[Blindtlk] the handling of Dining in the Dark events re: [blindtlk]fw: MIRA Foundation

Wed Dec 14 00:08:41 UTC 2011

Hello my friend.  Since I see you have already gotten a number of comments
to your post, let me keep mine short.

In the 1960s and 1970s when people in wheelchairs began to demand real
access from society, they found it quite effective to put people in
wheelchairs and show them how they couldn't cross streets, couldn't reach
doorknobs, had no access to buildings with stairs, and the list goes on.
The message the folks in wheelchairs were trying to send was that if society
would only modify its environment, something easily done with elevators and
curb cuts and doorknobs placed at a reasonable level, the world for people
in wheelchairs would be immeasurably better.  What society was to do was
clear.  The folks doing the wheelchair user simulation were not trying to
change the attitude society had about people in wheelchairs.  They were
trying to suggest to society some very concrete measures it could take.

If we look at dining in the dark, we are not suggesting that society imposes
a significant barrier to our eating that they could remedy if only they were
willing to spend a little money.  When we blindfold a person, we immediately
reinforce what they believe about blindness-- a world of darkness, a world
without light, and the inability to do almost everything they consider of
consequence--read, write, drive, cook, clean, and even eat.  If we had
months to spend with these people, we could make the sleep shade a training
ally, and remove the mystery and the horror of the dark, but in the
fundraiser you envision, there will only be one evening.  When the sighted
person spills, will he intuitively understand that this is because he is
functioning in conditions that are far different from what real blind people
experience, or will he be affirmed in his idea that to be blind necessarily
means to be klutzy and inept?

I really do believe that these dining in the dark experiences would be much
more productive if, as Mike suggests, blind people cooked and served a meal
that could be fully observed, both through the eyes and the pallet, as a
quality meal, a meal competently cooked and supervised by blind people.

I often hesitate to be critical of organizations trying to raise money to
benefit blind people, but I think we should not confuse trying to raise
money with trying to achieve some significant level of education.  Dining in
the dark may well raise money, but I seriously doubt that it will enhance
the way sighted people think about people who are blind.  Unfortunately,
some of the most successful fundraising mechanisms do not have as their
theme the rehabilitation of blind people but our total, continuing
dependence and hence the need for ongoing financial support.

Warmly,

Gary
-----Original Message-----
From: blindtlk-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:blindtlk-bounces at nfbnet.org] On
Behalf Of Chris Nusbaum
Sent: Tuesday, December 13, 2011 4:43 PM
To: Blind Talk Mailing List
Subject: [Blindtlk] the handling of Dining in the Dark events re:
[blindtlk]fw: MIRA Foundation

Hi everyone,

I'm just curious; why do you think Dining in the Dark fundraisers 
promote a negative attitude about blindness?  I only ask because 
this is not what we in the I CAN Foundation plan to do at all 
with our Dining in the Dark; quite the opposite.  We want to 
provide an education about blindness and a glimpse into our world 
for the sighted participants, and one that focuses on a positive 
attitude about blindness.  We understand that for many of the 
sighted participants, it will be their first time doing any task 
blindfolded, let alone eating a full meal in the dark.  
Therefore, it is only natural that they'll have some problems 
initially and will probably think, "How in the world does a blind 
person do this? I can't imagine how hard it would be for them." 
The truth, however, is that eating (or performing any routine 
task for that matter) is not easier or harder for a blind person 
than it is for a sighted person, but rather it is just like 
anything else; it's hard the first time someone tries it.  To get 
this message across to our participants, we are planning to do 
two things, which are (1) to have conpetent, confident and 
successful blind mentors from our area at each table, to answer 
any questions the participants may have, and to give them tips 
(although we will leave it mostly up to the sighted person, as we 
want to do a blindness-simulation,) and (2) to have a sort of 
de-brief at the end of dinner (probably during dessert,) which 
will be lead by our blind mentors.  We will talk in this de-brief 
about the participants' experiences, and what they learned about 
blindness from this experience.  We will also field any questions 
they may have about blindness.  All the while we will emphasize 
the capacity and capabilities of the blind, and that blind people 
can in fact be independent and competent members of society.  
During our past few board meetings when we have discussed 
planning for this fundraiser, I and our other blind board member 
have emphasized that we need to handle the event in such a way as 
to give the participants a positive attitude about blindness 
rather than a "this was hard for me, it must be unbearable for a 
blind person" attitude.  This positive attitude about blindness 
is what the I CAN Foundation tries to promote in all of our 
fundraisers and educational events, and this is what we're basing 
our planning and handling of our Dining in the Dark event on.  I 
think that what participants take away from events like Dining in 
the Dark depends on how the organization running the event 
handles it; participants can either come away with a positive 
attitude about blindness, or a negative, "I'm going to donate to 
this organization to help these poor, helpless blind people" 
attitude, all depending on how the event is put on.  While we 
want people to donate to our foundation, we also want them to 
come away with an education that gives them a positive attitude 
about blindness.  If you have any ideas for us on how we can plan 
this event so it gets the right message across, please email me 
or contact the Foundation directly by emailing 
ican4kids at gmail.com.  If you email me, I will pass it on to the 
board.  We welcome your feedback in order to handle our event in 
the best possible way!

Chris

"The real problem of blindness is not the loss of eyesight.  The 
real problem is the misunderstanding and lack of education that 
exists.  If a blind person has the proper training and 
opportunity, blindness can be reduced to a mere physical 
nuisance."
-- Kenneth Jernigan (President, National Federation of the Blind, 
1968-1986

 The I C.A.N.  Foundation helps blind and visually impaired youth 
in Maryland say "I can," by empowering them through providing 
assistive technology and scholarships to camps and conventions 
which help them be equal with their sighted peers.  For more 
information about the Foundation and to support our work, visit 
us online at www.icanfoundation.info!

----- Original Message -----
From: "Peter Donahue" <pdonahue2 at satx.rr.com
To: "Blind Talk Mailing List" <blindtlk at nfbnet.org
Date sent: Sun, 11 Dec 2011 20:26:15 -0600
Subject: Re: [Blindtlk] fw: MIRA Foundation

Hello Sheila and everyone,

    The short answer is not at all! Fortunately we'll have a new
administration elected during our January meeting including a new 
chapter
president.  Here's hoping the new administration will rethink 
this
fundraising idea and come up with an alternative that will 
promote a more
positive view of blindness and the blind.

Peter Donahue

----- Original Message -----
From: "Sheila Leigland" <sleigland at bresnan.net
To: "Blind Talk Mailing List" <blindtlk at nfbnet.org
Sent: Sunday, December 11, 2011 7:42 PM
Subject: Re: [Blindtlk] fw: MIRA Foundation

Hi, I didn't know that nfb chapters ever did them.  How do you 
think they
should be done?

Sheila Leiglan d

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