[Akron-Talk] Fwd: [Ohio-Talk] This year's resolutions in the body of this message

[Dave Bertsch]

Here are this year's Resolutions, to be voted on at the Convention. List
sent by Barbara Pierce, who wrote:

If you wish to read this year’s resolutions before the meeting of the
committee Friday evening, I am placing all seven of them below. The
committee will read through them and discuss them before voting do pass.
You have another chance to hear them on Saturday afternoon. I will also
send them to Richard with the suggestion that he have them placed on
NEWSLINE. No one should complain this year that you did not have a chance
to digest and think about them before being asked to vote on them.




Resolution 2021-01: Regarding the Need for Ophthalmologists and

Other Medical Professionals to Inform Newly Blind People of the Benefits of

Rehabilitation Services



WHEREAS, the National Federation of the Blind knows that blindness is not
the characteristic that defines us or our future, but many members of the
general public do not believe or understand this principle; and



WHEREAS, too many medical professionals, such as ophthalmologists and
optometrists, hold the same misconceptions about the capabilities of blind
people as does the rest of society; and



WHEREAS, newly blind people frequently become frustrated because they
cannot find information about how to adjust to blindness and have not been
exposed to the positive philosophy of the National Federation of the Blind;
and



WHEREAS, since ophthalmologists and optometrists are already treating newly
blind people, they could provide such information but rarely do because
they view blindness as a failure of their practice; and



WHEREAS, diabetes is the leading cause of blindness in adults, and diabetes
requires medical care from endocrinologists and other medical professionals
who could also improve the quality of life and independence of their
patients by giving them information about rehabilitation services but
frequently fail to do so; and



WHEREAS occupational therapists also have direct contact with people losing
vision; and



WHEREAS, the best way to change the attitudes of medical professionals
towards blindness is to influence their specialized training programs, such
as reaching out to the directors of all medical schools in the State of
Ohio: Now, therefore,



BE IT RESOLVED by the National Federation of the Blind of Ohio in
Convention assembled this sixth day of November, 2021, that this
organization strongly urge the directors  or governing bodies of medical
schools and graduate programs of occupational therapy in the State of Ohio
to work with the National Federation of the Blind of Ohio and Opportunities
for Ohioans with Disabilities to develop a resource list of rehabilitation
services for blind patients and to encourage their students and graduates
to distribute this information so that newly blind people learn to live the
lives they want; and



BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this organization urge Ohio medical schools,
the Ohio Ophthalmological Society,  the Ohio Optometric Association, the
Ohio Occupational Therapy Association, and the Ohio River Region Society of
Endocrinology to work with the National Federation of the Blind of Ohio to
ensure that medical professionals are taught that they have an obligation
to inform their patients about adjustment to blindness resources and the
benefits of the positive philosophy of the National Federation of the Blind.





Resolution 2021-02: Regarding the Need  for the Ohio General Assembly to
Pass Legislation Protecting the Fundamental Rights of Blind Ohioans Quickly



WHEREAS, the blind and other disabled citizens must often work hard to pass
laws protecting basic rights that the sighted and nondisabled public take
for granted; and



WHEREAS, H.B. 352 and S.B.202, legislation protecting the rights of the
blind and disabled to have custody of minor children, is now before the
Ohio General Assembly; and



WHEREAS, HB 448 has recently been introduced in the Ohio House of
Representatives to ensure that the blind have equal access to information
on medication bottles, information that members of the sighted public have
access to each time they fill a prescription: Now, therefore,



BE IT RESOLVED by the National Federation of the Blind of Ohio in
Convention assembled this sixth day of November, 2021, that this
organization call upon the Ohio General Assembly to pass both of these
bills as expeditiously as possible; and



BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that we urge Governor Mike DeWine to sign both bills
into law without delay.





Resolution 2021-02: Regarding the Need  for the Ohio General Assembly to
Pass Legislation Protecting the Fundamental Rights of Blind Ohioans Quickly



WHEREAS, the blind and other disabled citizens must often work hard to pass
laws protecting basic rights that the sighted and nondisabled public take
for granted; and



WHEREAS, H.B. 352 and S.B.202, legislation protecting the rights of the
blind and disabled to have custody of minor children, is now before the
Ohio General Assembly; and



WHEREAS, HB 448 has recently been introduced in the Ohio House of
Representatives to ensure that the blind have equal access to information
on medication bottles, information that members of the sighted public have
access to each time they fill a prescription: Now, therefore,



BE IT RESOLVED by the National Federation of the Blind of Ohio in
Convention assembled this sixth day of November, 2021, that this
organization call upon the Ohio General Assembly to pass both of these
bills as expeditiously as possible; and



BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that we urge Governor Mike DeWine to sign both bills
into law without delay.



Resolution 2021-03: Regarding Discriminatory Language Prohibiting the Blind
>From Obtaining Employment in Child Care Centers



WHEREAS,  Chapter 5101:2-12  of the Ohio Administrative Code requires that
“child care center staff  must be able to see and hear children without the
use of mechanical devices such as baby monitors, video cameras, or walkie
talkies”; and



WHEREAS, 5101:2-12-20 Supervision, Staff/child

Ratios and Grouping for Licensed Child Care Centers (A), specifically says:
“Supervision of children is the function of actively observing and guiding
a child or group of children. This includes awareness of and responsibility
for the activity of each child and being physically present and near enough
to intervene if needed. Supervision means child care staff members have
knowledge of children's needs, accountability for their care, and knowledge
of which children they are responsible for at all times. With the exception
of school age children in programs that have a written supervision policy
permitting school age children to be supervised as specified in paragraph
(E) of this rule, no child shall ever be left alone or unsupervised.
Supervised means that children shall be within sight and hearing of child
care staff members at all times. Staff must be able to see and hear
children without the use of mechanical devices such as baby monitors, video
cameras, or walkie talkies. The use of mirrors to view children in another
room does not meet the supervision requirements of this rule”; and



WHEREAS, blind child care workers and teachers have successfully supervised
children of all ages and abilities without sight; and



WHEREAS, the blind have developed and rely on alternative techniques for
supervising children without sight; and



WHEREAS, time after time the blind have demonstrated that sight is not
required  to observe actively and guide a child or group of children,
including having awareness of and taking responsibility for the activity of
each child and being physically present and near enough to intervene if
needed; blind child care staff members, teachers, and parents have
knowledge of children's needs, accountability for their care, and knowledge
of which children they are responsible for; and



WHEREAS, this discriminatory rule has undoubtedly led to the denial of
employment for numerous blind child care applicants and clearly resulted in
the denial of one such applicant in the Columbus area; and



WHEREAS, HB352 and SB 202, which seek to prohibit discrimination against
the blind and otherwise disabled in parenting and caring for minor
children, are now before their respective committees in the Ohio House and
Senate; and



WHEREAS, it is quite possible that discrimination against blind people
applying for employment as child care workers is an unintended consequence
of an Ohio administrative rule that might be easily misinterpreted by
employers: Now, therefore,



BE IT RESOLVED by the National Federation of the Blind of Ohio in
Convention assembled this sixth day of November, 2021, that this
organization call upon the director of the Ohio Department of Jobs and
Family Services to take any and all steps necessary to make it clear that
the aforementioned rule shall in no way be interpreted to deny an otherwise
qualified blind applicant employment at any child care center located in
the state of Ohio; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that we call  upon Opportunities for Ohioans with
Disabilities, the state agency that has an understanding of the capacities
of the blind to care for children and to perform a myriad of jobs without
sight and that has the responsibility to take action to help end
discrimination in the employment of the blind  in Ohio, to join our active
efforts to get government officials to take action immediately to clarify
that this rule in no way prevents a child care center from hiring an
otherwise qualified blind job applicant.





Resolution 2021-04:

Regarding Promoting  Employment in Journalism for the blind and Visually
Impaired in Ohio



WHEREAS, the National Federation of the Blind cites the unemployment rate
of blind and low vision individuals as 70%; and



WHEREAS, Blind and low vision people are underrepresented in the media
industry; and



WHEREAS, they are routinely discouraged from entering journalism training
programs and the media industry because of its barriers to employment; and



WHEREAS, blind and low vision journalists in Ohio and around the country
have consistently demonstrated that they are fully capable of working as
professional journalists; and



WHEREAS, Ohio has 360 newspapers, at least fifty-two full-power television
stations, over 1,000 radio stations, and countless independent news
websites and other news outlets and publications; and



WHEREAS, Ohio’s media outlets provide thousands of full-time journalism
jobs and countless freelance journalism opportunities: now, therefore,



BE IT RESOLVED by the National Federation of the Blind of Ohio in
Convention assembled this 6th day of November, 2021, that this organization
call upon the Ohio News Media Association, Ohio Association of Newspapers,
local chapters of the Society of Professional Journalists, Ohio Association
of Broadcasters, the Ohio Broadcast Educational Media Commission, the Ohio
Scholastic Media Association, all Ohio colleges and universities with
journalism education programs, and all Ohio news media outlets to work with
the National Federation of the Blind of Ohio to ensure that blind and low
vision journalists and journalism students have equal access to journalism
jobs and journalism education programs.



Resolution 2021-05

Regarding Promoting Opportunities in Ohio’s Entertainment Industry for
Blind and Low-Vision Performers



WHEREAS, the National Federation of the Blind estimates that the current
unemployment rate among the blind is 70%; and



WHEREAS, the NFB’s Performing Arts Division estimates that only 2% of all
performers in the entertainment industry have any type of disability; and



WHEREAS, both the National Federation of the Blind Performing Arts Division
and the Access Acting Academy, which trains blind and low-vision
performers, believe blind and low-vision performers are severely
underrepresented in the entertainment industry; and



WHEREAS, the Access Acting Academy reports that significant barriers remain
preventing blind and low-vision actors from getting auditions and parts; and



WHEREAS, the Access Acting Academy reports that historically individuals
who are blind or have low vision have been discouraged from entering
performance training programs because of the barriers to finding work in
the entertainment industry; and



WHEREAS, Ohio has a robust entertainment industry that includes 2,080
motion picture and television industry businesses that employ 11,700 and
generate an estimated 35,500 jobs in Ohio and $1.2 billion in annual wages;
The industry also includes various performing arts organizations, including
theaters, music festivals, dance groups, symphonies, performing arts
centers, ballets, operas, and performing arts schools that employ nearly
20,000 people and generate more than $1 billion in annual revenue: now,
therefore,



BE IT RESOLVED by the National Federation of the Blind of Ohio in
convention assembled this 6th day of November, 2021, that this organization
call upon the Ohio Arts Council, the Ohio Community Theatre Association,
the Ohio Educational Theatre Association, the Ohio Film Office, the Ohio
Motion Picture Association, all local and county arts organizations, all
Ohio Colleges and Universities with performing arts training programs, and
all Ohio performing arts venues to work with the National Federation of the
Blind of Ohio to ensure that blind and low vision performers have equal
access to performing arts educational programs and have equal access to
motion picture and television, theatre, and other performing arts jobs in
Ohio.



Resolution 2021-06

Regarding the Availability of Municipal Government Documents and Other
Written Material in Alternative Formats



WHEREAS, Ohio has 88 county governments; and



WHEREAS, Ohio has 2,246 municipal governments that include 938 city and
village governments, and 1,308 township governments; and



WHEREAS, county and municipal governments regularly produce numerous
documents that contain information important for residents to have access
to; and



WHEREAS, Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA) says
that public entities must ensure that their communications with individuals
with disabilities are as effective as communications with others; and



WHEREAS, the United States Department of Justice’s Title II Technical
Assistance Manual says that the ADA’s effective communications requirement
means that, when a public entity provides information in written form, it
must, when requested, make that information available to individuals with
vision impairments in a form that is usable by them; and



WHEREAS, of the 10 largest cities in Ohio, only 20% (i.e. 2) websites
provided any reasonable accommodation information on their home pages or
within their first level of website menus, and only one, the City of
Toledo, specifically referred to the availability of documents in
alternative formats: now, therefore,



BE IT RESOLVED by the National Federation of the Blind of Ohio in
Convention assembled this sixth day of November, 2021, that the National
Federation of the Blind of Ohio call upon the Ohio Municipal League, the
Mayors Association of Ohio, the Ohio City & County Management Association,
and the County Commissioners Association of Ohio to work with the National
Federation of the Blind of Ohio to educate county and municipal governments
regarding the ADA’s requirements for providing written documents in
alternative formats and regarding the importance of ensuring that
instructions on how to request documents in alternative formats be easily
located on the entities’ websites; and



BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the National Federation of the Blind of Ohio
call upon all counties and municipalities in Ohio to provide written
documents in alternative formats as required by the Americans with
Disabilities Act of 1990; and



BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the National Federation of the Blind of Ohio
call upon all counties and municipalities in Ohio to provide clearly
identified instructions regarding how blind and low vision individuals can
request documents in alternative formats on their website homepage.



Resolution 2021-07

Regarding Performing Arts Venues Providing Written Material in Alternative
Formats



WHEREAS, Title III of The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA)
says that, in order to provide equal access, a public accommodation is
required to make available appropriate auxiliary aids and services when
necessary to ensure effective communications with a person with a
disability; and



WHEREAS, the United States Department of Justice’s Title III ADA Technical
Assistance Manual states that Title III’s effective communications
requirement includes providing written material in alternative formats when
appropriate; and



WHEREAS, one of the examples used in the Title III Technical Assistance
Manual showing when providing written material in alternative formats is
appropriate is performing arts venues providing programs for performances
in alternative formats; and



WHEREAS, Ohio has a robust entertainment industry of various performing
arts venues, including theaters, music festivals, dance groups, symphonies,
performing arts centers, ballets, and operas; and



WHEREAS, performing arts venues have traditionally failed to provide
written material in alternative formats, and, even when material in
alternative formats is available, performing arts venues often fail to
advertise the availability of this accommodation: now, therefore,



BE IT RESOLVED by the National Federation of the Blind of Ohio in
Convention assembled this sixth day of November, 2021,  that the National
Federation of the Blind of Ohio call upon the Ohio Arts Council, the Ohio
Community Theatre Association, the Ohio Educational Theatre Association,
and all local and county arts organizations to work with the National
Federation of the Blind of Ohio to educate all Ohio performing arts venues
on the ADA’s requirement to provide written material in alternative formats
and  to educate Ohio’s performing arts venues regarding the importance of
providing easy-to-locate instructions on how to request material in
alternative formats; and



BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the National Federation of the Blind of Ohio
calls upon all Ohio performing arts venues to provide written material in
alternative formats and to provide instructions on their website home page
regarding how blind and visually impaired patrons can request material in
alternative formats.





Barbara Pierce (she, her, hers)
President Emerita
National Federation of the Blind of Ohio
Barbara.pierce9366 at gmail.com
440-774-8077
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