[BlindTlk] Stereotypes

[Gary Wunder]

Since I do not see your address, I will reply to the list. One stereotype is
that the blind are musically gifted to compensate for lack of vision. My
father decided that if Stevie wonder could be a musician and Ray Charles
could be a musician, so could his son. I have near perfect pitch and can
play by ear, but I do not have the innate talent to be a professional. My
grandmother was convinced that my success would have to be through talking,
so she suggested that I be a preacher. The trouble is that I never felt the
calling. My Aunt decided since I knew the forty*survey and all of the hit
songs of the early 60s, I should be a disc jockey. Nobody thought I would
work in the field of computer programming or later earn my living writing
and editing. The thing that scared me so much about stereotypes wasn't that
I couldn't or didn't want to do what was suggested. The problem was that I
didn't have a better idea, and I didn't know if a better idea could be had.
Being around other blind people made all the difference. These blind people
did not give me false praise for below average or average performance, but
they suggested that I could do anything I wanted to do and that blindness
would not be the thing that stopped me.

Warmly,

Gary

-----Original Message-----
From: BlindTlk [mailto:blindtlk-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Jaffre,
Krista SS\PLMS - Staff via BlindTlk
Sent: Tuesday, November 13, 2018 5:37 PM
To: 'blindtlk at nfbnet.org'
Cc: Jaffre, Krista SS\PLMS - Staff
Subject: [BlindTlk] Stereotypes

I have a student with a visual impairment who is working on a project for
social studies regarding stereotypes. He would like to get feedback from the
NFB community about how stereotypes have affected them personally (because
of his age he cannot e-mail the listserv directly). He will share the
feedback he receives in a PowerPoint presentation for his 7th grade social
studies class. This is his question:



In what ways do you think stereotypes about blind people have affected you
throughout your life?



Thank you so much for your help in advance!


Krista Jaffre
Teacher of Students with Visual Impairments
Office: 425-837-5674
Cell: 425-999-1835
http://kristajaffrevision.weebly.com<http://kristajaffrevision.weebly.com/>
There is a wonder in reading braille that the sighted will never know: to
touch words and have them touch you back. --Jim Fiebig

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