[Blindtlk] Polocies Against The Blind...

Sat Dec 17 22:01:48 UTC 2011

I agree, Pastor James! It's better to approach these people with 
politeness and a firm conviction
than to be rude about it, because if you are rude about it, they 
won't change a thing.

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: "James Kelm" <jameskelm at earthlink.net
To: "Blind Talk Mailing List" <blindtlk at nfbnet.org
Date sent: Fri, 16 Dec 2011 21:02:18 -0600
Subject: Re: [Blindtlk] Polocies Against The Blind...

Hello...

    I agree with your statements about not giving up, and 
continuing to work
to correct discrimination.  I personally follow a kind of Martin 
Luther King
attitude, in that we will not truly be able to get rid of 
discrimination
until we change the heart.  I believe in approaching such 
companies as I
encountered with politeness and respect, but with a firm 
conviction that
policies must change.  My mom use to tell me that you catch more 
flies with
honey, than you do with vinegar.  I have found that if you treat 
people with
politeness and respect, this alone will often cause them to look 
differently
at your particular group of people, whether it is a racial group, 
a disabled
group, gender, etc.  This way they can not so easily dismiss your 
concerns,
as coming from "just another offensive individual".

    I thank all of you for your input, and I am happy to learn 
that I am
correct in thinking that this company's policy of rejecting 
people just
based upon their blindness, is wrong and needing to be changed!

Your Brother in Christ,
Pastor James Kelm
True Hope Church of Duluth
Web Site: www.thcduluth.org
Office E-mail: office at thcduluth.org
Phone: 218-727-4186

----- Original Message -----
From: "Chris Nusbaum" <dotkid.nusbaum at gmail.com
To: "Blind Talk Mailing List" <blindtlk at nfbnet.org
Sent: Friday, December 16, 2011 8:05 PM
Subject: Re: [Blindtlk] Polocies Against The Blind...

 That is certainly encouraging, although I think we still need to
 deal with the discrimination at this one company.  Until all
 discrimination is dealt with and removed from our society can 
our
 problems really be solved, in my opinion.

 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: "James Kelm" <jameskelm at earthlink.net
 To: "Blind Talk Mailing List" <blindtlk at nfbnet.org
 Date sent: Fri, 16 Dec 2011 14:12:08 -0600
 Subject: Re: [Blindtlk] Polocies Against The Blind...

 I did want to offer a positive detail to this story.  My wife 
and
 I went
 this week to another, competitor, blood donating facility.  They
 not only
 accepted me, but were extremely nice and welcoming, and told me
 that they
 had several blind donators.  For curiosity, I also telephoned a
 number of
 other places around town.  I did not give them any background,
 but simply
 asked if they accepted visually impaired individuals.  Every one
 of them
 said that they would be happy to accept a blind donor, and
 actually sounded
 a little surprised that I would ask such a question.  So I can
 only conclude
 that the discriminative policy is, at least locally, simply an
 issue with
 the one business.

 Your Brother in Christ,
 Pastor James Kelm
 True Hope Church of Duluth
 Web Site: www.thcduluth.org
 Office E-mail: office at thcduluth.org
 Phone: 218-727-4186

 ----- Original Message -----
 From: "James Kelm" <jameskelm at earthlink.net
 To: "Blind Talk Mailing List" <blindtlk at nfbnet.org
 Sent: Friday, December 16, 2011 2:01 PM
 Subject: Re: [Blindtlk] Polocies Against The Blind...

  I also have a brother who has some of the same attitudes as
 yours do.  He
  tells me that I am too sensitive, and may see discrimination
 where there
  isn't any.  His favorite expression is that "you have to
 understand where
  they are coming from".  Of course he lives on the other side of
 the
 country,
  so does not experience life with a blind person on a day-to-day
 basis.  He
  often tells me that people do not discriminate against the
 disabled, but
  rather usually go out of their way to accommodate them.

  Your Brother in Christ,
  Pastor James Kelm
  True Hope Church of Duluth
  Web Site: www.thcduluth.org
  Office E-mail: office at thcduluth.org
  Phone: 218-727-4186

  ----- Original Message -----
  From: "Jessica Kostiw" <jessicac.kostiw at gmail.com
  To: "'Blind Talk Mailing List'" <blindtlk at nfbnet.org
  Sent: Friday, December 16, 2011 1:03 PM
  Subject: Re: [Blindtlk] Polocies Against The Blind...

  I find this very interesting and forwarded it to both my 
brother
 and
  sister,
  who are sighted lawyers.  Sometimes I think my family thinks I
 just make
  this stuff up.

  I wonder how new this policy is.  LCB staff and students donate
 blood
  regularly.  This is just awful.

  Jessica
  -----Original Message-----
  From: blindtlk-bounces at nfbnet.org
 [mailto:blindtlk-bounces at nfbnet.org]
 On
  Behalf Of Steve Jacobson
  Sent: Friday, December 16, 2011 1:50 PM
  To: Blind Talk Mailing List
  Subject: Re: [Blindtlk] Polocies Against The Blind...

  I have given blood here in Minnesota through my employer to the
 red
 cross
  and I am finding it
  increasingly difficult to donate.  We have had other problems 
in
 the
 Twin
  Cities in the past that we
  tried to address, but I must say, not having an emergency exit
 policy is
  about the most blatent and
  least defensible thing I have heard.  Certainly you have a 
right
 to feel
  frustrated, but it does seem
  that there is work to be done as well.  I can't help but wonder
 what
 their
  general policy is to deal
  with someone who is half through giving blood and who might be
 dizzy if
  forced to stand in a hurry.  I
  would think that blindness would be the least of the problems
 that one
  might
  have.  <smile

  You might be interested to know that it is now common practice
 to not
  permit
  someone you know to fill
  out the paperwork with you.  The justification is that you 
might
 not be
  honest with them in your
  answers.  This requires you to take the time of a staff person,
 and even
  if
  they are willing, they are
  often required to tend to other tasks.

  Were you working with a branch of the Red Cross there in Duluth
 or is it
  another type of blood bank?

  Best regards,

  Steve Jacobson

  On Fri, 16 Dec 2011 12:22:35 -0600, James Kelm wrote:

 Dear friends,

     Well an interesting thing happened to my wife and I last
 Friday,
 and
  I
 thought that I'd see what you all thought.  It seemed to be a
 relevant
 story, based upon the recent conversations here on this list.

     Wanting to do something good for our fellow human beings, my
 wife
 and
  I
 decided that we would donate blood at one of our local blood
 banks.  We
 arrived, filled out the necessary paper work, and waited in the
 waiting
  room
 to do our duty.

     After a few minutes, a gentleman came out and requested that
 we
  follow
 him to his office.  I am assuming that this gentleman was some
 kind of
 a
 manager.  After entering his office, he politely informed us 
that
 he
 had
 spoken to his corporate office, and learned that they currently
 had no
 policy in place to assure my safety in the case of an emergency,
 so
 unfortunately they did not allow blind people to donate blood.
 He then
 turned to my wife, who is sighted but like many middle-aged
 people,
 wears
 reading glasses.  The gentleman went on to explain that unless 
my
 wife
  went
 home to retrieve her reading glasses and thereby demonstrating
 that she
  was
 not blind, they also would not allow her to donate.  I politely
 explained
 that the corporate office should be aware that their company
 policy
  violated
 Federal anti-discrimination laws, and they did not have the 
legal
 luxury
  of
 determining which laws they were, or were not prepared to 
follow.
 The
 gentleman told me that he understood, but that he had to comply
 with
 his
 corporate office's instructions to not allow the blind to donate
 blood.

     This situation came as a bit of surprise to me.  Of course
 most of
 us
 blind folks are use to vague and concealed discrimination, but I
 was
  caught
 off guard to face such an open and obvious demonstration of 
one's
 civil
 rights being disregarded.  It was rather shocking to be directly
 told
 by
  a
 business, that they did not want the blind!

 Your Brother in Christ,
 Pastor James Kelm
 True Hope Church of Duluth
 Web Site: www.thcduluth.org
 Office E-mail: office at thcduluth.org
 Phone: 218-727-4186

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