[Blindtlk] Letter to the Editor Concerning "Dining in the Dark"
Gloria Whipple
fairyfoot at webband.com
Fri Mar 12 06:31:27 UTC 2010
Ray,
Your floor would probably listen to you better than Steve.
What a crappy attitude!
Gloria Whipple
Corrisponding secretary
Inland Empire chapter
nfb of WA
cell number: 509-475-4993
-----Original Message-----
From: blindtlk-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:blindtlk-bounces at nfbnet.org] On
Behalf Of Ray Foret jr
Sent: Thursday, March 11, 2010 5:59 PM
To: Blind Talk Mailing List
Subject: Re: [Blindtlk] Letter to the Editor Concerning "Dining in the Dark"
Okay, how about you give me a straight answer instead of what you actually
said. YOu know as well as I do that it's attitudes like yours that do us
more damage than anything. Yes, whether or not you admit it, it really does
come down to what the sighted think of us. But, I'm done talking to you.
Obviously, I'd make more progress talking to my floor.
Sincerely,
The Constantly Barefooted Ray!!!
E-Mail:
rforetjr at comcast dot net
On Mar 11, 2010, at 7:38 PM, Steve P. Deeley wrote:
> Please don't blame it all on the attitudes of sighted individuals. This
is not completely correct. You are being simplistic concerning this
employment matter. It is so easy to take the easy way out of the issues
concerning blind individuals and employment. There many factors to discuss.
>
> Steve
> ----- Original Message ----- From: "Ray Foret jr" <rforetjr at comcast.net>
> To: "Blind Talk Mailing List" <blindtlk at nfbnet.org>
> Sent: Thursday, March 11, 2010 6:36 PM
> Subject: Re: [Blindtlk] Letter to the Editor Concerning "Dining in the
Dark"
>
>
>> Steve, you need to understand that attitudes about blind people such as
are indicated in that article are the reasons why we can't get jobs. It's
blind people like you who help foster those attitudes and give us more work
to do. Maybe you've had it easy all your life; but, I'll have you know that
too many of us haven't. Why don't you give us a break and start helping us
instead of putting out how much better you are than the rest of us. IF you
have better ideas than the rest of us, why don't you tell us what they are?
In the mean time, we've got to carry you on our backs and do your work for
you because you won't.
>>
>>
>> Sincerely,
>> The Constantly Barefooted Ray!!!
>>
>> E-Mail:
>> rforetjr at comcast dot net
>>
>> On Mar 11, 2010, at 3:44 PM, Steve P. Deeley wrote:
>>
>>> Give me a break, it is not. I'm blind and I'm not offended. You people
need to find something more serious to worry about i.e., our president
running the economy into the ditch!Steve
>>> ----- Original Message ----- From: "Graves, Diane" <dgraves at icrc.IN.gov>
>>> To: "'Blind Talk Mailing List'" <blindtlk at nfbnet.org>
>>> Sent: Thursday, March 11, 2010 3:48 PM
>>> Subject: Re: [Blindtlk] Letter to the Editor Concerning "Dining in the
Dark"
>>>
>>>
>>>> Why not? It is exactly the same type of prejudicial attitude. The only
difference is that, when it is directed at the blind, it is disguised and
dripping with pity and unwanted sympathy and patronization.
>>>>
>>>> It is bias, prejudice, and discriminatory, No matter what the intent
is. We should definitely go down the "race road." It is the same thing.
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> Diane Graves
>>>> Civil Rights Specialist
>>>> Indiana Civil Rights Commission
>>>> Alternative Dispute Resolutions Unit
>>>> 317-232-2647
>>>>
>>>> "It is service that measures success."
>>>> George Washington Carver
>>>>
>>>> Confidentiality Notice: This E-mail transmission may contain
confidential and/or legally privileged information intended only for the
individual or entity(ies)
>>>> named in the E-mail address. If you are not the intended recipient, be
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>>>> upon the contents of this E-mail is strictly prohibited. If you have
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Subsequently, delete the message from your system immediately.
>>>>
>>>> -----Original Message-----
>>>> From: blindtlk-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:blindtlk-bounces at nfbnet.org]
On Behalf Of Steve P. Deeley
>>>> Sent: Thursday, March 11, 2010 3:21 PM
>>>> To: Gary Wunder; Blind Talk Mailing List
>>>> Subject: Re: [Blindtlk] Letter to the Editor Concerning "Dining in the
Dark"
>>>>
>>>> I believe the writer of that letter sounds very angry. That, also,
turns
>>>> sighted individuals off. Let's not go down the race road for our
examples.
>>>> Steve
>>>> ----- Original Message ----- From: "Gary Wunder"
<gwunder at earthlink.net>
>>>> To: "Marion Gwizdala" <blind411 at verizon.net>; "Blind Talk Mailing List"
>>>> <blindtlk at nfbnet.org>
>>>> Sent: Thursday, March 11, 2010 1:57 PM
>>>> Subject: Re: [Blindtlk] Letter to the Editor Concerning "Dining in the
Dark"
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>> You should be able to get it mailed to your e-mail address on file by
>>>>> pressing pound 9.
>>>>>
>>>>> Gary
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> ----- Original Message ----- From: "Marion Gwizdala"
<blind411 at verizon.net>
>>>>> To: <blindtlk at nfbnet.org>; "NAGDU List" <nagdu at nfbnet.org>
>>>>> Sent: Thursday, March 11, 2010 10:54 AM
>>>>> Subject: [Blindtlk] Letter to the Editor Concerning "Dining in the
Dark"
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>> Dear All,
>>>>>> I tried to get a copy of the original article about which I wrote
this
>>>>>> letter to the editor; however, it was not available without paying a
fee.
>>>>>> The article can be accessed by going to NFB-Newsline and selecting
the
>>>>>> St.Petersburg Times Metro section. If anyone can get access to this
>>>>>> article, please send it to the list. Pasted below is my letter to the
>>>>>> editor.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Fraternally yours,
>>>>>> Marion Gwizdala
>>>>>>
>>>>>> March 11, 2010
>>>>>>
>>>>>> I am writing to comment on the article "Awareness Was the
Main
>>>>>> Course" by Laura Reiley that appeared in the March 10 Metro section
of
>>>>>> the
>>>>>> St. Petersburg times. As a blind person, I often meet people who are
>>>>>> amazed by the fact that I can perform even the simplest of tasks.
>>>>>> Generally this attitude is based on their own experience attempting
to
>>>>>> perform the same task without eyesight and failing at it miserably.
It is
>>>>>> for this reason that most blind people are opposed to using the type
of
>>>>>> simulation exercises featured in this article. Blindfolding a sighted
>>>>>> person and asking them to perform even a simple task does not, as the
>>>>>> article purports, give a person any awareness of what the life of a
blind
>>>>>> person is like. In fact, such exercises only serve to reinforce the
>>>>>> misconceptions and promulgate the myths about blindness that create
the
>>>>>> social, legal, and economic barriers that prevent us from achieving
true
>>>>>> equality with our sighted peers. Those of us who are blind have
developed
>>>>>> an array of non-visual techniques to perform activities of daily
living,
>>>>>> such as eating, just as effectively as sighted people do using
eyesight.
>>>>>> Blindfolding a sighted person and asking them to perform a task is
like
>>>>>> putting someone in the cockpit of a jetliner and telling them to fly!
>>>>>> Lacking the proper skills, the results of both would be disastrous!
>>>>>>
>>>>>> The real problem of blindness is not the lack of eyesight;
>>>>>> rather it is the manner in which we are treated as the result of the
>>>>>> misconceptions people have about blindness. If one really wants to
find
>>>>>> out what life is like for a blind person, there is no need to don a
>>>>>> blindfold! All one needs to do is carry a white cane, the
international
>>>>>> symbol of blindness, and go about their everyday life. Then they
would
>>>>>> feel the crushing insults of public misperception that blind people,
>>>>>> except for those few who are believed to be amazing and
extraordinary,
>>>>>> are
>>>>>> innately ignorant and helpless. They would experience the waitress
who
>>>>>> asks a five year old what the blind adult wants to drink. They would
>>>>>> encounter the librarian who admonishes them for going out alone, thus
>>>>>> exposing them to the hazards of opening a door. They would be
confronted
>>>>>> by the Employer who inquires about who will bring them to work. They
>>>>>> would
>>>>>> learn that even well educated doctors are so ignorant as to ask them
who
>>>>>> bathes them! Though you might want to minimize these incidents away,
they
>>>>>> are examples of the type of ignorance I - and other blind people -
>>>>>> encounter on a regular, almost daily, basis!
>>>>>>
>>>>>> I am not asserting that eyesight is not beneficial nor that
>>>>>> the
>>>>>> work of the Foundation Fighting Blindness is not valuable. What
concerns
>>>>>> me is that organizations that assert they want to "serve the blind"
do us
>>>>>> such a disservice by reinforcing the public misconceptions and fears
that
>>>>>> create the problems we face. I am all for raising money to cure
retinal
>>>>>> degenerative diseases, especially since the condition that has caused
my
>>>>>> blindness, that of my 14-year-old nephew , and several other members
of
>>>>>> my
>>>>>> family is retinitis Pigmentosa. I am, however, opposed to creating
the
>>>>>> type of fear and pity that results from blindfolding people for the
>>>>>> purpose of raising money! Such a practice is as offensive to me as a
>>>>>> black-faced minstrel would be to an African American! These
>>>>>> misconceptions
>>>>>> are the reason fewer than 10% of blind children are learning to read
and
>>>>>> write Braille, producing functionally illiterate blind adults. These
>>>>>> fears
>>>>>> and misconceptions are the reason that the unemployment rate among
the
>>>>>> blind is more than 70%!
>>>>>>
>>>>>> The veracity of my concerns are supported by the numerous
>>>>>> inaccurate statements made by the author who has bought into the
false
>>>>>> perceptions of the blind. Does she really believe that "other senses
are
>>>>>> heightened" by taking away one's sight or "; texture became
paramount" as
>>>>>> the result of simulated blindness? Does she really believe that
>>>>>> blindfolding participants "gave all assembled a greater window into
the
>>>>>> world of the sightless"? Does she really believe that blind people go
>>>>>> through life "bumbling" their ways around or did she just
irresponsibly
>>>>>> promulgate the pitiful stereotype in an effort to sell your
newspapers
>>>>>> like the Foundation Fighting Blindness did to sell themselves and
>>>>>> selfishly generate revenue with no concern about the social
consequences
>>>>>> of their actions?
>>>>>>
>>>>>> The belief that blind people are endowed with heightened
>>>>>> senses
>>>>>> and special powers is a myth. Blind people simply learn to use their
>>>>>> other
>>>>>> senses and alternative techniques to perform the tasks sighted people
do
>>>>>> with eyesight. Like any skill, these techniques are generally not
>>>>>> acquired
>>>>>> in a half-hour nor mysteriously and supernaturally endowed. However,
>>>>>> these
>>>>>> skills enable blind people to function independently, efficiently,
and
>>>>>> effectively. In fact, the average blind person can perform the same
tasks
>>>>>> as their sighted peers as well, if not better, by employing these
>>>>>> alternative techniques. Our blindness is not the problem. The real
>>>>>> problem
>>>>>> of blindness is the misunderstanding and lack of information that
exists.
>>>>>> If a blind person is given proper training and opportunity, blindness
is
>>>>>> only a physical nuisance.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> In the future, when your paper is doing a story about
>>>>>> blindness, it would be helpful to get accurate information and the
>>>>>> perspective of a blind person who is qualified to speak to these
issues
>>>>>> by
>>>>>> being chosen by the blind to speak on their behalf. The National
>>>>>> Federation of the Blind is the oldest and largest organization of the
>>>>>> blind in the United States. We are not an organization that speaks on
>>>>>> behalf of the blind; we are the blind speaking for ourselves. For
>>>>>> accurate
>>>>>> information about blindness or the blind, please feel free to get in
>>>>>> touch
>>>>>> with me or visit one of our websites at
>>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>> HTTP://WWW.NFB.ORG
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Or
>>>>>>
>>>>>> HTTP://WWW.NFB-NAGDU.ORG
>>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Respectfully yours,
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Marion Gwizdala, President
>>>>>>
>>>>>> National Association of Guide Dog Users
>>>>>>
>>>>>> National Federation of the Blind
>>>>>>
>>>>>> 813-598-7161
>>>>>>
>>>>>> President at NFB-NAGDU.ORG
>>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>> _______________________________________________
>>>>>> blindtlk mailing list
>>>>>> blindtlk at nfbnet.org
>>>>>> http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/blindtlk_nfbnet.org
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>>>>>> blindtlk:
>>>>>>
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k.net
>>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> _______________________________________________
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sightbb.com
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
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>>
>>
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