I am deaf. I have profound loss in my left ear and severe loss in my right ear.
I wear hearing aids in both ears. As a child I wore a phonic ear which was a great big heavy brick of equipment which was worn in a harness.
Despite my level of kids I don't use BSL. The majority of deaf people don't.
I am now starting to use the deafblind manual alphabet because I am also registered blind and lip reading is very hard with a visual impairment :)
Yes there is a Deaf community whereby people use BSL and are able to communicate freely. Despite being dad I have been excluded by the Deaf community in my town because I don't use BSL
A friend of mine who does use BSL although not in most situations as she is an excellent lipreader and now has cochlear implants, is campaigning in parliament for BSL to be put in the national curriculum, which is an excellent idea and I would be delighted if my hearing child is able to learn BSL during her education.
However, if you are not deaf, you are not Deaf.
Deafness is an incredibly isolating condition. It affects every area of your life. It is not switched on and off. It is the source of great anxiety, night and day.
For example, as a hearing person, if things go bump in the night, you are aware. Someone breaking in? Smoke alarm going off? Fire in the area and fire brigade knocking on the door to evacuate the neighbourhood? Phone ringing to tell you if a family emergency.
A deaf person worried about all of these every night. And when they are in the shower. And pretty much all the time they can't see out of the front window.
Being deaf is far more than language and BSL. Obviously.