in psychology from Harvard (1960) and a ''Doc. des Lettres'' from the Sorbonne (1973). In 1991, Lane received a MacArthur Foundation Fellowship.

Lane, a hearing man, became an often controversial spokesman for the Deaf community and critic of cochlear implants. He wrote extensively on the social construction of disability and stated that "Unless Deaf people challenge the culturally determined meanings of ''deaf'' and ''disability'' with at least as much vigor as the technologies of normalization seek to institutionalize those meanings, the day will continue to recede in which Deaf children and adults live the fullest lives and make the fullest contribution to our diverse society." In recognition of his research and advocacy regarding these issues, Lane received the Distinguished Service Award from the National Association of the Deaf (United States), the International Social Merit Award from the World Federation of the Deaf, and numerous other awards.

He was ''Commandeur de l'Ordre des Palmes Académiques'', the highest level of the academic honor given out by the French government.

Lane died in France from Parkinson's disease on July 13, 2019, at the age of 82. Provided by Wikipedia