[Blindtlk] why is it important to join an organization of theblind?

[Gary Wunder]

Thank you ma'am.

 

-----Original Message-----
From: blindtlk-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:blindtlk-bounces at nfbnet.org] On
Behalf Of Michelle Medina
Sent: Tuesday, January 17, 2012 11:55 AM
To: gwunder at earthlink.net; Blind Talk Mailing List
Subject: Re: [Blindtlk] why is it important to join an organization of
theblind?

Gary,
It may have been long, but this is a much appreciated response and
sharing of your wisdom! Thank you!!
Michelle

On 1/17/12, Gary Wunder <GWunder at earthlink.net> wrote:
> Dear Chris:
>
> Please understand that what I am about to write is my opinion and not some
> official position of the Federation. I will try to avoid offering other
> disclaimers such as "In my opinion," or "It is my belief." I want to be
firm
> in stating what I believe but humble enough to acknowledge that does not
> represent any particular wisdom or any claim to be the one true way.
>
> I am a member of the National Federation of the Blind because I believe
that
> collective action is required if blind people are to continue to enjoy the
> programs and services we now have and to further the goal of integration
we
> all seek where we gain jobs, play active parts in our community, and are
no
> longer limited by artificial barriers that are not imposed by blindness
but
> by the reaction to it by blind and sighted people alike. As an individual
I
> have a responsibility to think about my options and opportunities and to
> decide whether or not to pursue or shy away from them; In other words, I
> have choices to make. But individually I do not always have the
creativity,
> the expertise, and the power to make those choices real and achievable.
>
> Right now blind people are engaged in the battle to determine whether we
> have a right to demand that computerized technology, with all its power
and
> promise, be harnessed to help us as it helps others, or whether, because
we
> are a small population, this same computer technology will be used to
> exclude us. The outcome of this struggle is as important as my ability to
> compete at a job, my ability to enjoy entertainment at home, my ability to
> check in at airports and check out at supermarkets, and even my ability to
> live at home independently. Take away my independent access to home
> appliances--my ability to set the temperature on my oven, regulate the
> temperature in my house, and operate the controls on my washer and dryer,
> and soon I will require the services of a personal care attendant or be in
a
> nursing home because I will be unable to take care of my most basic needs.
> Even the option of a home care attendant or a nursing home may depend on
> whether or not I can afford them.
>
> My job as one human being is to educate myself; my more difficult job is
to
> embrace the education of society to the potential technology brings and to
> the problems it can create if not properly managed. Individually I must be
> an informed voice, but only collectively do I have a voice capable of
> reaching the nation and the world. Individually I do not know how to bring
> about the changes in design and engineering that make things talk, produce
> braille, or provide a way for me to navigate using touch or voice;
> collectively I can be a part of giving scholarships to young people, some
of
> whom will dedicate their professional careers to learning about such
things
> and being a part of developing technology that includes me and others who
> are blind. Individually I do not know how to craft laws to help us, but
> collectively I can help to grow and employ the expertise of those who do.
> Individually I do not know how to execute a successful lawsuit on behalf
of
> myself and others who suffer from technological discrimination;
collectively
> I can be a part of hiring that help and articulating to the legal system
the
> goals and aspirations of blind people who are committed to the forward
> progress we have enjoyed and to categorically reject the idea of once
again
> being consigned to idleness and inactivity.
>
> It is argued that sighted people do not unite as a group, and that, if
blind
> people truly want equality, we must turn away from the reliance on a group
> and the expectation other blind people will join with us. Because of their
> numbers and a society which will quite reasonably be oriented to them,
> sighted people have no need to unite on the basis of sight. They do,
> however, unite for other reasons. Wealthy people unite with others to see
> that policies do not encourage and support the taking of their wealth.
Those
> less wealthy unite for a whole host of reasons when individually their
> voices are not sufficient to start a national discussion about the things
> they need. Doctors, as educated and prestigious as they are, unite when it
> comes to representing their interests and, for that matter, the health
> interests of the American people. Farmers form organizations to try to
> increase their prices and protect against what they see as overly
burdensome
> regulation. Many from all walks of life unite to protect the environment
by
> reminding us that some of the things we want for enhancing our creature
> comforts come at a cost that may jeopardize the well-being of the earth
for
> our children and our children's children. The concept of organizing for
> collective action, to amplify the voice, to share the load, and to bring
> very disparate groups with talent and expertise to serve a cause is not
> unique to the blind, nor is it unique to America. It is the longing of
> people everywhere to better themselves and the realization that not every
> good that needs doing can be accomplished by one human being, no matter
her
> determination or skill or drive. It is the understanding that true
> independence often involves the more complicated concept of
interdependence
> and that learning to work together does not detract one little bit from
our
> individuality, our ability to make choices, and our ability to influence
the
> world.
>
> I want a piece of the American dream. That means more than Supplemental
> Security Income because I am deemed too disabled to work. That means more
> than food stamps and subsidized housing because I am considered so
> impoverished that only through a government program can I eat and have
> shelter from the elements. I want the right to information and that means
> more than a book of fiction in which I live my life through the words and
> stories of others. I have benefited from and support each of these
programs
> and I do not write to throw stones. There are forces in the world that
> conspire to keep me in this place, a place of continual dependence. It is
> not a harsh place with physical bars, but a place built by a compassionate
> America trying to do good for people they perceive as having a significant
> need. It is not a jail neither is it a zoo; but it is a cage, albeit one
> with radios and televisions and devices to produce music on demand. It is
a
> place where we may play but not a place for we may grow. Programs intended
> to provide us with a staircase to upward mobility have too often become
the
> means for lifelong support. The tragedy is that life is so much less than
it
> could be for we who are blind and our country gets so much less from good
> minds and overflowing hearts who long to find a way to meaningfully
> contribute.
>
> The alternative path requires more training, perseverance, and perhaps
even
> more good luck. The process is rehabilitation, and by rehabilitation I
mean
> much more than accepting the help to go from high school to training
school
> or college. For me rehabilitation means entering into a contract, a sacred
> pledge to make good on the goodwill and the investment of taxpaying
> Americans by turning education and equipment into productive work. It is
> more than accepting, as a matter of course, this government program for
the
> blind that can sometimes be little more than a transition from education
to
> more education to lifelong dependence. At its best, rehabilitation is the
> power of people to help people, the way a society helps some of its
members
> move from needing a meal to earning a meal. It can, at its best, be an
> example of government truly serving and at its worst an example of raising
> expectations only to crush them. We, the blind people who organize and
work
> in the Federation, determine which it will be.
>
> Several months ago I watched a Republican primary where a candidate was
> asked what should be done about an uninsured 29-year-old man lying in a
> hospital following a motorcycle crash. Should he be allowed to die was the
> timidly advanced question, and before the candidate could answer, a
> disturbingly loud minority in that audience began to clap. The America I
see
> is no longer in a place where she believes she can extend benefits to
those
> who do not pay for them. If this is true for something as basic as medical
> care, how long is it before we see America questioning whether there is
> money to support her disabled citizens who have been offered
rehabilitation
> services but who continue to remain on the public dole? How many people
must
> succeed in the rehabilitation process to convince an ever skeptical and
> belt-tightening America that this magical contract between blind people
and
> the rest of America's citizens should continue? Partly that answer depends
> on us and how well we make the case for what we need and the wonderful
> things that happen when rehabilitation works. Partly it depends on how
well
> we make the case to other blind people for moving beyond our comfort zone
> and actively addressing those areas in which we are weak or scared or
> paralyzed by our inexperience with the world.
>
> I am a member of the National Federation of the Blind because I realize it
> has been an important part in helping me live a bit of the American dream.
I
> am a part because I want to pay it forward and to share the blessings I've
> been given with others. I know that as important as a positive mental
> attitude and philosophy are, they are little more than words if there
isn't
> some kind of active effort to transform them into actions. Wanting to feed
> the starving is more than wanting--it is doing something to advance that
> cause--donating money, growing food, building roads, and buying vehicles.
> None of this is accomplished by remaining on the sidelines and being an
> observer, even if an informed one; it is accomplished by a resolution to
do
> something and then by following through on that resolution.
>
> The Federation, for all the pride I take in her, is not a luxury liner
> capable of being guided and run by a few and on which many may ride in
> comfort. Instead my Federation is a canoe, a ship that can carry a few,
but
> needs every person who can to be at the ores pushing us along, steering us
> in the direction we want to go, and helping us avoid the obstacles that
> would break our frail craft if not maneuvered with skill, intelligence,
and
> the support of a God and a public who wants the best for us. Blind
> Americans, just like sighted Americans, can make the choice as to whether
or
> not to be involved, but the choice they make has consequences for all of
us.
> The more people we have who are active rowers of our canoe, the more each
of
> us who row have time to do other things and the more likely we are to
> succeed. Our mission is a noble one that argues for our own independence
and
> for the continued prosperity of our nation. I believe it is so important
> that we dare not sit on the sidelines. I have spent enough of my life
being
> told to observe and weight. When I have a choice, I will choose
> participation, service, and the knowledge that, come what may, I have
tried.
> This is why I am a part of the Federation. This is why I ask others to be
a
> part. I don't want to whine and I don't want to preach. I want to be
> grateful for what I have, to repay those who have helped to make it come
> true, and to pay it forward for those who want the same kind of future I
> want. I ask for the energy that others can bring in charting that course
and
> then helping us travel it.
>
> Gary
>
>
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-- 
Sometimes it takes darkness and the sweet
confinement of your aloneness
to learn anything or anyone
that does not bring you alive
is too small for you.
~ David Whyte ~ (House of Belonging)

Sadie Marie Medina!
Original birthdate unnone.
First birthday with us: 2/15/2009
Welcome home baby!

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