<html><head><meta http-equiv="content-type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8"></head><body dir="auto"><div>See below for the latest issue of the Braille Monitor. <br><br>Audrey T. Farnum<div>Sent from my iPhone</div></div><div><br>Begin forwarded message:<br><br></div><blockquote type="cite"><div><b>From:</b> <a href="mailto:buhrow@lothlorien.nfbcal.org">buhrow@lothlorien.nfbcal.org</a> (Brian Buhrow)<br><b>Date:</b> May 16, 2017 at 11:05:16 AM CDT<br><b>To:</b> <a href="mailto:brl-monitor@nfbcal.org">brl-monitor@nfbcal.org</a><br><b>Subject:</b> <b>[Brl-monitor] The Braille Monitor, May 2017</b><br><b>Reply-To:</b> <a href="mailto:buhrow@nfbcal.org">buhrow@nfbcal.org</a><br><br></div></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><div><span></span><br><span> BRAILLE MONITOR</span><br><span>Vol. 60, No. 5 May 2017</span><br><span> Gary Wunder, Editor</span><br><span></span><br><span></span><br><span> Distributed by email, in inkprint, in Braille, and on USB flash</span><br><span>drive, by the</span><br><span> NATIONAL FEDERATION OF THE BLIND</span><br><span></span><br><span> Mark Riccobono, President</span><br><span></span><br><span> telephone: (410) 659-9314</span><br><span> email address: <a href="mailto:nfb@nfb.org">nfb@nfb.org</a></span><br><span> website address: <a href="http://www.nfb.org">http://www.nfb.org</a></span><br><span> <a href="http://NFBnet.org">NFBnet.org</a>: <a href="http://www.nfbnet.org">http://www.nfbnet.org</a></span><br><span> NFB-NEWSLINE® information: (866) 504-7300</span><br><span> Like us on Facebook: <a href="http://Facebook.com/nationalfederationoftheblind">Facebook.com/nationalfederationoftheblind</a></span><br><span> Follow us on Twitter: @NFB_Voice</span><br><span> Watch and share our videos: <a href="http://YouTube.com/NationsBlind">YouTube.com/NationsBlind</a></span><br><span></span><br><span></span><br><span>Letters to the President, address changes, subscription requests, and</span><br><span>orders for NFB literature should be sent to the national office. Articles</span><br><span>for the Monitor and letters to the editor may also be sent to the national</span><br><span>office or may be emailed to <a href="mailto:gwunder@nfb.org">gwunder@nfb.org</a>.</span><br><span></span><br><span></span><br><span>Monitor subscriptions cost the Federation about forty dollars per year.</span><br><span>Members are invited, and nonmembers are requested, to cover the</span><br><span>subscription cost. Donations should be made payable to National Federation</span><br><span>of the Blind and sent to:</span><br><span></span><br><span> National Federation of the Blind</span><br><span> 200 East Wells Street at Jernigan Place</span><br><span> Baltimore, Maryland 21230-4998</span><br><span></span><br><span> THE NATIONAL FEDERATION OF THE BLIND KNOWS THAT BLINDNESS IS NOT THE</span><br><span> CHARACTERISTIC THAT DEFINES YOU OR YOUR FUTURE. EVERY DAY WE RAISE THE</span><br><span> EXPECTATIONS OF BLIND PEOPLE, BECAUSE LOW EXPECTATIONS CREATE OBSTACLES</span><br><span> BETWEEN BLIND PEOPLE AND OUR DREAMS. YOU CAN LIVE THE LIFE YOU WANT;</span><br><span> BLINDNESS IS NOT WHAT HOLDS YOU BACK. THE NATIONAL FEDERATION OF THE BLIND</span><br><span> IS NOT AN ORGANIZATION SPEAKING FOR THE BLIND-IT IS THE BLIND SPEAKING FOR</span><br><span> OURSELVES.</span><br><span>ISSN 0006-8829</span><br><span>© 2017 by the National Federation of the Blind</span><br><span> Each issue is recorded on a thumb drive (also called a memory stick</span><br><span>or USB flash drive). You can read this audio edition using a computer or a</span><br><span>National Library Service digital player. The NLS machine has two slots-the</span><br><span>familiar book-cartridge slot just above the retractable carrying handle and</span><br><span>a second slot located on the right side near the headphone jack. This</span><br><span>smaller slot is used to play thumb drives. Remove the protective rubber pad</span><br><span>covering this slot and insert the thumb drive. It will insert only in one</span><br><span>position. If you encounter resistance, flip the drive over and try again.</span><br><span>(Note: If the cartridge slot is not empty when you insert the thumb drive,</span><br><span>the digital player will ignore the thumb drive.) Once the thumb drive is</span><br><span>inserted, the player buttons will function as usual for reading digital</span><br><span>materials. If you remove the thumb drive to use the player for cartridges,</span><br><span>when you insert it again, reading should resume at the point you stopped.</span><br><span> You can transfer the recording of each issue from the thumb drive to</span><br><span>your computer or preserve it on the thumb drive. However, because thumb</span><br><span>drives can be used hundreds of times, we would appreciate their return in</span><br><span>order to stretch our funding. Please use the return envelope enclosed with</span><br><span>the drive when you return the device.</span><br><span>[PHOTO CAPTION: Palm-lined drive leading to front entrance of Rosen Shingle</span><br><span>Creek Resort]</span><br><span> Orlando Site of 2017 NFB Convention</span><br><span></span><br><span> The 2017 convention of the National Federation of the Blind will take</span><br><span>place in Orlando, Florida, July 10 to July 15, at the Rosen Shingle Creek</span><br><span>Resort, 9939 Universal Boulevard, Orlando, Florida 32819-9357. Make your</span><br><span>room reservation as soon as possible with the Shingle Creek staff only.</span><br><span>Call (866) 996-6338.</span><br><span> The 2017 room rates are singles and doubles, $83; and for triples and</span><br><span>quads, $89. In addition to the room rates there will be a tax, which at</span><br><span>present is 12.5 percent. No charge will be made for children under</span><br><span>seventeen in the room with parents as long as no extra bed is requested.</span><br><span>The hotel is accepting reservations now. A $95-per-room deposit is required</span><br><span>to make a reservation. Fifty percent of the deposit will be refunded if</span><br><span>notice is given to the hotel of a reservation cancellation before June 1,</span><br><span>2017. The other 50 percent is not refundable.</span><br><span> Rooms will be available on a first-come, first-served basis.</span><br><span>Reservations may be made before June 1, 2017, assuming that rooms are still</span><br><span>available. After that time the hotel will not hold our room block for the</span><br><span>convention. In other words, you should get your reservation in soon.</span><br><span> All Rosen Shingle Creek guestrooms feature amenities that include</span><br><span>plush Creek Sleeper beds, 40" flat screen TVs, complimentary high-speed</span><br><span>internet service, in-room safes, coffee makers, mini-fridges, and hair</span><br><span>dryers. Guests can also enjoy a swimming pool, fitness center, and on-site</span><br><span>spa. The Rosen Shingle Creek Resort has a number of dining options,</span><br><span>including two award-winning restaurants, and twenty-four-hour-a-day room</span><br><span>service.</span><br><span> The schedule for the 2017 convention is:</span><br><span>Monday, July 10 Seminar Day</span><br><span>Tuesday, July 11 Registration and Resolutions Day</span><br><span>Wednesday, July 12 Board Meeting and Division Day</span><br><span>Thursday, July 13 Opening Session</span><br><span>Friday, July 14 Business Session</span><br><span>Saturday, July 15 Banquet Day and Adjournment</span><br><span></span><br><span></span><br><span></span><br><span>Vol. 60, No. 5 May</span><br><span>2017</span><br><span></span><br><span> Contents</span><br><span></span><br><span> Illustration: Teaching Designers About Nonvisual Access</span><br><span></span><br><span>A Window into KNFB Reader: An Evolving Project, a New Platform, and New</span><br><span>Horizons</span><br><span>by Joel Zimba</span><br><span></span><br><span>The State of Amazon Device Accessibility</span><br><span>by Karl Belager</span><br><span></span><br><span>The Tools of Self-Advocacy for Airline Passengers with Disabilities</span><br><span>by Parnell Diggs</span><br><span></span><br><span>Uber and Lyft Agree to Improving Service for Riders with Service Animals:</span><br><span>We Need Your Help with Monitoring Their Progress</span><br><span>by Valerie Yingling</span><br><span></span><br><span>How Do You Work This Thing?</span><br><span>by David Andrews</span><br><span></span><br><span>A Legislative Update and a Call to Action</span><br><span>by Parnell Diggs</span><br><span></span><br><blockquote type="cite"><span>From the President's Inbox: The Mail Must Go Through</span><br></blockquote><span>by Mark A. Riccobono</span><br><span></span><br><span>Blindness: Showing Up for Parenthood</span><br><span>by Noel Nightingale</span><br><span></span><br><span>There Is a List for That!</span><br><span>by David Andrews</span><br><span></span><br><span>Independence Market Corner</span><br><span></span><br><span>Dots from Space!: Inching Towards Understanding</span><br><span></span><br><span>Recipes</span><br><span></span><br><span>Monitor Miniatures</span><br><span></span><br><span>[PHOTO CAPTION: Amy Mason demonstrates screen-reading software for Towson</span><br><span>students on one of the computers in the IBTC]</span><br><span>[PHOTO CAPTION: Mark Riccobono speaks with a few Towson students]</span><br><span>[PHOTO CAPTION: Amy Mason and Mark Riccobono speak to Jonathan Lazar and</span><br><span>his Towson students in the International Braille and Technology Center</span><br><span>(IBTC) at Jernigan Institute]</span><br><span> Teaching Designers about Nonvisual Access</span><br><span></span><br><span> One of the reasons why technology is so seldom created with</span><br><span>accessibility in mind is that too many developers simply cannot conceive of</span><br><span>blind people using the mainstream products they design. A superb way to</span><br><span>demonstrate the interest of blind people in this technology to those who</span><br><span>will be designing it in the future is to talk with them when they are in</span><br><span>the process of getting a degree, and there is no better ambassador than</span><br><span>Jonathan Lazar, a professor at Towson University in Baltimore, when it</span><br><span>comes to connecting blind people and soon-to-be computer scientists.</span><br><span> On February 24, 2017, Jonathan and his students visited the</span><br><span>International Braille and Technology Center at the Jernigan Institute to</span><br><span>see the technology blind people use, the things it allows us to do, and the</span><br><span>things that are made difficult or impossible because of shortsighted</span><br><span>design. The staff of the International Braille and Technology Center</span><br><span>demonstrated screen-reading programs, Braille displays, 3D printing,</span><br><span>tactile graphics, and even how low-tech solutions can be used to</span><br><span>demonstrate meaningful concepts. One example was the use of LEGOs to show</span><br><span>the layout of the Windows desktop.</span><br><span> This is a tremendous beginning and one we should work to expand</span><br><span>throughout the country. Not every computer science major can visit our</span><br><span>Jernigan Institute as the students in the Human and Computer Interactions</span><br><span>class were able to do, but many of our chapters can get invited to classes</span><br><span>and teach soon-to-be designers that there should always be a nonvisual</span><br><span>alternative in the toolbox of every program they design.</span><br><span></span><br><span></span><br><span></span><br><span>[PHOTO CAPTION: Pictured are Joel Zimba, Jim Gashel and several Microsoft</span><br><span>employees all holding a tablet running KNFB Reader. All are wearing Cat in</span><br><span>the Hat style hats in observance of Read Across America Day which occurred</span><br><span>on March 2.]</span><br><span>[PHOTO CAPTION: William De Prêtre]</span><br><span> A Window into KNFB Reader: An Evolving Project, a New Platform, and New</span><br><span> Horizons</span><br><span> by Joel Zimba</span><br><span></span><br><span> From the Editor: Joel Zimba is the reading project innovation manager</span><br><span>for the National Federation of the Blind. One of his major responsibilities</span><br><span>is to supervise the innovation of the KNFB Reader, a dream come true for</span><br><span>those of us who want to be able to read print with a device small enough to</span><br><span>fit in our pocket. Joel and Jim Gashel recently had the opportunity to</span><br><span>introduce the groundbreaking program to the wider tech world at the largest</span><br><span>assistive technology conference on earth, hosted by California State</span><br><span>University, Northridge. Here is what he has to say about that experience:</span><br><span></span><br><span> I am taking the stage with Jim Gashel, vice president of business</span><br><span>development and product evangelist for KNFB Reader, LLC, and Jenny Lay-</span><br><span>Flurrie-the chief accessibility officer for Microsoft. The room full of</span><br><span>onlookers quiets as she approaches the podium. It is the first day of the</span><br><span>thirty-second annual CSUN Assistive Technology Conference, and we are</span><br><span>launching a new product.</span><br><span> After over a year of development, a project I was introduced to on my</span><br><span>first day working with the National Federation of the Blind is being</span><br><span>presented to the world. I man the controls and demonstrate the capabilities</span><br><span>of KNFB Reader for Windows, while Jim describes the history as well as the</span><br><span>globe-spanning collaboration that led to this moment.</span><br><span> I can remember sitting in the audience of the 2014 National</span><br><span>Convention of the National Federation of the Blind, when Jim Gashel first</span><br><span>demonstrated the modern incarnation of KNFB Reader for the iPhone. You can</span><br><span>read Jim's perspective on those events in the December 2014 Braille Monitor</span><br><span>article, "A New Era in Mobile Reading Begins: Introducing the KNFB Reader</span><br><span>for iOS." In that article Mr. Gashel details his first meeting with Ray</span><br><span>Kurzweil. He discusses events leading to the creation of the first reading</span><br><span>machine for the blind, resulting in the KNFB Reader Mobile line of</span><br><span>products. Finally these collaborations bring us to the indispensable KNFB</span><br><span>Reader app so many of us carry everywhere and use every day. On that July</span><br><span>afternoon, I never imagined I would be part of the team that would keep</span><br><span>KNFB Reader evolving, much less metaphorically cutting the ribbon on an app</span><br><span>that brings the power of KNFB's text recognition to Windows 10-powered</span><br><span>desktops, laptops, tablets, and phones.</span><br><span> The launch event, held in the Microsoft area of the CSUN conference</span><br><span>rooms, is not the end of a story but the beginning of an ongoing tale. It</span><br><span>consists of three madcap days of networking, demonstrating KNFB Reader on</span><br><span>three platforms and multiple configurations, and promotion of the KNFB</span><br><span>Reader technology, which is the most widely available, efficient, and</span><br><span>powerful text recognition solution available to date. By night I am</span><br><span>mingling, recruiting distributors of our multi-platform Enterprise product,</span><br><span>and talking with researchers and other app developers.</span><br><span> I am no stranger to conference exhibit halls. Since 2011 I have</span><br><span>demonstrated various forms of assistive technology for both professionals</span><br><span>and end users at dozens of such events. None compare to the size and scope</span><br><span>of the CSUN exhibit hall. If you have attended a national convention, you</span><br><span>will have some idea of the frenzy of such a loud, busy, and heavily</span><br><span>populated space. Hundreds of vendors both intentionally and unintentionally</span><br><span>competing for the attention of passersby with their colorful displays,</span><br><span>video presentations, and of course the talking, beeping, and otherwise</span><br><span>calamitous technology itself.</span><br><span> On the second day I am already losing my voice from trying to be</span><br><span>heard over the call of the great blue whale echoing from the Touch Graphics</span><br><span>booth next door. Behind me President Riccobono announces the debut of KNFB</span><br><span>Reader for Windows in our own multimedia promo created just for CSUN, while</span><br><span>I demonstrate the stand mode feature of KNFB Reader, which takes pictures</span><br><span>automatically as you turn the pages of a book. The gentleman I just met had</span><br><span>not yet ventured into the modern era and still uses a desktop-based, stand-</span><br><span>alone device from the last decade. My new friend will likely purchase his</span><br><span>first smartphone just for KNFB Reader, which is not an uncommon situation.</span><br><span> On Friday morning a visitor to our booth had a question about using</span><br><span>KNFB Reader on her BrailleNote Touch from HumanWare. In November of 2016</span><br><span>all users of the BrailleNote Touch received KNFB Reader free of charge. The</span><br><span>device I am now holding in my hand is the first product of its kind which</span><br><span>can turn printed text into Braille with a single command. This makes good</span><br><span>on the promise Jim Gashel made in the final lines of his 2014 article, when</span><br><span>he teased the KNFB Reader expansion to the Android platform. I battle the</span><br><span>typically congested conference WiFi to configure cloud synchronization</span><br><span>using Dropbox for her.</span><br><span> This is my job: to know the intricacies of our products on all</span><br><span>platforms, to work with our engineers to squish bugs, and to provide</span><br><span>support to KNFB Reader customers. I usually do this from behind a desk or</span><br><span>at the end of an often-tenuous telephone connection. Meeting so many KNFB</span><br><span>Reader users from all over the world face-to-face reaffirms my goal of</span><br><span>improving this powerful tool that increases the independence of blind</span><br><span>people worldwide, enabling them to live the lives they want. This is the</span><br><span>mission of the National Federation of the Blind, and I am honored to play</span><br><span>my part.</span><br><span> Perhaps my favorite question comes from the sighted person being</span><br><span>introduced to KNFB Reader for the first time. "How do you take a picture if</span><br><span>you're blind?" Of course, I was wrestling with this question myself before</span><br><span>the release of the app in 2014. When I demonstrate the program's Field of</span><br><span>View Report, which details how much of the printed page is visible to the</span><br><span>camera and how that can be coupled with tilt guidance to help keep the</span><br><span>device in the horizontal plane, incredulity gives way to surprise and then</span><br><span>often unease. No longer is this seemingly fundamentally visual activity</span><br><span>solely the domain of the sighted.</span><br><span> I now know that this is only half the story. The part we benefit</span><br><span>from, but never directly observe, is the powerful KNFB image pre-processing</span><br><span>system, which can turn a picture that would otherwise be unsuitable for</span><br><span>recognition into a document that is read nearly flawlessly. I am often</span><br><span>cavalier when I throw a piece of paper under a document camera at a rakish</span><br><span>angle. I know I will soon be navigating the recognized output with ease.</span><br><span>Some of the algorithms developed by Ray Kurzweil forty years ago are still</span><br><span>alive and well in KNFB Reader. We use them every day. This is how that</span><br><span>crumpled receipt still gives up the telephone number of the restaurant</span><br><span>where I left my hat.</span><br><span> I am not alone in representing KNFB Reader at CSUN. I am joined by</span><br><span>Jim Gashel and William De Prêtre. William is a chief software engineer with</span><br><span>our partner Sensotec NV located in Belgium. He, very nearly single-</span><br><span>handedly, coded the Windows version of KNFB Reader. Every morning we gather</span><br><span>for a working breakfast to assess any new developments from the</span><br><span>Twittersphere, take on long-standing challenges in real time, and plan for</span><br><span>where we are going next. In addition to the pleasure of having a colleague</span><br><span>become a good friend, I have the opportunity to personally express my</span><br><span>appreciation to William for his herculean effort over the past year:</span><br><span>deadlines, unexpected dead ends, and undocumented interfaces-he faced them</span><br><span>all; developers all-too-often never meet the happy customers who benefit</span><br><span>from their work every day.</span><br><span> In the launch event speech, Mr. Gashel stressed the importance of</span><br><span>partnerships. Indeed, I would say that is the thread which unites all of my</span><br><span>experiences throughout the CSUN conference. Our ongoing partnership with</span><br><span>Microsoft, which certainly shaped KNFB Reader for Windows, also led to</span><br><span>changes and improvements in Microsoft products, especially with regard to</span><br><span>accessibility. While I was acquainted with many of the Google contingent</span><br><span>attending CSUN, many more of them were familiar with KNFB Reader and</span><br><span>certainly with Ray Kurzweil, who is now a vice president at Google devoting</span><br><span>his time to the arcane art of machine learning and artificial intelligence.</span><br><span>A gathering composed of thousands of people from all over the world very</span><br><span>quickly came to feel like a community.</span><br><span> A three-day conference is never all business. Several of us spent the</span><br><span>entire day wearing Cat-in-the-Hat-style hats in celebration of Read Across</span><br><span>America Day-March 2. Several Dr. Seuss books were on hand for reading with</span><br><span>KNFB Reader. Theodor Seuss Geisel was born on March 2, 1904. Every year the</span><br><span>National Federation of the Blind marks this auspicious occasion and</span><br><span>promotes literacy-especially Braille literacy-and access to books for all.</span><br><span> Speaking of community, our Federation family was well represented.</span><br><span>Dozens of us descended upon a nearby restaurant early in the week. Before I</span><br><span>knew it, I had plenty of volunteers for the exhibit hall booth. I am</span><br><span>especially thankful for the help I received from Lisa Irving, Nahrain</span><br><span>Spurlock, and Ali Farrage, intrepid members of the San Diego chapter who</span><br><span>took on the duty of breaking down the booth and shipping everything home on</span><br><span>the last day.</span><br><span> The launch was not the end, and CSUN was not the end. The Windows</span><br><span>product will establish a foothold, and it will grow and change. KNFB Reader</span><br><span>will continue to become more robust and powerful. Very soon another of Jim</span><br><span>Gashel's promises will come to pass; Chinese and Japanese will make an</span><br><span>appearance. This will put KNFB Reader into the hands of countless more of</span><br><span>the world's blind people. Soon a document recognized on your home computer</span><br><span>will appear, ready for reading on your mobile device with no effort on your</span><br><span>part. A separate multi-platform product called KNFB Reader Enterprise now</span><br><span>brings our software to all of your devices at one low price. Looking ahead,</span><br><span>major new developments are underway which will begin to reveal themselves</span><br><span>at our National Convention this coming July. Stay tuned.</span><br><span> To learn more about KNFB Reader and KNFB Reader Enterprise, go to</span><br><span><a href="http://www.knfbreader.com">www.knfbreader.com</a> or call (347) 422-7085. You can also email</span><br><span><a href="mailto:support@knfbreader.com">support@knfbreader.com</a>. To obtain a quote for volume purchases of KNFB</span><br><span>Reader Enterprise or a site license, contact enterprise-</span><br><span><a href="mailto:info@knfbreader.com">info@knfbreader.com</a>.</span><br><span> ----------</span><br><span>[PHOTO CAPTION: Karl Belanger]</span><br><span> The State of Amazon Device Accessibility</span><br><span> by Karl Belanger</span><br><span></span><br><span> From the Editor: Karl Belanger is an access technology specialist at</span><br><span>the Jernigan Institute. He has worked for the National Federation of the</span><br><span>Blind for more than two years, coming to this position after working as a</span><br><span>consultant for web accessibility and access technology training. In this</span><br><span>piece he provides some history about the accessibility of products made and</span><br><span>sold by Amazon and chronicles significant changes in accessibility that</span><br><span>have resulted in some very exciting products for the blind. Here is what he</span><br><span>says:</span><br><span></span><br><span> Amazon sells a number of devices, from dedicated Kindle book readers</span><br><span>to Fire tablets and the new and popular Alexa devices. Historically, many</span><br><span>of these have had limited to no accessibility for blind users. Fortunately,</span><br><span>with some involvement from the National Federation of the Blind, this is</span><br><span>changing.</span><br><span> Amazon released the first E Ink Kindle in November of 2007. It was</span><br><span>wildly popular with the sighted public, but this device did not contain any</span><br><span>accessibility features that could be used by a blind person. It was quickly</span><br><span>replaced by the Kindle 2 and Kindle DX, which added text-to-speech for</span><br><span>reading of some books, but could not be independently operated by a blind</span><br><span>person as the menus were not spoken.</span><br><span> Shortly after the Kindle 2's release, the Authors Guild, which is the</span><br><span>largest national organization representing the interests of writers,</span><br><span>protested Amazon's deployment of text-to-speech on the Kindle 2. Viewing</span><br><span>this feature as a potential threat to the audiobook market, the Guild</span><br><span>argued that the automated reading aloud of a book is a copyright</span><br><span>infringement unless the copyright holder has specifically granted</span><br><span>permission. Any agreement of this nature would be against the interests of</span><br><span>blind people, since it would set a precedent equating the very different</span><br><span>formats of text-to-speech rendering and audiobooks. The NFB worked to</span><br><span>oppose any such restrictions and stood with Amazon in opposition to the</span><br><span>Author's Guild.</span><br><span> Amazon ended up removing text-to-speech from titles whose authors or</span><br><span>publishers were opposed to its continued availability, but did compromise</span><br><span>in as much as they would only turn it off if explicitly requested instead</span><br><span>of only turning it on with the publisher's express permission.</span><br><span> Around the same time, the National Federation of the Blind also began</span><br><span>to ask for increased accessibility because Amazon had become the world's</span><br><span>largest eBook store and access would represent an enormous benefit for</span><br><span>blind and otherwise print-disabled users.</span><br><span> In 2009 Kindle for PC with Accessibility Plugin was the first Kindle</span><br><span>reading platform that offered enough features for blind users (and many</span><br><span>print-disabled people) to use books from the Amazon ecosystem at all, and</span><br><span>its features were, like those on the hardware players, very limited. Many</span><br><span>blind people began to read novels and other non-intensive text with this</span><br><span>platform, but it could not be used for more active reading. Books could not</span><br><span>be read with Braille because they were self-voicing, and the smallest unit</span><br><span>a user could navigate by was the sentence, so it was not possible to spell</span><br><span>words or use any of the study tools available to other users.</span><br><span> The Kindle Keyboard (sometimes known as the Kindle 3), released in</span><br><span>2010, offered the first usable, if rudimentary, accessibility features for</span><br><span>this population on an Amazon hardware device. Shopping, web browsing, and</span><br><span>many of the reading functions were disabled, and navigation was limited to</span><br><span>moving through the text in read-all mode or by page, but it was now at</span><br><span>least possible for a blind person to make some use of it. The situation on</span><br><span>Fire tablets was initially not much better. Upon launch, the first of the</span><br><span>Android-based Fire tablets did include TalkBack, but the Fire OS had not</span><br><span>been built to support it. Even basic features like the keyboard could not</span><br><span>be used by a blind person when the device was first available.</span><br><span> Despite the marginal level of accessibility in the Kindle platform,</span><br><span>Amazon began to push into both K-12 and higher education with their books</span><br><span>and devices. With the devices crippled by a lack of fundamental</span><br><span>accessibility and restrictions on the titles that could be accessed using</span><br><span>text-to-speech, the NFB became an adversary instead of an ally to Amazon.</span><br><span>This resulted in a number of legal challenges in schools that used Kindle</span><br><span>materials with blind students and a protest highlighting the lack of access</span><br><span>in Amazon's tools at their headquarters in December of 2012.</span><br><span> In May of 2013, Kindle for iOS gained VoiceOver compatibility for</span><br><span>most books and immediately became the favored platform for blind Kindle</span><br><span>users. Likewise, Fire OS gained further accessibility support in the next</span><br><span>couple of years, and at the time the Fire Phone was released, it had</span><br><span>reached a point where for a time it surpassed the accessibility available</span><br><span>on traditional Android devices.</span><br><span> These improvements were critical and welcomed by blind users, but</span><br><span>Kindle continued to fall short of the robust accessibility required to read</span><br><span>academic textbooks, and August of 2015 saw Amazon and the NFB in conflict</span><br><span>once again. The New York City public schools were considering a large</span><br><span>contract with Amazon based around the Kindle and Whispercast ecosystem. The</span><br><span>National Federation of the Blind, aware that the partial accessibility of</span><br><span>books on the platform would continue to put blind students at a serious</span><br><span>disadvantage, prepared for a public protest of the meeting where the fate</span><br><span>of the contract was to be decided. The buses were ready to roll, the signs</span><br><span>were printed, and the Federation was loudly and publicly denouncing the</span><br><span>partnership, when suddenly-at the eleventh hour-the meeting was canceled</span><br><span>and the contract shelved.</span><br><span> Not long after this very public conflict, Amazon and the NFB sat down</span><br><span>to discuss opportunities to partner on the accessibility of the Kindle</span><br><span>platform in order to ensure that blind users could derive as much benefit</span><br><span>from its ecosystem as sighted users. The National Federation of the Blind</span><br><span>has been working with Amazon on the quality of their educational content</span><br><span>ever since.</span><br><span> In the last year or so, we have begun to see the earliest fruits of</span><br><span>this partnership. As of mid-2016, Amazon has begun rolling out its</span><br><span>VoiceView screen reader to all its Kindle readers, tablets, and TV devices.</span><br><span>It has taken steps to make its Alexa app for controlling the Echo devices</span><br><span>mostly accessible. Finally, they retired the old "Kindle for PC with</span><br><span>Accessibility Plugin" and have replaced it with a fully integrated version</span><br><span>of the Kindle for PC software. This now works with NVDA to allow for much</span><br><span>more robust accessibility in most Kindle texts.</span><br><span> This brings us to the present day. Amazon is still working toward</span><br><span>further accessibility on many of their products, but we have seen such</span><br><span>rapid improvement that it is a good time to discuss the experience a blind</span><br><span>user can expect today.</span><br><span></span><br><span>Current Accessibility of Amazon Devices</span><br><span></span><br><span>Kindle Readers</span><br><span> Amazon sells four different Kindle devices, which all have some level</span><br><span>of accessibility. These are, in ascending order of price and</span><br><span>specifications: the Kindle, the Kindle Paperwhite, the Kindle Voyage, and</span><br><span>the Kindle Oasis. The most basic model, just called Kindle, is relatively</span><br><span>inexpensive and has the most basic feature set. Each additional model adds</span><br><span>higher quality screens, better lighting, etc.</span><br><span></span><br><span>Activating VoiceView</span><br><span> How you activate VoiceView changes somewhat depending on the model of</span><br><span>Kindle you have. The basic Kindle uses a Bluetooth headset or speaker to</span><br><span>transmit the audio. The Kindle Paperwhite uses an audio adaptor that plugs</span><br><span>into the micro USB charging port. Both these methods have their benefits</span><br><span>and drawbacks. The Bluetooth method means that the device can be charging</span><br><span>while VoiceView is active. However, there is no immediately obvious</span><br><span>indication how to pair a headset when a user first gets the device, without</span><br><span>looking up instructions online. For the Paperwhite, the obvious drawback is</span><br><span>that the audio adaptor takes up the charging port, so you will always be</span><br><span>running the device on battery power. For the basic Kindle, to pair a</span><br><span>headset the power button is held in for seven seconds once the Kindle has</span><br><span>fully booted. Then, hold two fingers near the center of the screen for a</span><br><span>little over a second. At this point the Kindle will begin trying all</span><br><span>Bluetooth devices it can detect. Once the device you want begins to</span><br><span>broadcast an audio message, press and hold with two fingers again until the</span><br><span>Kindle confirms VoiceView is on. For the Paperwhite just plug headphones</span><br><span>into the adaptor and then plug the adaptor into the Kindle, and VoiceView</span><br><span>turns on within a second or two.</span><br><span></span><br><span>Basic Gestures</span><br><span> As with other mobile screen readers, the most basic gestures are</span><br><span>flick left, right, and double-tap. Moving your finger around the screen to</span><br><span>explore by touch is also possible. Page changing and scrolling is done with</span><br><span>two fingers. Swiping left and right with two fingers will flip pages in a</span><br><span>book or move through multiple pages of content in other areas. Slowly</span><br><span>swiping up or down with two fingers will scroll through long lists or any</span><br><span>other content that doesn't all fit on one screen. Much like on iOS, it is</span><br><span>possible to flick up and down to move by a selected granularity, and the</span><br><span>gesture to change granularity is to flick up then down or down then up in</span><br><span>one motion.</span><br><span></span><br><span>Reading Books</span><br><span> The process of reading a book on the Kindle is straightforward. From</span><br><span>the home screen, find and double-tap on the book you want to read. If the</span><br><span>book supports the screen reader, the book will start reading automatically.</span><br><span>If the book is not supported, you will receive a message to this effect,</span><br><span>but the book will still open. Once a supported book is opened, a two-finger</span><br><span>flick down from near the top of the page will start the book in continuous</span><br><span>reading mode. While the book is shown, it is possible to flick left or</span><br><span>right with two fingers to go to the next or previous page. To access the</span><br><span>reading bar where it is possible to navigate through the book or go back to</span><br><span>your library, simply double-tap on the text while reading. It is possible</span><br><span>to select text and highlight or add notes, but the initial step of this is</span><br><span>somewhat clunky. To select text, move your finger around the screen to try</span><br><span>and find the word you want to select. After this is done, double-tap and</span><br><span>hold on the word to be selected. This will bring up an interface with</span><br><span>buttons to adjust the selection, define a word, highlight or annotate the</span><br><span>selected text, etc., which works quite well.</span><br><span></span><br><span>Limitations with VoiceView</span><br><span> VoiceView on the Kindle has a number of limitations that</span><br><span>significantly affect how useful the device is. There are many features that</span><br><span>simply state they are unavailable when focusing on the button to activate</span><br><span>them. The first instance of this a user may run across is when initially</span><br><span>setting up the device. While signing into an account is accessible,</span><br><span>creating an account directly on the device isn't currently possible with</span><br><span>VoiceView. Probably the most significant of these missing features is the</span><br><span>Kindle FreeTime kids section. This is where a lot of content for kids</span><br><span>resides, and parents can also set up reading lists, goals, time limits, and</span><br><span>book restrictions for their children. Not having this feature means the</span><br><span>Kindle readers are much less useful for a blind child whose parents want to</span><br><span>get them into reading by using this service or to blind parents having no</span><br><span>access to the parental controls. The Kindle's integration with Goodreads,</span><br><span>(an online site where people can share the books they're reading, reading</span><br><span>lists, and reviews of books they have read) is also disabled with</span><br><span>VoiceView.</span><br><span></span><br><span>Fire Tablets</span><br><span> Amazon's Fire tablets are a series of relatively inexpensive tablets</span><br><span>that run Amazon's Fire OS. The current tablets include a basic, seven-inch</span><br><span>tablet simply called Fire, plus the Fire HD6, HD8, and HD10 which have six,</span><br><span>eight, and ten-inch screens respectively. These tablets all come with</span><br><span>Amazon's VoiceView screen reader, which has a few additional features over</span><br><span>the version on the Kindle devices.</span><br><span></span><br><span>Activating VoiceView</span><br><span> Several different ways to activate VoiceView are available, depending</span><br><span>on what state the tablet is in. VoiceView can always be activated under</span><br><span>Settings > Accessibility. For a brand-new or freshly reset tablet, press</span><br><span>and hold two fingers on the screen to start VoiceView. In addition, the</span><br><span>user can hold down the power button from anywhere in the system until a</span><br><span>sound is heard, then hold two fingers on the screen until VoiceView starts.</span><br><span>To turn off VoiceView, go into Settings > Accessibility and turn it off.</span><br><span></span><br><span>Using the Fire Tablet</span><br><span> VoiceView on Fire OS is very similar to the version on the Kindle,</span><br><span>with a few added gestures. As is the case in TalkBack on Android, the angle</span><br><span>gestures are present, such as swiping right then down to access</span><br><span>notifications, or up then left to reach the home screen. One unique gesture</span><br><span>that VoiceView has is the "jog wheel" gesture. To use this, swipe up then</span><br><span>down or down then up to choose the granularity you want to use to navigate.</span><br><span>Then, double-tap and hold, then draw a circle on the screen without lifting</span><br><span>your finger. As you continue going around, VoiceView will scroll through</span><br><span>items on the screen matching that granularity quite quickly. Draw a circle</span><br><span>in the other direction to go back.</span><br><span> VoiceView can handle the built-in apps on the Fire tablet, plus many</span><br><span>third-party apps such as Audible or BARD Mobile. The responsiveness is very</span><br><span>good, though gestures need to be fairly precise; the double-tap action</span><br><span>needs to be quick, and these default controls cannot be customized. It is</span><br><span>possible to navigate through web pages, but the granularity options are</span><br><span>limited to sections (what other devices call headings) and lists. Reading</span><br><span>books works just as it does on the Kindle.</span><br><span></span><br><span>Braille Support</span><br><span> There is a version of BrailleBack currently available for the Fire</span><br><span>tablets. This version, like the Android version, lacks many necessary</span><br><span>features such as contracted Braille input, word wrap, and consistent and</span><br><span>complete sets of commands across displays. Amazon has stated publicly that</span><br><span>they are working on a better, more integrated version of Braille support,</span><br><span>but no other details or release date have been provided as of this writing.</span><br><span></span><br><span>Current Limitations</span><br><span> VoiceView and Fire OS accessibility in general do come with some</span><br><span>limitations. As mentioned previously, the navigation in web content is</span><br><span>extremely limited, which can make navigating larger pages awkward.</span><br><span>Similarly, there are no headings or other navigation elements in the App</span><br><span>Store, Kindle Store, and other stores, again making navigation difficult.</span><br><span>The gesture recognition, especially on the lower-end devices, can also be</span><br><span>somewhat picky, resulting in failed angle gestures, occasional</span><br><span>misinterpreted flicks, and fast double-taps that make using the tablet</span><br><span>occasionally frustrating.</span><br><span></span><br><span>Alexa Devices</span><br><span> Alexa, Amazon's personal assistant service, is on an increasing</span><br><span>number of devices, both from Amazon and other companies. The devices that</span><br><span>are most associated with Alexa are the Echo devices, which will be</span><br><span>discussed here. Alexa devices work through the Alexa app, which acts as a</span><br><span>hub for configuring, monitoring, and adjusting aspects of your experience.</span><br><span></span><br><span>The Hardware</span><br><span> There are three Echo devices in the line. The Echo is a stand-alone</span><br><span>speaker which was the first device to have Alexa. It has a decent speaker,</span><br><span>360-degree microphones, and connects to your WiFi to provide access to</span><br><span>Alexa. The Amazon Tap is a smaller Bluetooth speaker. Until recently the</span><br><span>Tap could not listen for the Alexa command, rather requiring a button press</span><br><span>to cause it to listen. Now the Tap can listen, thanks to a software update.</span><br><span>It is also the only battery-powered device in the lineup. Lastly, the Echo</span><br><span>Dot is a much smaller version of the Echo, which is primarily designed to</span><br><span>connect to other devices. The speaker on the Dot is fairly weak, but good</span><br><span>enough for a small room or bedroom. All three of these devices serve</span><br><span>different purposes depending on where and what the device is used for.</span><br><span></span><br><span>The App and Web Interface</span><br><span> There is an Alexa app for both iOS and Android, as well as a web</span><br><span>interface. The setup is basically the same whichever platform you're on. In</span><br><span>the app it opens a home screen which shows your recent requests along with</span><br><span>more information about them. These might be additional details about sports-</span><br><span> or weather-related requests, information on the song playing, or other</span><br><span>possible information. The app is also where it is possible to search for</span><br><span>and enable skills, connect smart home devices, and configure or set up</span><br><span>other Echo devices. The app is very accessible on all platforms, though it</span><br><span>can be laggy on mobile. There are also some unlabeled links, mostly in the</span><br><span>section at the bottom of every screen that shows what your devices are</span><br><span>currently playing.</span><br><span></span><br><span>General Usage</span><br><span> To use an Echo device, simply say "Alexa," and state your request.</span><br><span>"Alexa, what's the weather in Baltimore?" "Alexa, play the Nation's Blind</span><br><span>podcast from TuneIn." There are a vast number of things it is possible to</span><br><span>do with the Echo. You can ask for the info on most professional and college</span><br><span>sports teams, play music and stations from TuneIn radio, read some Kindle</span><br><span>books, and listen to content in your Audible library. If you are a Prime</span><br><span>member, it is also possible to listen to music from Prime Music and even</span><br><span>order products directly through the Echo. There is also an ever-growing</span><br><span>number of skills which will be discussed further in the next section. If</span><br><span>you've connected a smart home device, the Echo can also be used to control</span><br><span>your thermostat, lights, connected switches, and many other types of</span><br><span>devices.</span><br><span></span><br><span>Smart Home and Skills</span><br><span> The number of Alexa skills is varied and growing daily. From simple</span><br><span>trivia games to recipe databases to controls for your security systems-you</span><br><span>can find almost anything in the skills section of the Alexa app. To enable</span><br><span>a skill, simply find it in the Alexa app and tap the enable button. Or, if</span><br><span>you know the name, simply tell Alexa to enable the skill. Some noteworthy</span><br><span>skills include Jeopardy, AllRecipes, and Uber/Lyft.</span><br><span> Another growing area of Alexa is smart home devices. Many devices</span><br><span>including thermostats from various companies, lighting from companies such</span><br><span>as Philips, smart door locks, and even whole home security systems can be</span><br><span>controlled through an Echo device. Generally the device must be set up</span><br><span>either directly on the device and/or through its connected app, which may</span><br><span>or may not be accessible. Once the smart home device is connected to your</span><br><span>WiFi, it can be connected to Alexa. This is done in the app, generally by</span><br><span>enabling a skill and connecting either directly to the device or by signing</span><br><span>into the related account.</span><br><span></span><br><span>Reading Kindle Books on Other Platforms</span><br><span></span><br><span>PC</span><br><span> Reading Kindle books on the PC has traditionally been a less than</span><br><span>enjoyable experience. The book could only be read by the system's text-to-</span><br><span>speech voice, and navigation was minimal at best. Very recently, Kindle for</span><br><span>PC version 1.19 paired with NVDA has enabled much more granular navigation</span><br><span>of Kindle books. It is possible to navigate by chapter, by page, right down</span><br><span>to character-by-character navigation. However, only Kindle books that</span><br><span>support enhanced typesetting will work in this version. Unfortunately, the</span><br><span>only place this information is located is in the product details on the</span><br><span>Amazon site, and no warning is given when opening an incompatible book</span><br><span>other than it not being possible to read the book using the arrow keys.</span><br><span>Highlighting and attaching notes is completely accessible with NVDA, and it</span><br><span>is also possible to navigate by link or graphic on the current page.</span><br><span>Currently, the best results are with NVDA, though JAWS does provide a</span><br><span>reduced level of access, but selecting text and the associated functions</span><br><span>are not compatible.</span><br><span></span><br><span>Mac</span><br><span> Kindle for Mac is, unfortunately, completely inaccessible. The login</span><br><span>screen is unusable with VoiceOver. While the menu bar is accessible after</span><br><span>logging in, none of the content can be used or interacted with in any way.</span><br><span></span><br><span>iOS</span><br><span> Kindle for iOS is very accessible. The login process, book selection,</span><br><span>and download are all very usable with VoiceOver. Once in a book, a two-</span><br><span>finger swipe down starts continuous reading. A double-tap on the screen</span><br><span>shows the menu bar, where it is possible to navigate to different parts of</span><br><span>the book, share the book, or return to the library.</span><br><span></span><br><span>Android</span><br><span> Kindle for Android is also very accessible with TalkBack. When</span><br><span>loading a book, simply swipe right to start continuous reading. Just as</span><br><span>with Kindle on the Fire, it is possible to drag a finger around the screen</span><br><span>to find a word to start a selection. Once the start of the selection is</span><br><span>found, a double-tap and hold brings up the usual selection options, though</span><br><span>once something is selected, when returning to that location later, there is</span><br><span>no announcement from TalkBack that something is there.</span><br><span></span><br><span> Amazon's devices have come a long way since the original Kindle for</span><br><span>PC was released in 2009. The Fire tablets and Fire TV are becoming</span><br><span>increasingly viable entertainment devices for the blind and low vision. The</span><br><span>Alexa devices are very popular, thanks to their ability to provide access</span><br><span>to smart home products that may not be natively accessible. Even the Kindle</span><br><span>reading apps mostly continue to show improvement. Amazon has made</span><br><span>significant strides in accessibility in nearly all their products, and it</span><br><span>will be exciting to see what new developments arise in 2017 and beyond.</span><br><span> At the time of writing in March 2017, the products mentioned in this</span><br><span>article are commercially available at the following prices:</span><br><span> Kindle E-reader: $79.99</span><br><span> Kindle Paperwhite: $119.99</span><br><span> Kindle Voyage: $199.99</span><br><span> Kindle Oasis: $289.99</span><br><span> Fire Tablet: $49.99</span><br><span> Fire HD 6: $69.99</span><br><span> Fire HD 8: $89.99</span><br><span> Fire HD 10: $229.99</span><br><span> Amazon Echo: $179.99</span><br><span> Amazon Tap: $129.99</span><br><span> Amazon Echo Tap: $49.99</span><br><span> ----------</span><br><span>[PHOTO CAPTION: Parnell Diggs]</span><br><span> The Tools of Self-Advocacy for Airline Passengers with Disabilities</span><br><span> by Parnell Diggs</span><br><span></span><br><span></span><br><span> From the Editor: Parnell Diggs is the director of government affairs</span><br><span>for the National Federation of the Blind, a former president of the NFB of</span><br><span>South Carolina, and the previous owner of a law firm in that state which</span><br><span>bore his name. One of his talents is translating the technicalities of the</span><br><span>law into prose that laypeople can understand. Here is what he says about</span><br><span>the letter of the law:</span><br><span></span><br><span> The general rule is simple enough: carriers are admonished that "You</span><br><span>must not discriminate against any qualified individual with a disability,</span><br><span>by reason of such disability, in the provision of air transportation" (14</span><br><span>CFR 382.11). But the pleasantries very often deteriorate from there, as</span><br><span>many people with disabilities (including those who are blind) have</span><br><span>experienced while flying the not-so-friendly skies.</span><br><span> The stories are all-too-familiar for members of the National</span><br><span>Federation of the Blind who travel to the convention, Washington Seminar,</span><br><span>or on other Federation business throughout the year. The purpose of this</span><br><span>article is to flag some of the regulations passengers can cite en route to</span><br><span>the Orlando national convention, for example, if confronted with an awkward</span><br><span>situation at the airport or during flight.</span><br><span> Where appropriate, I will also give you citations to the Code of</span><br><span>Federal Regulations, which will make your self-advocacy more effective and</span><br><span>hopefully improve the flying experience. In this case, the origin of most</span><br><span>of the regulations cited in this article are promulgated in the</span><br><span>implementing regulations adopted by the United States Department of</span><br><span>Transportation, pursuant to the Air Carrier Access Act of 1986, which</span><br><span>protects passengers with disabilities from discrimination in various</span><br><span>aspects of air travel.</span><br><span></span><br><span>The Complaints Resolution Officer (CRO)</span><br><span> Every air carrier that operates an aircraft with nineteen or more</span><br><span>seats must designate a complaints resolution officer. "In any situation in</span><br><span>which any person complains or raises a concern with your personnel about</span><br><span>discrimination, accommodations, or services with respect to passengers with</span><br><span>a disability, and your personnel do not immediately resolve the issue to</span><br><span>the customer's satisfaction or provide a requested accommodation, your</span><br><span>personnel must immediately inform the passenger of the right to contact a</span><br><span>CRO and then contact a CRO on the passenger's behalf or provide the</span><br><span>passenger a means to do so... Your personnel must provide this information</span><br><span>to the passenger in a format he or she can use" (14 CFR 382.151(c)(1)).</span><br><span> The CRO must be available at the airport at all times that a US</span><br><span>carrier is operating flights at that airport; for foreign carriers, the CRO</span><br><span>must be available at the airport for all flights beginning or terminating</span><br><span>at that airport.</span><br><span> The CRO is intended to be a powerful individual with authority to</span><br><span>make dispositive decisions for the carrier of all complaints and even</span><br><span>overrule decisions made by other airline officials except where the "pilot-</span><br><span>in-command of an aircraft" makes a decision based on safety. But, short of</span><br><span>a safety decision made by a "pilot-in-command of an aircraft," the CRO can</span><br><span>address your issue.</span><br><span></span><br><span>Website Accessibility</span><br><span> As of December 12, 2016, airlines that operate at least one aircraft</span><br><span>with a seating capacity of more than sixty passengers and own or control a</span><br><span>website must insure that the public-facing pages on its primary website are</span><br><span>accessible using World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) Recommendation (11</span><br><span>December 2008, Website Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0 for</span><br><span>Level AA standards).</span><br><span> This means that, whether you are booking a flight, changing a</span><br><span>reservation, purchasing additional services, or dealing with frequent flyer</span><br><span>programs, the Department of Transportation requires that those activities</span><br><span>and services must be available to disabled passengers if they are made</span><br><span>available to the general public online.</span><br><span></span><br><span>The Airport</span><br><span> Entities which contract with airlines are also bound by the Air</span><br><span>Carrier Access Act implementing regulations. (e.g., those who provide gate-</span><br><span>to-gate assistance for passengers needing to make connections or for</span><br><span>passengers arriving at the airport or departing after reaching their</span><br><span>destination.) Contract personnel are also subject to CRO authority.</span><br><span></span><br><span>The Aircraft</span><br><span> Quoting the regulations, "You must not require a qualified individual</span><br><span>with a disability to accept special services (including, but not limited</span><br><span>to, preboarding) that the individual does not request" (14 CFR 382.11(2)).</span><br><span>The airlines are required to offer preboarding, and some personnel take</span><br><span>this obligation very seriously, but a blind passenger who does not want to</span><br><span>preboard cannot be compelled to do so.</span><br><span> Under the regulations, airlines may offer an extra safety briefing to</span><br><span>blind passengers, but blind passengers are not required to accept it.</span><br><span>According to 14 CFR 382.115(b), "You may offer an individual briefing to</span><br><span>any other passenger, but you may not require an individual to have such a</span><br><span>briefing except as provided in paragraph (a) [referring to the general</span><br><span>passenger briefing] of this section."</span><br><span></span><br><span>Canes and Guide Dogs</span><br><span> 14 CFR 121.589(g) In addition to the methods of stowage in paragraph</span><br><span> (c) of this section, flexible travel canes carried by blind</span><br><span> individuals may be stowed -</span><br><span> (1) Under any series of connected passenger seats in the same</span><br><span> row, if the cane does not protrude into an aisle and if the</span><br><span> cane is flat on the floor; or</span><br><span> (2) Between a nonemergency exit window seat and the fuselage, if</span><br><span> the cane is flat on the floor; or</span><br><span> (3) Beneath any two nonemergency exit window seats, if the cane</span><br><span> is flat on the floor; or</span><br><span> (4) In accordance with any other method approved by the</span><br><span> Administrator.</span><br><span></span><br><span> Longtime Federation leader Patti Chang recently used this regulation</span><br><span>to convince a flight attendant to allow Patti to store her cane at her</span><br><span>seat, though she was first threatened with forced removal from the flight</span><br><span>by federal marshals. Also, 14 CFR 382.121 requires carriers to permit</span><br><span>passengers to bring "mobility aids, such as canes (including those used by</span><br><span>persons with impaired vision)" into the aircraft cabin.</span><br><span> The final set of regulations in this article refers to guide dog users.</span><br><span>Carriers have been making it increasingly difficult for guide dog users to</span><br><span>travel in peace. Accordingly, the relevant regulations are being set forth</span><br><span>below in their entirety as information for those who would like to learn</span><br><span>and use them for future travel plans. These regulations can be found at 14</span><br><span>CFR 382.117 as follows:</span><br><span></span><br><span></span><br><span> (a) as a carrier, you must permit a service animal to accompany a</span><br><span> passenger with a disability.</span><br><span> (1) You must not deny transportation to a service animal on the basis</span><br><span> that its carriage may offend or annoy carrier personnel or</span><br><span> persons traveling on the aircraft.</span><br><span> (2) On a flight segment scheduled to take 8 hours or more, you may, as</span><br><span> a condition of permitting a service animal to travel in the</span><br><span> cabin, require the passenger using the service animal to provide</span><br><span> documentation that the animal will not need to relieve itself on</span><br><span> the flight or that the animal can relieve itself in a way that</span><br><span> does not create a health or sanitation issue on the flight.</span><br><span> (b) You must permit the service animal to accompany the passenger with</span><br><span> a disability at any seat in which the passenger sits, unless the</span><br><span> animal obstructs an aisle or other area that must remain</span><br><span> unobstructed to facilitate an emergency evacuation.</span><br><span> (c) If a service animal cannot be accommodated at the seat location of</span><br><span> the passenger with a disability who is using the animal, you</span><br><span> must offer the passenger the opportunity to move with the animal</span><br><span> to another seat location, if present on the aircraft, where the</span><br><span> animal can be accommodated.</span><br><span> (d) As evidence that an animal is a service animal, you must accept</span><br><span> identification cards, other written documentation, presence of</span><br><span> harnesses, tags, or the credible verbal assurances of a</span><br><span> qualified individual with a disability using the animal.</span><br><span> (g) Whenever you decide not to accept an animal as a service animal,</span><br><span> you must explain the reason for your decision to the passenger</span><br><span> and document it in writing. A copy of the explanation must be</span><br><span> provided to the passenger either at the airport, or within 10</span><br><span> calendar days of the incident."</span><br><span></span><br><span>Enforcement</span><br><span> The regulations discussed herein would be meaningless without</span><br><span>mechanisms to enforce them. One thing is certain: if you say nothing when</span><br><span>you feel you have been a victim of discrimination, no action will be taken.</span><br><span>Ideally, you should make a complaint to the CRO at the airport prior to</span><br><span>takeoff or after landing. If you do this, the CRO will be required to act</span><br><span>on your complaint immediately.</span><br><span> If the CRO agrees that your rights may potentially be violated,</span><br><span>he/she has the authority to take action on behalf of the carrier to prevent</span><br><span>a violation of the Air Carrier Access Act. Or, if the harm has already been</span><br><span>done, the CRO is required to provide a statement summarizing the facts and</span><br><span>setting forth the corrective actions the carrier intends to take.</span><br><span> If the CRO believes that no violation has occurred, he/she must</span><br><span>provide a statement in writing summarizing the facts and the reasons for</span><br><span>the determination. The statement must also inform the complainant of the</span><br><span>right to pursue enforcement action with the Department of Transportation.</span><br><span> Whether the CRO takes favorable or unfavorable action on a complaint,</span><br><span>the statement must be provided to the complainant at the airport if</span><br><span>possible but within thirty days thereafter in any case. There is also a</span><br><span>provision for filing a complaint directly with the Department of</span><br><span>Transportation. This section is set forth verbatim as follows:</span><br><span></span><br><span>14 CFR 382.159</span><br><span></span><br><span> (a) Any person believing that a carrier has violated any provision of</span><br><span> this part may seek assistance or file an informal complaint at the</span><br><span> Department of Transportation no later than 6 months after the date</span><br><span> of the incident by either:</span><br><span> (1) Going to the web site of the Department's Aviation Consumer</span><br><span> Protection Division at <a href="http://airconsumer.ost.dot.gov">http://airconsumer.ost.dot.gov</a> and</span><br><span> selecting "Air Travel Problems and Complaints," or</span><br><span> (2) Writing to Department of Transportation, Aviation Consumer</span><br><span> Protection Division (C-75), 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE,</span><br><span> Washington, DC 20590.</span><br><span> (b) Any person believing that a carrier has violated any provision of</span><br><span> this part may also file a formal complaint under the applicable</span><br><span> procedures of 14 CFR part 302 [The Department of Transportation</span><br><span> general administrative review process].</span><br><span> (c) You must file a formal complaint under this part within six months</span><br><span> of the incident on which the complaint is based in order to ensure</span><br><span> the Department of Transportation will investigate the matter.</span><br><span></span><br><span> While this is by no means an exhaustive accounting of the applicable</span><br><span>regulations concerning air travel for passengers with disabilities, these</span><br><span>are the most common types of issues brought to our attention in the</span><br><span>National Federation of the Blind Department of Advocacy and Policy.</span><br><span>Familiarizing yourself with these regulations and discussing them civilly</span><br><span>with airline personnel will give you the best chance of enjoying a positive</span><br><span>traveling experience the next time you plan to board a flight.</span><br><span> ----------</span><br><span> Uber and Lyft Agree to Improving Service for Riders with Service Animals</span><br><span> We Need Your Help with Monitoring Their Progress</span><br><span> by Valerie Yingling</span><br><span></span><br><span> From the Editor: Many blind people have welcomed the arrival of new</span><br><span>ridesharing services with open arms, but the same cannot be said for the</span><br><span>services, which sometimes have refused to provide rides to blind passengers</span><br><span>accompanied by guide dogs. In this article Valerie Yingling, legal program</span><br><span>coordinator for the National Federation of the Blind, discusses settlements</span><br><span>between the National Federation of the Blind and the two major ridesharing</span><br><span>services that operate in the country, Uber and Lyft. Here is what she has</span><br><span>to say:</span><br><span></span><br><span> Within the last year, the National Federation of the Blind has</span><br><span>resolved allegations of discrimination against both Uber and Lyft. In</span><br><span>landmark settlement agreements, both companies have agreed to revise their</span><br><span>policies and procedures to prevent drivers from discriminating against</span><br><span>riders with service animals. With these agreements, the NFB has pushed back</span><br><span>against biases and misconceptions regarding the blind and their service</span><br><span>animals. Policy and procedure changes outlined in the Uber and Lyft</span><br><span>settlement agreements are designed to afford blind riders with service</span><br><span>animals the ability to travel to doctors' appointments, school, work,</span><br><span>grocery stores, and elsewhere, with the same ease of travel that Uber and</span><br><span>Lyft offer to sighted customers. In short, the agreements support our</span><br><span>living the lives we want, and the NFB commends both Lyft and Uber for</span><br><span>instituting these changes.</span><br><span> As a result of the settlement agreements, both Uber and Lyft now</span><br><span>require that existing and new drivers acknowledge their legal obligations</span><br><span>to transport riders with service animals. Both companies have adopted</span><br><span>stricter enforcement policies-if Uber and Lyft drivers knowingly deny rides</span><br><span>to individuals with service animals, the drivers will be immediately</span><br><span>terminated. Additionally, if either company receives plausible reports that</span><br><span>a specific driver refused to transport or otherwise discriminated against</span><br><span>riders with service animals on more than one occasion, that driver will be</span><br><span>terminated, regardless of the driver's intent. Uber and Lyft have agreed to</span><br><span>improve their complaint procedures, including implementing more effective</span><br><span>customer service responses to riders who register service animal</span><br><span>discrimination complaints. See the agreement terms in full at</span><br><span><a href="https://nfb.org/rideshare">https://nfb.org/rideshare</a>.</span><br><span> The National Federation of the Blind will coordinate with both Uber</span><br><span>and Lyft to gather data on the success of these efforts for the three- to</span><br><span>five-year duration of the agreements. The NFB will gather feedback from its</span><br><span>membership on both ride denials and the quality of rides provided for</span><br><span>individuals with service animals. This testing will be a critical tool for</span><br><span>measuring Uber and Lyft's compliance with its NFB settlement agreement.</span><br><span></span><br><span>Testing Program Specifics</span><br><span> This is where we need your help. The Uber and Lyft testing program is</span><br><span>open to all NFB members and nonmembers nationwide. Riders with service</span><br><span>animals or individuals traveling with riders with service animals are asked</span><br><span>to complete the following online questionnaire promptly after requesting</span><br><span>and/or completing a ride with Uber or Lyft: <a href="https://nfb.org/rideshare-test">https://nfb.org/rideshare-test</a>.</span><br><span>This testing tool will be used to measure not only ride cancellations and</span><br><span>denials, but also whether a driver appeared to understand his or her</span><br><span>obligations to provide equal access and to not discriminate as per the</span><br><span>protections provided by the Americans with Disabilities Act. Specifically,</span><br><span>testers will provide the following information via the online</span><br><span>questionnaire.</span><br><span></span><br><span>Uber and Lyft Testing Questions</span><br><span> . Rider's name</span><br><span> . Email</span><br><span> . Date ride was ordered</span><br><span> . Time ride was ordered</span><br><span> . Address for pick up</span><br><span> . Driver's name</span><br><span> . Did the rider alert the driver of his/her service animal prior to the</span><br><span> ride?</span><br><span> . Did the driver appear to be unaware of his/her responsibility to</span><br><span> transport riders with service animals?</span><br><span> . Was the ride denied?</span><br><span> . How was a complaint filed regarding the denial (e.g., using website,</span><br><span> app, or complaint hotline)?</span><br><span> . Was the rider treated disrespectfully during the ride (e.g.,</span><br><span> threatened, harassed, ridiculed, or provided inferior service because</span><br><span> of the presence of a service animal)?</span><br><span> . How was a complaint filed regarding the driver's disrespectful</span><br><span> behavior (e.g., using website, app, or complaint hotline)?</span><br><span> . Was the rider charged a cleaning fee because of his/her service</span><br><span> animal?</span><br><span> . Did the rider encounter any accessibility barriers with the rideshare</span><br><span> service's app or website?</span><br><span></span><br><span> Please note that the Lyft agreement contemplates that the NFB will</span><br><span>conduct targeted testing in predetermined metropolitan areas. Those areas</span><br><span>are Baltimore, Boston, Chicago, Dallas-Fort Worth, Denver, Los Angeles, New</span><br><span>York, Nashville, Phoenix, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Sacramento, Seattle,</span><br><span>and the District of Columbia. NFB's testing reports to Lyft will be built</span><br><span>around the experiences of riders in these cities. That does not mean,</span><br><span>however, that we don't want to hear from Lyft riders outside of those</span><br><span>cities. The testing tool is not restricted by geographic area, and we</span><br><span>welcome Uber and Lyft testing across all affiliates. I'm pleased to note</span><br><span>that the testing tool will also be available in Spanish.</span><br><span> NFB's testing program will open on May 8, 2017. If you are an Uber or</span><br><span>Lyft customer who has a service animal or travels with someone who has a</span><br><span>service animal, I strongly encourage you to participate in the testing</span><br><span>program. Please know that the NFB's feedback to Lyft and Uber will only be</span><br><span>as strong as the data we gather from testers. Please plan to join us on May</span><br><span>8 and for the duration of our testing program!</span><br><span> For more information, contact Valerie Yingling, NFB Legal Program</span><br><span>Coordinator, at <a href="mailto:vyingling@nfb.org">vyingling@nfb.org</a> or (410) 659-9314, extension 2440, or see</span><br><span><a href="https://nfb.org/rideshare">https://nfb.org/rideshare</a>.</span><br><span></span><br><span> ----------</span><br><span> How Do You Work This Thing?</span><br><span> by David Andrews</span><br><span></span><br><span> From the Editor: One of the tools most helpful to me in editing the</span><br><span>Braille Monitor is the World Wide Web. My searches usually begin with</span><br><span>Google and end by navigating some webpage to which it directs me. I am</span><br><span>surprised by how often I am asked for some tidbit of information by people</span><br><span>who don't think I will know it off the top of my head but who believe that</span><br><span>I have the capacity to find it for them. In their mind the key is that I</span><br><span>know how to use the computer, and although many of them own one, they do</span><br><span>not know how to benefit from a search engine or to navigate the webpage to</span><br><span>which it will take them.</span><br><span> As a person who has worked with a lot of blind people in his career,</span><br><span>David Andrews has a good grasp of what lots of blind folks understand and</span><br><span>knows how to make them more independent. Here is what he has to say about</span><br><span>the basics of navigating the World Wide Web and gaining the freedom that so</span><br><span>many sighted people take for granted:</span><br><span></span><br><span> When we look back at this era, it will probably be remembered as the</span><br><span>time of "the Cloud." What is the Cloud, you ask? Well, basically, the Cloud</span><br><span>is a place and way of doing things on the internet. Applications and data</span><br><span>are stored on servers which are reached using the internet and a browser.</span><br><span>This makes it easy for a company to update an application because they just</span><br><span>have to do it in one place, not on individual computers or servers</span><br><span>scattered around the world.</span><br><span> Consequently, we are using browsers like Microsoft Internet Explorer,</span><br><span>Mozilla Firefox, or Apple Safari to do more and more things. I order my</span><br><span>groceries online, get taxis, use Facebook, read Gmail, etc. At work I use a</span><br><span>browser to enter my time sheet, to approve time and expenses for employees</span><br><span>I supervise, to recruit and hire people, and to do my taxes and banking</span><br><span>online as well.</span><br><span> Consequently, it is necessary to use and learn new websites on a</span><br><span>regular basis. Unfortunately, many blind and visually impaired computer</span><br><span>users are not taught how to explore new websites; they are only taught how</span><br><span>to do very specific tasks on the web. A number of years ago at a technology</span><br><span>conference I saw a presentation from Fidelity, the mutual fund folks. They</span><br><span>observed blind computer users and categorized their techniques for using</span><br><span>unfamiliar sites. One of the things they said that stuck with me was that</span><br><span>most people just know one or two commands in their browser, and they keep</span><br><span>using them whether or not they work.</span><br><span> I am going to give you several techniques or strategies for</span><br><span>exploring, learning, and navigating a new website. They will not be screen-</span><br><span>reader-specific, that is, I am not going to list commands for JAWS or</span><br><span>VoiceOver, but most screen readers have the same basic set of functions,</span><br><span>and you can look up the specific commands for your particular screen-</span><br><span>reading program.</span><br><span> Screen readers put a web page into a virtual buffer which allows you</span><br><span>to freely explore it like a word processing document. If you have the time,</span><br><span>it is generally beneficial to fully explore a new website's home page, use</span><br><span>your arrow keys or read all commands to explore the complete page. In this</span><br><span>way you know what is there and have an idea where things are located.</span><br><span> There are a number of strategies that can be used to explore a page</span><br><span>in addition to reading the whole thing. You can tab through the page, going</span><br><span>from link to link. This can be a relatively quick way to see what is there,</span><br><span>but it doesn't give you a lot of context. A related strategy is to use a</span><br><span>"links list." For some reason, for a period of time many JAWS users were</span><br><span>taught to do this, no matter what. Personally I think this strategy is only</span><br><span>good for sites with which you are familiar. A Links List, with first letter</span><br><span>navigation, can be quick, but is of little help unless you know the site.</span><br><span> Depending on your screen reader, there may also be commands to get</span><br><span>lists of forms, tables, frames, or headings. Here again, these commands can</span><br><span>be useful or of no help depending on your knowledge of the site and what</span><br><span>you are trying to accomplish. Your screen reader may have commands to get</span><br><span>other kinds of element lists as well.</span><br><span> Probably the most popular means of navigation and exploration besides</span><br><span>the arrow keys is the use of headings. A heading can be made to visually</span><br><span>emphasize something, like the beginning of a section. Headings can also be</span><br><span>thought of as parts of an outline. There can be headings from level one</span><br><span>through level six. A given site will only use the levels it needs,</span><br><span>depending on its structure and organization. Headings are ideally</span><br><span>hierarchical, that is like an outline. You have a level one heading, then</span><br><span>one or more level two headings below that. Below each level two heading</span><br><span>there may be additional levels. Think of it as an outline, a way to</span><br><span>organize content. If you read DAISY books, like those from NLS, you are</span><br><span>familiar with the concept of headings.</span><br><span> Good web practice says that there should be only one level one</span><br><span>heading per page. Most sites follow this, although there is nothing</span><br><span>preventing the use of multiple-heading level ones. The use of just one is</span><br><span>most common, and it is generally at the top or the beginning of the content</span><br><span>of a site. Below it will be other headings as needed. Most screen readers</span><br><span>have commands to go to specific levels of headings and to skip from heading</span><br><span>to heading. If a site has headings and uses them well, this is a quick way</span><br><span>to get an idea of what is there, as well as to navigate around the site.</span><br><span>However, not all sites use headings or use them correctly.</span><br><span> An increasingly popular way of orientation and navigation is the use</span><br><span>of landmarks or regions. A landmark denotes a part of the page and is used</span><br><span>for things like banners, navigation, main content, and footers. Most screen</span><br><span>readers have a command to jump from landmark to landmark if they are</span><br><span>present. This is a quick way to make big jumps to different parts of a</span><br><span>site.</span><br><span> Many sites also have a "skip to content" link near the top. This may</span><br><span>or may not be hidden from visual users and only available to screen-reader</span><br><span>users. It is a quick way to get to the guts of a site. They can be useful</span><br><span>but don't always work correctly. Some screen readers also may have a</span><br><span>command to jump to the beginning of a site's content, but here again, they</span><br><span>don't always work as intended.</span><br><span> The Find command can also be very useful. You can search for a</span><br><span>keyword on the site. It may be something you know is there or something you</span><br><span>suspect is there and want to locate. Find will quickly get you to the right</span><br><span>place.</span><br><span> Safari and Firefox have a "reader button" or "reader mode" on some</span><br><span>sites. This is a button or icon that appears near the top and that skips</span><br><span>all the header information at the top of the page and jumps to the content.</span><br><span>The feature in Safari is available on both the Mac and on i-devices. It</span><br><span>isn't available for all sites but can be useful when present.</span><br><span> Screen readers also have commands to move to different kinds of</span><br><span>elements on a web page such as edit boxes, forms, checkboxes, buttons, etc.</span><br><span>Knowing these commands and using them to explore and/or navigate through a</span><br><span>page can be very useful.</span><br><span> One peculiarity that crops up from time to time is links that the</span><br><span>screen reader doesn't identify as links. This situation depends on the</span><br><span>screen reader/browser combination and the tools used to author the website.</span><br><span>Sometimes you will be reviewing a page, and you will hear phrases that</span><br><span>sound like they might be links or buttons and from their context seem like</span><br><span>they should be, but your screen reader isn't saying "link" or "button."</span><br><span>They may in fact be links or buttons; it won't hurt anything to move to one</span><br><span>and hit enter to see if it does something.</span><br><span> If things don't work as you would like, you may want to try a</span><br><span>different screen-reading program. Some people use NVDA, Nonvisual Desktop</span><br><span>Access for this purpose. Also, with Window-Eyes now being free to Microsoft</span><br><span>Office for Windows users, a second or third screen reader is available to</span><br><span>nearly everybody. It can sometimes work to try a different browser as well.</span><br><span> You might not use all of these strategies on a new website, but it is</span><br><span>useful to have as many tools as possible in your toolbox. That way you will</span><br><span>have a wide variety of strategies which you can use to master a new</span><br><span>website.</span><br><span> ----------</span><br><span> A Legislative Update and a Call to Action</span><br><span> by Parnell Diggs</span><br><span></span><br><span> From the Editor: in the March 2017 issue of this magazine we ran the</span><br><span>legislative fact sheets distributed at the Washington Seminar. At the time</span><br><span>of our visit some of the legislation was still being drafted, but we now</span><br><span>have bill numbers and are requesting action. In this letter, which was</span><br><span>circulated to members on our listservs, Parnell Diggs, director of</span><br><span>governmental affairs, provides bill numbers and asks for our action. Here</span><br><span>is his letter:</span><br><span></span><br><span></span><br><span>Dear Federation Family,</span><br><span></span><br><span> The purpose of this update is to bring you up-to-speed on legislative</span><br><span>developments since we left the Washington Seminar two months ago and to ask</span><br><span>you to activate on several crucial issues. Please use this information as a</span><br><span>good reason to reach out to your two senators and your congressman or</span><br><span>congresswoman and update them on developments since your visit to their</span><br><span>offices. The summary of legislative developments will be followed by the</span><br><span>call to action on three bills:</span><br><span></span><br><span>The Accessible Instructional Materials in Higher Education Act, also known</span><br><span>as "AIM HIGH," H.R. 1772</span><br><span> Congressman Phil Roe (Republican, Tennessee) and Congressman Joe</span><br><span>Courtney (Democrat, Connecticut) introduced this legislation in the House</span><br><span>of Representatives. H.R. 1772 will promote instructional technology and</span><br><span>content that are accessible to the blind and other students with print</span><br><span>disabilities.</span><br><span></span><br><span>The Access Technology Affordability Act of 2017 (ATAA) H.R. 1734 and S. 732</span><br><span> These companion bills were introduced by Representatives David Young</span><br><span>(Republican, Iowa) and Lucille Roybal-Allard (Democrat, California) in the</span><br><span>House and by Senators John Boozman (Republican, Arkansas) and Benjamin L.</span><br><span>Cardin (Democrat, Maryland) in the Senate on March 28, 2017. Please remind</span><br><span>your senators and representative that this legislation will establish a per-</span><br><span>person individual refundable tax credit to be used over a multi-year period</span><br><span>to offset the cost of access technology for blind people.</span><br><span></span><br><span>The Transitioning to Integrated and Meaningful Employment (TIME) Act of</span><br><span>2017 H.R. 1377</span><br><span> As President Riccobono indicated, the TIME Act is still a priority of</span><br><span>the National Federation of the Blind. It just wasn't front and center at</span><br><span>the 2017 Washington Seminar. The bill was introduced by Representative</span><br><span>Gregg Harper (Republican, Mississippi) on March 8, 2017, to remove barriers</span><br><span>to employment opportunities for people with disabilities by phasing out</span><br><span>Section 14(c) of the Fair Labor Standards Act and facilitating the</span><br><span>transitioning of people with disabilities now working in segregated</span><br><span>employment settings into competitive employment opportunities in their</span><br><span>communities. There is low hanging fruit we can secure from cosponsors of</span><br><span>previous iterations of the TIME Act. Please see if your senators and</span><br><span>representative will cosponsor this bill in the 115th Congress, especially</span><br><span>members of the House of Representatives who have done so before.</span><br><span></span><br><span>Call to Action</span><br><span> Please call both of your senators and ask them to cosponsor S. 732,</span><br><span>the Access Technology Affordability Act. Also, please call your congressman</span><br><span>or congresswoman and ask him or her to cosponsor the AIM HIGH Act (H.R.</span><br><span>1772), the Access Technology Affordability Act (H.R. 1734), and the TIME</span><br><span>Act (H.R. 1377).</span><br><span> This is an excellent opportunity to circle back with your senators</span><br><span>and representative to provide them with updates on legislation that will</span><br><span>help blind Americans live the lives we want. The number to the Capitol</span><br><span>switchboard is (202) 224-3121. From there, the operator can transfer you to</span><br><span>your desired contact. Let me thank you for the groundwork you laid at the</span><br><span>Washington Seminar, which has led to the introduction of this legislation.</span><br><span>Let's build on that momentum as we turn our focus toward Orlando.</span><br><span> As always, thanks for all you do.</span><br><span> ----------</span><br><span>[PHOTO CAPTION: Mark A. Riccobono]</span><br><span> From the President's Inbox: The Mail Must Go Through</span><br><span> by Mark A. Riccobono</span><br><span></span><br><span> From the Editor: One of my favorite columns in the Braille Monitor</span><br><span>when I started reading it in the early seventies was called "From the</span><br><span>President's Mail Basket" and was written by then-president Kenneth</span><br><span>Jernigan. In those days there was no President's Notebook and no monthly</span><br><span>Presidential Release, most of President Jernigan's communication with the</span><br><span>membership was done through the United States Postal Service, and these</span><br><span>columns in the Braille Monitor spoke clearly to the issues of the day, the</span><br><span>concerns of the membership, and the talented man who was responsible for</span><br><span>coordinating it all. This article from President Riccobono brings some of</span><br><span>the best of what made "From the President's Mail Basket" special: the</span><br><span>interaction with a member, the highlighting of an important issue, and a</span><br><span>chance to observe the thinking and the talent of our current president.</span><br><span>Here is his article:</span><br><span></span><br><span> We live in a communication rich world. With those rich communication</span><br><span>tools-mobile phones, email, social media, etc.-comes a pace of activity</span><br><span>that sometimes prevents us from taking the time to tackle the artificial</span><br><span>barriers we face. Some of those barriers are a real nuisance when we face</span><br><span>them, but the immediate move to the next thing makes stopping and dealing</span><br><span>with a problem feel like more work than it is worth. A recent exchange and</span><br><span>its outcome prompted me to take a moment to write this article. I believe</span><br><span>this situation demonstrates the importance of individual members taking the</span><br><span>initiative to raise their voice to activate our vehicle for collective</span><br><span>action-the National Federation of the Blind.</span><br><span> As President of the National Federation of the Blind I receive a lot</span><br><span>of correspondence-mostly via email but often via telephone. Attempting to</span><br><span>deal with them quickly and effectively can be a challenge. Yet I am often</span><br><span>surprised by the correspondence that does not make it to me. I try-</span><br><span>sometimes successfully and sometimes not-to stay plugged in to social media</span><br><span>knowing that many members of the Federation are discussing important topics</span><br><span>in those communication channels. One day I came across a tweet from David</span><br><span>Bouchard of Oregon. I reached out to David and asked him to send me an</span><br><span>email to tell me more about his situation. Here is what he wrote to me on</span><br><span>September 24, 2016:</span><br><span></span><br><span> Good afternoon, Mark,</span><br><span></span><br><span></span><br><span> Yesterday, at approximately 5:00 p.m. PST, I went to the Post</span><br><span> Office at 101 SW Madison Street in Portland, Oregon, to mail a package</span><br><span> for a friend. I purchased a box for the item, and when I asked the</span><br><span> attendant behind the counter to assist me with filling out the</span><br><span> shipping label, she refused, stating that she was forbidden to fill</span><br><span> out customers' shipping labels per a USPS regulation. She asked</span><br><span> another customer to assist me. I accepted that assistance to save</span><br><span> time, but pressed the issue once my package was shipped. Her</span><br><span> supervisor informed me that employees could be fired for filling out</span><br><span> the shipping labels and that I would need either the assistance of</span><br><span> another customer or a "caregiver." When I asked him if this was a</span><br><span> federal regulation, he said that it was. As we both know, this is</span><br><span> unacceptable, and I will do whatever it takes to change this outdated</span><br><span> policy. I am still trying to find the offending regulation. Please</span><br><span> feel free to contact me with any questions by email or at _________.</span><br><span></span><br><span></span><br><span> Regards, David Bouchard</span><br><span></span><br><span> I appreciated David's email because it demonstrated that he had taken</span><br><span>positive steps to solve this problem by himself. He had questioned the</span><br><span>policy and pressed the local postal worker for as much detail about the</span><br><span>policy as he could get. Furthermore, he was attempting to research whether</span><br><span>a regulation of the type described really exists in the federal code.</span><br><span>David's email stands in contrast to those that simply request help from the</span><br><span>National Federation of the Blind without demonstrating that the individual</span><br><span>has done their part to solve the problem at hand. Often, we can get the</span><br><span>most effective outcome when the blind individual has done all that they can</span><br><span>to solve the problem before activating the national organization.</span><br><span> I asked Parnell Diggs to research this issue and draft a request to</span><br><span>the United States Postal Service to get clarification on this regulation.</span><br><span>Below is Mr. Digg's letter:</span><br><span></span><br><span> October 17, 2016</span><br><span> The Honorable Megan J. Brennan</span><br><span> Postmaster General and Chief Executive Officer</span><br><span> Office of the Postmaster and Chief Executive Officer</span><br><span> United States Postal Service</span><br><span> 475 L'Enfant Plaza, SW, Room 10022</span><br><span> Washington, DC 20260</span><br><span></span><br><span></span><br><span> Dear Ms. Brennan:</span><br><span></span><br><span></span><br><span> We received the following inquiry from David Bouchard, a blind</span><br><span> gentleman in Portland, Oregon:</span><br><span></span><br><span></span><br><span> "On Friday, September 23, 2016, at approximately 5:00 p.m. PST,</span><br><span> I went to the Post Office at 101 SW Madison Street in Portland, Oregon</span><br><span> to mail a package for a friend. I purchased a box for the item, and</span><br><span> when I asked the attendant behind the counter to assist me with</span><br><span> filling out the shipping label, she refused, stating that she was</span><br><span> forbidden to fill out customers' shipping labels per a USPS</span><br><span> regulation. She asked another customer to assist me. I accepted that</span><br><span> assistance to save time, but pressed the issue once my package was</span><br><span> shipped. Her supervisor informed me that employees could be fired for</span><br><span> filling out the shipping labels, and that I would need either the</span><br><span> assistance of another customer or a 'caregiver.' When I asked him if</span><br><span> this was a federal regulation, he said that it was."</span><br><span></span><br><span></span><br><span> We would greatly appreciate your kindly providing us with the</span><br><span> regulation in question. I have provided my contact information below</span><br><span> so that we may further discuss this matter.</span><br><span> Thank you in advance for your assistance, and I look forward to</span><br><span> hearing from your office in the near future.</span><br><span></span><br><span></span><br><span> Sincerely, Parnell Diggs, Esq.</span><br><span></span><br><span> After receiving David's initial email, I mentioned the issue to a</span><br><span>number of blind people and a surprising number of them told me they or</span><br><span>someone they knew had encountered a similar situation. It got me wondering</span><br><span>if blind people are sometimes too quick to brush off unfair treatment based</span><br><span>on false information. Is the problem that the small incidents are too</span><br><span>easily left behind in our fast-paced society? Is it that we believe some</span><br><span>requests are unreasonable-even if they are small-or that we are afraid to</span><br><span>question the officials that are directing us? Or is it simply that we face</span><br><span>too many barriers in one day, and we can only choose so many to tackle?</span><br><span>Whatever the case, I was surprised that the issue was known but had never</span><br><span>been tackled in a way that would answer the question once and for all. In</span><br><span>order to resolve the matter, I give you the response from the United States</span><br><span>Postal Service so that you might use it whenever the question comes up in</span><br><span>the future:</span><br><span></span><br><span> November 16, 2016</span><br><span> Mr. Parnell Diggs, Esq.</span><br><span> National Federation of the Blind</span><br><span> 200 East Wells Street</span><br><span> Baltimore, MD 21230</span><br><span></span><br><span></span><br><span> Dear Mr. Diggs,</span><br><span></span><br><span></span><br><span> This letter is in response to your recent inquiry to Postmaster</span><br><span> General Megan Brennan on behalf of Mr. David Bouchard. The letter</span><br><span> described Mr. Bouchard's visit to a Post Office in Portland, Oregon.</span><br><span> During the visit Mr. Bouchard asked the window clerk for assistance</span><br><span> completing a shipping label and was told "a federal regulation</span><br><span> prohibited such assistance." Your letter asked to be provided with the</span><br><span> federal regulation in question.</span><br><span> There is no federal regulation prohibiting a postal employee</span><br><span> from providing assistance filling out a shipping label for a customer</span><br><span> with a disability. To the contrary, it is the Postal Service's policy</span><br><span> to offer assistance to customers with disabilities if requested.</span><br><span> Employees are expected to be flexible and responsive in</span><br><span> providing such assistance.</span><br><span> I apologize on behalf of the Postal Service for Mr. Bouchard's</span><br><span> unsatisfactory customer experience. The Postal Service provides</span><br><span> training to employees about serving customers with disabilities. We</span><br><span> want all customers to receive great service from Postal Service</span><br><span> employees, and it is our responsibility to ensure they get it-</span><br><span> everywhere, every day, every time.</span><br><span> Thank you for bringing this problem to our attention.</span><br><span></span><br><span></span><br><span> Sincerely,</span><br><span> Samuel J. Schmidt</span><br><span> Managing Counsel</span><br><span> 9350 South 150 East, Suite 800</span><br><span> Sandy, UT 84070-2716</span><br><span> (801) 984-8400</span><br><span></span><br><span> As a follow up, I wrote the email below to David on December 1, 2016:</span><br><span></span><br><span> Dear David,</span><br><span> As the motto says, "the mail must go through." Your letter of</span><br><span> September 24 pledged that you would do whatever it takes to change the</span><br><span> outdated practices that you experienced at the Post Office on Friday,</span><br><span> September 23, 2016. I appreciate that you recognized discriminatory</span><br><span> practice and you activated the Federation network to resolve the</span><br><span> issue. You could have walked away figuring it was just the way life</span><br><span> goes. You could have decided that blind people simply had to give up</span><br><span> some privacy to get equal access. You could have decided to never</span><br><span> bother with that post office again. You did none of these things, and</span><br><span> you did not expect someone else to solve the problem for you, but</span><br><span> rather sought assistance on how you could be part of solving the</span><br><span> problem. For that I am thankful, and I commend you on your active</span><br><span> leadership.</span><br><span> I am sharing with you the response we have secured on your</span><br><span> behalf from the United States Postal Service. I believe you will be</span><br><span> pleased with the response. I have asked Mr. Parnell Diggs, our</span><br><span> director of governmental affairs, to respond to the letter and invite</span><br><span> the postal service to work with members of the Federation on their</span><br><span> training. I suspect if they accept our offer we might call on you for</span><br><span> assistance. Thank you for raising this issue and for helping us secure</span><br><span> this useful response.</span><br><span> I am going to publish the letter and details of your case in the</span><br><span> Braille Monitor so that others encountering this problem know the</span><br><span> truth. The mail must go through, and the blind can expect equal</span><br><span> treatment in the post office according to the leaders of the</span><br><span> organization. Since your case came to my attention, I have talked with</span><br><span> others who have experienced this problem or know people who have, and</span><br><span> it appears as though they chose not to challenge the practice. I am</span><br><span> glad you pushed a little further. Keep raising expectations.</span><br><span> If you decide to take the response down to your local post</span><br><span> office, I will be interested to hear how they react.</span><br><span></span><br><span></span><br><span> Sincerely,</span><br><span></span><br><span></span><br><span> Mark A. Riccobono, President</span><br><span> National Federation of the Blind</span><br><span></span><br><span> There you have it, the answer to the question of whether or not the</span><br><span>United States Postal Service will assist you with your packages. I</span><br><span>encourage all members of the National Federation of the Blind to continue</span><br><span>to share with each other the barriers that are encountered and work</span><br><span>together to break down those barriers. When an issue comes up locally, be</span><br><span>sure to share it with your chapter president and, if appropriate, your</span><br><span>affiliate president. If you find that an issue requires the attention of</span><br><span>our nationwide network, please be sure to call upon the national President</span><br><span>so that we might have an opportunity to evaluate the situation. I can be</span><br><span>reached at our national office by telephone at (410) 659-9314 or by email</span><br><span>at <a href="mailto:officeofthepresident@nfb.org">officeofthepresident@nfb.org</a>. The more that we take the time to address</span><br><span>the artificial barriers we face rather than shaking them off as a nuisance,</span><br><span>the faster our pace of progress will be. We might find that in many cases,</span><br><span>like this one, a simple letter requesting clarification from the entity</span><br><span>involved might give us the answer we seek. Then, we should find a way to</span><br><span>share that correspondence with others within our Federation network.</span><br><span> ----------</span><br><span>[PHOTO/CAPTION: Jim Peterson and Noel Nightingale]</span><br><span></span><br><span> Blindness: Showing Up for Parenthood</span><br><span> by Noel Nightingale</span><br><span></span><br><span> From the Editor: Noel Nightingale is the mother of three children who</span><br><span>resides in Seattle, Washington, with her husband Jim Peterson. She first</span><br><span>met the Federation when she won a national scholarship in 1991. Her work in</span><br><span>the Federation has included service as a chapter president, a state</span><br><span>president, and as a member of the national board of directors. By training</span><br><span>she is a lawyer who currently works for the United States Department of</span><br><span>Education in the Office for Civil Rights. She currently serves as a member</span><br><span>of the board of directors of the National Association of Blind Lawyers, a</span><br><span>division of the NFB. Here is what she has to say about deciding to become a</span><br><span>parent and the challenges it has posed in her life:</span><br><span></span><br><span> Before becoming a mother, I asked an attorney I worked with what was</span><br><span>so great about having children. My colleague had often described the</span><br><span>inconveniences of parenting. Having children seemed to cause her to create</span><br><span>boundaries that made life not as fun, preventing her from engaging in the</span><br><span>social life of the law firm because she had to get home. When I asked her</span><br><span>why she liked being a mother, if indeed she did, she told me, "When I come</span><br><span>home and my kids run to greet me with hugs and kisses, it makes it all</span><br><span>worth it." I thought to myself, "Hmmm, after all you have told me about how</span><br><span>your children disrupt your life, the scales seem heavily tipped in favor of</span><br><span>non-parenthood." However, after having had three children, my husband Jim</span><br><span>and I now understand what my colleague meant. The rewards of parenthood,</span><br><span>though perhaps not easily described, are real.</span><br><span> Becoming a parent was significantly harder than becoming blind. When</span><br><span>I became blind, other blind people taught me that I just had to acquire the</span><br><span>skills and attitudes I needed to live well as a blind person. I already</span><br><span>knew basic life skills as a sighted person, and I merely needed to tweak a</span><br><span>few things such as: learning to use a long white cane; learning Braille;</span><br><span>learning how to use various assistive technologies; and, hardest of all,</span><br><span>truly believing that I could still do the things I wanted to do without</span><br><span>limitations. Of course, I now knew about being discriminated against as</span><br><span>well.</span><br><span> When Jim and I became parents, our lives changed drastically, and I</span><br><span>needed to learn new skills like diapering, nursing, functioning on limited</span><br><span>sleep, and getting around with a child connected to me in some way. Bennett</span><br><span>Prows, who is a father of three and is blind, told me that when he and his</span><br><span>former wife, who is also blind, were expecting their first child, a</span><br><span>neighbor came over asking how the two of them were going to take care of a</span><br><span>baby. The neighbor expressed skepticism that Ben and his wife would be able</span><br><span>to change the baby's diapers. Ben asked his neighbor what he looks at when</span><br><span>taking care of his own toileting needs and that ended the neighbor's doubt,</span><br><span>at least on that particular topic. The basic skills of parenting are not</span><br><span>that hard, sighted or blind.</span><br><span> The most dramatic challenge that came with parenthood was that I had</span><br><span>to change my perspective and priorities. I realized that neither Jim nor I</span><br><span>came first anymore, and I sacrificed many of the things I enjoyed doing to</span><br><span>spend time with my children. Like the rewards of having children, it is</span><br><span>difficult to describe how the mundane aspects of parenting rule our lives.</span><br><span>I trained myself not to use profanity anymore lest I inadvertently do it in</span><br><span>front of the kids. Along with Jim, I adjusted my schedule around my</span><br><span>children's schedules, and I learned that my children's homework was also my</span><br><span>homework because if Jim and I didn't nag the kids to do it or didn't help,</span><br><span>it may very well not get done. The list goes on and on of the seemingly</span><br><span>boring yet enormously important and trying things we now spend time on to</span><br><span>even reach the low bar of being adequate parents.</span><br><span> Though Jim is our primary stay-at-home parent and all I have to do</span><br><span>during most weekdays is earn money, every day I think about all the things</span><br><span>going on in my children's lives. I schedule doctor appointments and</span><br><span>activities. I interact with teachers and have served on our elementary</span><br><span>school's Parent Teacher Association board of directors. I feel guilty if I</span><br><span>take "me time" when I could be spending time with my children exposing them</span><br><span>to something new or just sharing quiet time with them. My motto of</span><br><span>parenting is, "It's quality of time, not quantity of time." Some of the</span><br><span>tasks and trials involved with parenting require the alternative techniques</span><br><span>of blindness, but mostly they don't. For me, similar to becoming blind,</span><br><span>becoming a parent involved a mental adjustment to a new way of life. But I</span><br><span>have found the adjustment and the sacrifices a lot more daunting than the</span><br><span>adjustment to blindness.</span><br><span> All parents I know, both sighted and blind, have similar struggles</span><br><span>with parenthood that Jim and I do. They wonder how to properly and</span><br><span>successfully discipline their children, debate the question of how much</span><br><span>screen time to allow, when or if to buy their children cell phones, and are</span><br><span>seeking the right balance between children's free time and scheduled time.</span><br><span>The parents I know are today discussing whether to make their children</span><br><span>learn a musical instrument, participate in a sport, or engage in some other</span><br><span>kind of skill-building activity, knowing that if they cave in to the</span><br><span>child's resistance, the adult child will turn around tomorrow and tell</span><br><span>their parents that they should have made the child stick with the piano or</span><br><span>Chinese lessons. Parents are under their children's microscopes and</span><br><span>constantly think about needing to live up to the role models they have</span><br><span>envisioned they should be for their children. They wonder how or whether to</span><br><span>help their children acquire grit. Parents reflect on how they were raised</span><br><span>and whether to follow in their own parents' footsteps in child rearing.</span><br><span>These things and other aspects of parenting are enormously philosophical,</span><br><span>and how we meet the challenges of parenthood can determine whether our</span><br><span>children's lives will be as fulfilling as they could be. No parent that I</span><br><span>know believes he or she has found the right answers to all of the thorny</span><br><span>issues associated with being a parent. Yet, when I tell sighted people that</span><br><span>being blind is a lot easier than being a parent, they are invariably</span><br><span>skeptical.</span><br><span> Maybe it was because, as I lost my sight, I had a network of</span><br><span>supportive blind mentors encircling me. I had blind role models to pattern</span><br><span>myself after and quality training from blindness skills and attitude</span><br><span>factories of the National Federation of the Blind and the Louisiana Center</span><br><span>for the Blind. Consequently my acquisition of blindness skills and my</span><br><span>emotional adjustment to blindness were simple and straightforward compared</span><br><span>to the adjustment to parenthood. The challenges of parenting make the</span><br><span>adjustment to blindness look easy peasy. Of course, I am constantly</span><br><span>employing blindness techniques in my parenting, and of course, I never take</span><br><span>my blind hat off to be a mom, but most of the time, I don't think those two</span><br><span>aspects of myself interrelate. I just do what anyone does who is trying to</span><br><span>live well and do their best for their kids.</span><br><span> I recently read a book by Bill Gates Sr. that has a title that</span><br><span>perfectly represents parenting to me, with a one-word change that I don't</span><br><span>think Mr. Gates would mind. Mr. Gates' book is called, Showing Up For Life.</span><br><span>To me, the charge of parenting that sounds easy but isn't should be called,</span><br><span>"Showing Up For Parenthood." Our kids are not another hobby to be played</span><br><span>around with when we feel like it. We must show up twenty-four hours a day,</span><br><span>seven days a week, and be at our best. I have many pictures in my mind of</span><br><span>my fifteen years of parenting. Leila riding her first tricycle given to her</span><br><span>by my mother who was then dying; Cosmo jumping up and down in his crib</span><br><span>bawling until he vomited; Dexter, being the social butterfly, and talking</span><br><span>to strangers from the time he was a toddler about topics of interest to him</span><br><span>like Transformers. Then, of course, there are those moments I won't get too</span><br><span>graphic about but involve fecal matter, an airplane, a crayon, and dental</span><br><span>floss. More and more pictures flit through my mind of those very small</span><br><span>moments in life unappreciated by anyone but Jim and me, poignant and funny,</span><br><span>the type which snatches of memories all parents cherish.</span><br><span> Sometimes Jim, who is sighted, and I have fallen down on the job as</span><br><span>parents. When our third child, Dexter, was about three, we noticed that he</span><br><span>was telling us virtually every object around him was the color green. We</span><br><span>asked his preschool teacher for an assessment of whether he was color</span><br><span>blind, and she informally tested him and said that he may not only be color</span><br><span>blind but be a very unusual type of color blindness, I think she said blue-</span><br><span>yellow color blindness. Jim and I immediately made an appointment with a</span><br><span>pediatric ophthalmologist. A couple days before the appointment, we sat</span><br><span>down with Dexter and a bunch of Legos and told him what color each block</span><br><span>was. Then we asked him what color randomly selected blocks were, and he</span><br><span>correctly identified their colors. We took him to the ophthalmologist who</span><br><span>said that he is not color blind. It turns out that neither Jim nor I had</span><br><span>yet gotten around to teaching Dexter the different colors! Some call that</span><br><span>third-child syndrome. With our two older kids, I had taught them the</span><br><span>different colors using Braille picture board books but had neglected to do</span><br><span>that for Dexter.</span><br><span> An unexpected time when parenthood and blindness starkly coincided in</span><br><span>my life was when a parent volunteer was sorting the books in Dexter's</span><br><span>second-grade classroom and found a book published by the National</span><br><span>Federation of the Blind. We used to publish a series of books called Kernel</span><br><span>Books, a couple of which I had written articles for. The one the volunteer</span><br><span>found in my son's classroom happened to be one of the books I had written</span><br><span>an article for and while leafing through it, he found that article and</span><br><span>showed it to my son. Dexter came home proud that his mom had written a</span><br><span>book, not quite an accurate description of my role in that book, but</span><br><span>nevertheless, it created an opportunity for a discussion about blindness. I</span><br><span>asked the teacher how the Kernel Book had found its way to her classroom,</span><br><span>and she had no idea. To this day, I wonder what the chances are of a Kernel</span><br><span>book ending up in one of my children's classrooms since I had not</span><br><span>distributed any of those books to the school, nor, to my knowledge, had</span><br><span>anyone else I know.</span><br><span> I have listened to hundreds of books from the library for the blind</span><br><span>with each of my children, which I view as a way to spend time with my kids</span><br><span>that also expands their worlds and vocabularies. I have now listened to the</span><br><span>Harry Potter series more times than I can count and am looking forward to</span><br><span>the day someone asks me to enter a Harry Potter trivia contest. Some of my</span><br><span>kids' teachers have told me that the time I have spent listening to books</span><br><span>with my kids is evident.</span><br><span> In dealing with homework, I have just required my kids to read it to</span><br><span>me when they need help. I figure it doesn't hurt them to have to do a</span><br><span>little more reading, though it is not ideal, especially at times when they</span><br><span>don't read every word on the page to me and then we are both confused. I</span><br><span>know that I have a legal right to receive what my kids' schools provide in</span><br><span>Braille or electronic format. I could ask for copies of their homework in</span><br><span>an accessible form; but, whether it has been the right decision or not, I</span><br><span>have not asked for it to be provided in alternative formats. I don't want</span><br><span>to ask my kids' teachers to take their limited planning time on creating</span><br><span>accessible documents for me if I can avoid doing so. I have usually found a</span><br><span>way to help my kids with their homework, by hook or crook.</span><br><span> There have been innumerable times when I felt left out of full</span><br><span>participation in my children's education because I am blind. When I attend</span><br><span>meetings at school for parents, any printed material distributed has not</span><br><span>once been provided in Braille or any format accessible to me. I have never</span><br><span>been asked what format I need to access documents. Because I usually know</span><br><span>someone at school meetings, I have been able to ask him or her to read any</span><br><span>important materials to me. Jim mostly reads any letters and documents the</span><br><span>schools or school district mail to us. He does not, though, read every</span><br><span>piece of paper that comes through our door. He is a Type B personality and</span><br><span>I am a Type A. I am the one who signs up for the emails from the PTAs and</span><br><span>school district and the one who obsesses about attending all the school</span><br><span>events we can. However, Jim is my husband, not my reader, so I often have</span><br><span>to let my obsessive-compulsive self sit in the backseat and relax about not</span><br><span>reading everything that comes home from the schools in our kids' backpacks.</span><br><span></span><br><span> Jim and I have attended many workshops at my kids' elementary and</span><br><span>middle schools to teach parents how to help their children learn particular</span><br><span>skills, usually math. Parents are taught games they can play with their</span><br><span>children to increase their math proficiency. Ninety percent of the time,</span><br><span>the math games involve print materials. One time I knew in advance that the</span><br><span>math games we were going to be taught involved playing cards, I told the</span><br><span>school that the workshop leaders could easily purchase a set of Braille</span><br><span>playing cards for me to use during the workshop and that they could then</span><br><span>have on hand for any blind parents attending their workshops, which the</span><br><span>school said would be arranged. I showed up for the workshop held one</span><br><span>weeknight in the school cafeteria, and no Braille playing cards had been</span><br><span>acquired. So, while the parents all around me played math games with</span><br><span>playing cards, I stood there trying to be supportive of my son but feeling</span><br><span>inadequate. While these times have bothered me enormously, they are usually</span><br><span>isolated incidents, and I have moved on. We believe that our kids are</span><br><span>receiving a good education, have had excellent teachers, and nothing until</span><br><span>recently has dramatically gone wrong because I could not access information</span><br><span>provided by one of my kids' schools.</span><br><span> Well, "until recently" is not quite accurate. Five years ago, during</span><br><span>summer 2012, our school district changed websites. Until then, I had been</span><br><span>able to obtain much of the information I needed from the school district's</span><br><span>website; that is, I had been able to obtain any information available to</span><br><span>all parents on the website. The new website, however, was extraordinarily</span><br><span>inaccessible. I couldn't believe it. The majority of the links on the</span><br><span>homepage didn't open when I entered on them. Apparently, something happened</span><br><span>on the screen, but my screen reader didn't know it. The school district</span><br><span>calendar of events-like days that school was not in session-was in an</span><br><span>inaccessible table, so when I try to figure out significant events</span><br><span>happening during the school year, my screen reader just told me the dates</span><br><span>of the month with no information about what was occurring on those dates.</span><br><span>When I saw that the website was horribly inaccessible, I wrote to the</span><br><span>school district's webmaster. For the past four years, the webmaster has</span><br><span>provided me with some of the information I sought but could not access on</span><br><span>the website. Of course, this is not a good situation because the webmaster</span><br><span>is not around at all times of the day and on all days of the week when I am</span><br><span>looking for information. Also, the webmaster cannot browse the website for</span><br><span>me, she can only respond to my specific information needs if my needs can</span><br><span>wait until she is available. However, because the school district seemed to</span><br><span>understand the problem and seemed to be willing to fix it, I patiently</span><br><span>waited for the fix to come.</span><br><span> My patience came to a full stop when Cosmo was in fifth grade. I</span><br><span>received an email from Cosmo's teacher. All year, he had had math homework</span><br><span>using an online program called ST Math. Every weeknight, Cosmo would get on</span><br><span>our computer and, we thought, diligently work on his ST Math homework. Not</span><br><span>so. The teacher's email to me said that Cosmo was less than 40 percent</span><br><span>complete with his ST Math problems, and he was supposed to be at 80 percent</span><br><span>at that point and 100 percent by the end of the school year. Jim and I</span><br><span>quickly figured out that Cosmo had probably not resisted the temptations</span><br><span>offered by a computer, and instead of doing his math homework had been</span><br><span>playing Minecraft (a video game) or watching YouTube videos. Cosmo</span><br><span>vehemently denied it but could not explain why his classmates were able to</span><br><span>be at 80 percent complete and he less than half that. Jim and I concluded</span><br><span>that we needed to institute an accountability system for Cosmo and monitor</span><br><span>his progress on ST Math so he could catch up to where he was supposed to</span><br><span>be. I went to the computer to have Cosmo show me how to log into the</span><br><span>program so I could see what percentage he started at and then come back</span><br><span>after an hour and see what percentage he had achieved by then.</span><br><span> I got my first inkling that my ability to monitor Cosmo's ST Math</span><br><span>progress was not going to be as easy as I thought when Cosmo said that the</span><br><span>log-in was to click on a series of pictures. Not just one or two unlabeled</span><br><span>graphic pictures but many unlabeled pictures. I had him login, then I went</span><br><span>to find the part of the program that says what percentage he was at, and</span><br><span>all I heard was "Flash, Flash, Flash, Flash, Flash..." The whole program</span><br><span>was inaccessible. Now the school district's failure to ensure it is</span><br><span>purchasing accessible technology was not only a significant accessibility</span><br><span>problem for me in locating information on its website, but it was actually</span><br><span>blocking my ability to monitor my son's homework progress. Now I was angry.</span><br><span> Enter the National Federation of the Blind. My touchstone. My source</span><br><span>of inspiration. The members of the NFB have always reinforced to me the</span><br><span>importance of parents' full participation in children's education. I had</span><br><span>put up with inaccessible documents for umpteen years and found ways around</span><br><span>the problem. This time, there was no way around the inaccessible</span><br><span>technology. Technology is either accessible or it isn't, and unless I have</span><br><span>a reader sitting on my shoulder every time I want or need to use a website</span><br><span>or a piece of software, it must be accessible out of the box. A public</span><br><span>school district has a legal responsibility to make sure that its programs</span><br><span>are accessible, and apparently our school district hadn't been taking that</span><br><span>obligation seriously. So, with the NFB's help, I filed a lawsuit in federal</span><br><span>district court. I had the dream team of lawyers, one of whom admits he was</span><br><span>put to the test by Dr. Jernigan and Dr. Maurer and somehow made it through</span><br><span>the trial. That is Dan Goldstein. Through the lawsuit, I secured a</span><br><span>commitment from the school district to create a system whereby it ensures</span><br><span>the technology it purchases or uses is accessible from the get-go.</span><br><span> Thanks to those who continue the self-help movement founded by blind</span><br><span>men and women in 1940, the National Federation of the Blind, we have the</span><br><span>gift to learn from and lean on one another as we live full lives as blind</span><br><span>people. I suppose there are organizations of parents who provide support</span><br><span>for each other, but they don't and probably can't function in parents'</span><br><span>lives the way the NFB does for me. My thanks to the organized blind</span><br><span>movement that has given me a full life of working full time in a rewarding</span><br><span>job and allowed me the freedom to choose the twenty-four/seven job of</span><br><span>parenthood.</span><br><span> ----------</span><br><span>Leave a Legacy</span><br><span> For more than seventy-five years the National Federation of the Blind</span><br><span>has worked to transform the dreams of hundreds of thousands of blind people</span><br><span>into reality, and with your support we will continue to do so for decades</span><br><span>to come. We sincerely hope you will plan to be a part of our enduring</span><br><span>movement by adding the National Federation of the Blind as a partial</span><br><span>beneficiary in your will. A gift to the National Federation of the Blind in</span><br><span>your will is more than just a charitable, tax-deductible donation. It is a</span><br><span>way to join in the work to help blind people live the lives we want that</span><br><span>leaves a lasting imprint on the lives of thousands of blind children and</span><br><span>adults.</span><br><span></span><br><span>With your help, the NFB will continue to:</span><br><span> . Give blind children the gift of literacy through Braille;</span><br><span> . Promote the independent travel of the blind by providing free, long</span><br><span> white canes to blind people in need;</span><br><span> . Develop dynamic educational projects and programs that show blind</span><br><span> youth that science and math are within their reach;</span><br><span> . Deliver hundreds of accessible newspapers and magazines to provide</span><br><span> blind people the essential information necessary to be actively</span><br><span> involved in their communities;</span><br><span> . Offer aids and appliances that help seniors losing vision maintain</span><br><span> their independence; and</span><br><span> . Fund scholarship programs so that blind people can achieve their</span><br><span> dreams.</span><br><span></span><br><span>Plan to Leave a Legacy</span><br><span> Creating a will gives you the final say in what happens to your</span><br><span>possessions and is the only way to be sure that your remaining assets are</span><br><span>distributed according to your passions and beliefs. Many people fear</span><br><span>creating a will or believe it's not necessary until they are much older.</span><br><span>Others think that it's expensive and confusing. However, it is one of the</span><br><span>most important things you will do, and with new online legal programs it is</span><br><span>easier and cheaper than ever before. If you do decide to create or revise</span><br><span>your will, consider the National Federation of the Blind as a partial</span><br><span>beneficiary. Visit <a href="https://nfb.org/planned-giving">https://nfb.org/planned-giving</a> or call (410) 659-9314,</span><br><span>extension 2422, for more information. Together with love, hope,</span><br><span>determination, and your support, we will continue to transform dreams into</span><br><span>reality.</span><br><span></span><br><span> ----------</span><br><span> There Is a List for That!</span><br><span> by David Andrews</span><br><span></span><br><span> This month we will start out our monthly column of internet mailing</span><br><span>lists with the state of Maryland, home of the Jernigan Institute and the</span><br><span>National Center for the Blind. And for good measure, we will throw in the</span><br><span>state of Delaware, since it is small.</span><br><span> The primary list for the state of Maryland is NFBMD. You can</span><br><span>subscribe to the list by going to</span><br><span><a href="http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nfbmd_nfbnet.org">http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nfbmd_nfbnet.org</a> or you can also</span><br><span>subscribe by sending email to <a href="mailto:nfbmd-request@nfbnet.org">nfbmd-request@nfbnet.org</a> and put the word</span><br><span>subscribe on the subject line by itself. The list contains both discussion</span><br><span>and announcements.</span><br><span> Most of the chapters in Maryland also have their own lists. Below are</span><br><span>the list names and a brief description of each. To subscribe substitute the</span><br><span>list name in the command above for the NFBMD phrase.</span><br><span></span><br><span>central-md-chapter</span><br><span>Central Maryland</span><br><span></span><br><span>greater-baltimore</span><br><span>Baltimore, Maryland, chapter list</span><br><span></span><br><span>md-atlarge</span><br><span>At-Large Chapter of the NFB of Maryland</span><br><span></span><br><span>md-sligo</span><br><span>Sligo Creek Chapter</span><br><span></span><br><span>nationalharbor</span><br><span>National Harbor Chapter list</span><br><span></span><br><span>nfbtlc-chapter</span><br><span>Towson/Lutherville/Cockeysville Maryland Chapter list</span><br><span></span><br><span> Two divisions in Maryland also have their own lists, Parents of Blind</span><br><span>Children and Students. Their list names are MDPOBC and MDABS respectively</span><br><span>and can be used in the web or email commands mentioned previously. The</span><br><span>NFBNET server also hosts the NFB of Maryland website, <a href="http://www.nfbmd.org">http://www.nfbmd.org</a>.</span><br><span> Finally, as a bonus, since it is small and close to Maryland, we will</span><br><span>mention Delaware. Its list name is NFB-of-Delaware and you can subscribe</span><br><span>either by going to <a href="http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nfb-of-">http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nfb-of-</a></span><br><span>delaware_nfbnet.org or by sending an email to nfb-of-delaware-</span><br><span><a href="mailto:request@nfbnet.org">request@nfbnet.org</a>. Put subscribe on the subject line by itself.</span><br><span> Next month we will tell you about technology-related lists. As</span><br><span>always, you can find all <a href="http://NFBNET.ORG">NFBNET.ORG</a>-related lists at</span><br><span><a href="http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/">http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/</a>.</span><br><span> ----------</span><br><span> Independence Market Corner</span><br><span></span><br><span> The National Federation of the Blind Independence Market is the</span><br><span>conduit through which our organization distributes our empowering</span><br><span>literature to our members, friends, and the general public. As a service we</span><br><span>also operate a blindness products store, which sells mostly low-tech items,</span><br><span>designed to enhance the everyday independence of blind men and women. With</span><br><span>spring well underway and summer just around the corner, we want to</span><br><span>highlight a few products that promote outdoor activity.</span><br><span> We carry two different ringing balls, namely a basketball and a</span><br><span>football. These balls contain two bells that jingle while the ball is in</span><br><span>motion. More recently we replaced our ringing soccer ball with a rattle</span><br><span>soccer ball. The rattles in this ball make more noise than the bells do, so</span><br><span>it is better for outdoor play. We also have a beeping Frisbee, which emits</span><br><span>a continuous beeping sound when turned on. This Frisbee, while not quite</span><br><span>possessing the aerodynamic properties of a traditional one, is a foam disk</span><br><span>covered with a bright orange nylon sleeve and includes a removable sound</span><br><span>source, which is operated by one AA battery. Since the Frisbee is soft, it</span><br><span>is suitable for both indoor and outdoor play by children of all ages. The</span><br><span>Beeper Box is also sold separately. One may use it as a sound source for</span><br><span>games and training situations.</span><br><span> And if you want to keep track of your steps and don't have a</span><br><span>smartphone, our basic talking pedometer may be for you. After you determine</span><br><span>your average step length and select this number in the setup, the pedometer</span><br><span>will keep track of your steps and convert it to miles. It also announces</span><br><span>the time and features an alarm.</span><br><span> Now all you have to do is go outside and have some fun!</span><br><span> For more information about the products and literature available from</span><br><span>the Independence Market or to request a catalog in Braille or in print,</span><br><span>visit us online at <a href="https://nfb.org/independence-market">https://nfb.org/independence-market</a>. You may also</span><br><span>contact us using email at <a href="mailto:independencemarket@nfb.org">independencemarket@nfb.org</a> or by phone at (410)</span><br><span>659-9314, extension 2216, Monday through Friday from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.</span><br><span>eastern time. Our staff will be glad to assist you.</span><br><span> ----------</span><br><span> Dots from Space!</span><br><span> Inching Towards Understanding</span><br><span> by Amy Mason and Anna Kresmer</span><br><span></span><br><span> Eager to learn more about the ways that the vanished inhabitants of</span><br><span>the building dealt with blindness, the roly-poly adventurers retreat inside</span><br><span>once more and navigate through the empty hallways until they find a metal</span><br><span>door. Rolling forward, Lieutenant-Commander Jot presses against and twists</span><br><span>the door handle, preparing to open it. The door, with Jot still attached,</span><br><span>swings forward over open air. Astonished to find nothing under her mass,</span><br><span>she emits a small yelp of surprise.</span><br><span> "Jot!" cries the captain.</span><br><span> "I'm fine, ma'am. But it looks like we'll have to find another way</span><br><span>down. The stairs have collapsed."</span><br><span> Captain Dottie reaches out a suction cup-like appendage and pulls the</span><br><span>hanging Jot back onto firm ground. Once stable, Jot stretches out an</span><br><span>exploratory appendage and feels the inside edge of the hole, whereupon she</span><br><span>discovers the still intact hand rail.</span><br><span> "I think we can slide down this, Captain!"</span><br><span> "I'm not sure we should trust it," says Doctor Spot.</span><br><span> "What if one of us begins to slide down while one of the others holds</span><br><span>on to them from behind? That way we aren't putting all our weight on the</span><br><span>rail at the same time, and we'll have a braking mechanism." Jot explains.</span><br><span> "Alright," says the captain. "Let's do it, but we'll take it slow."</span><br><span> Two by two the members of the crew begin to slide down the bannister,</span><br><span>with each pair stretching and compressing their bodies like an inchworm as</span><br><span>they move along. Soon they come to the door to the next level and make</span><br><span>their way down another empty hallway to a large room.</span><br><span> Dotted around the vault-like room are several statues and tactile</span><br><span>exhibits standing silently on display. Lieutenant-Commander Jot admires a</span><br><span>primitive rocket purported to have been launched in 2004, while Captain</span><br><span>Dottie inspects a small white cane said to have been used by an alien</span><br><span>called tenBroek, the first leader of the inhabitants of the building.</span><br><span> Row upon row of shelves, some long since collapsed, wind back and</span><br><span>forth across the dimly lit room. Countless books line the shelves, while</span><br><span>others are strewn across the moldering carpet. Bending down to retrieve one</span><br><span>brittle book from the top of a pile, Ensign Bean begins to carefully flip</span><br><span>through its pages. A short while later, Captain Dottie discovers he has not</span><br><span>moved from his spot for some time.</span><br><span> "Report Ensign. Have you found something of interest?"</span><br><span> "It's this book, Captain. You've got to see this!" His voice shakes</span><br><span>slightly as he bounces with excitement.</span><br><span> Squeak, squeak. "It appears that this book also uses multiple writing</span><br><span>systems simultaneously."</span><br><span> "It's not just that, Commander. It also uses these raised diagrams on</span><br><span>top of colored images of space phenomenon, like nebulas and celestial</span><br><span>bodies."</span><br><span> "Oh? And what's so special about that, Bean?" Commander Point asks; a</span><br><span>trace of sulking in his voice.</span><br><span> "It all makes sense now, Commander. They wanted everyone to be able</span><br><span>to access the information regardless of their ability. If that meant using</span><br><span>three systems of communication, then that is what they used. As long as the</span><br><span>content, the knowledge, was available to everyone then that was what</span><br><span>counted."</span><br><span> "That's quite a theory you've got there, son," the commander says</span><br><span>with a squeak. "But what evidence do you have to base it upon?"</span><br><span> Without a word, Bean hands Point a piece of paper which had been</span><br><span>tucked into the front cover of the book. Giving the ensign a quizzical</span><br><span>look, he unfolds the brittle paper, presses it to his chest, and begins to</span><br><span>read.</span><br><span> [Note: Link to or copy text from "Access for All," by Noreen Grice,</span><br><span>Future Reflections, Volume 29, Number 4,</span><br><span><a href="https://nfb.org/images/nfb/publications/fr/fr29/4/fr290408.htm">https://nfb.org/images/nfb/publications/fr/fr29/4/fr290408.htm</a>]</span><br><span> Silently, the commander hands the paper to Captain Dottie.</span><br><span> "That's quite the discovery, Ensign. I think you may be onto</span><br><span>something there. Access to information is one of the most basic rights of</span><br><span>sentient life. It seems that these aliens understood this concept quite</span><br><span>well."</span><br><span> ----------</span><br><span> Recipes</span><br><span></span><br><span> As many schools begin to adjourn for the summer, we at the Monitor</span><br><span>thought we'd pull together some fun and kid-friendly recipes to make for</span><br><span>and with your kids over the long break.</span><br><span></span><br><span> Ants on a Log</span><br><span></span><br><span> Ants on a Log is an old scout standard snack, and incredibly flexible</span><br><span>in flavors. Easy and quick to make any time, this recipe is perfect for an</span><br><span>afternoon snack after running around.</span><br><span></span><br><span>Ingredients:</span><br><span>1 bunch celery (the logs)</span><br><span></span><br><span>Filling options:</span><br><span>Peanut butter</span><br><span>Honey</span><br><span>Cream cheese (plain or flavored by preference)</span><br><span>Ricotta cheese</span><br><span>other vegetable spreads</span><br><span></span><br><span>Ants options:</span><br><span>Raisins</span><br><span>Dried currants</span><br><span>Miniature chocolate chips</span><br><span></span><br><span> Method: Wash and dry celery. Cut celery into snack-length pieces (two</span><br><span>to three inches, usually). Fill celery pieces with one of the fillings,</span><br><span>whichever you prefer. For Ants on a Slip-n-Slide, drizzle honey first, then</span><br><span>fill with cream cheese or peanut butter. Place a line of "ants" down the</span><br><span>log, usually three or four depending on size of ant and length of log.</span><br><span>Enjoy!</span><br><span> ----------</span><br><span> Indoor S'Mores</span><br><span></span><br><span> Everyone thinks of s'mores as a camp treat-marshmallows roasted over</span><br><span>an open fire. But when your camping trip gets rained out, or your seasonal</span><br><span>allergies make spending hours in the great outdoors not an option, there's</span><br><span>no reason to entirely miss out on this summer staple.</span><br><span></span><br><span>Ingredients:</span><br><span>1 bag miniature marshmallows</span><br><span>1 box Golden Grahams, Cinnamon Toast Crunch, or similar cereal</span><br><span>1 bag chocolate chips</span><br><span>1 box large paper clips</span><br><span>1 unscented candle</span><br><span></span><br><span> Method: Set up candle in holder on table or kitchen counter. Each</span><br><span>person making s'mores will need a large paper clip. Straighten the</span><br><span>paperclip, leaving only the smallest inner loop folded to create a handle,</span><br><span>this is your roasting stick. Light the candle. Lay out two pieces of cereal</span><br><span>and one chocolate chip in easy reach. Stick one marshmallow onto the end of</span><br><span>the paperclip wire. Hold marshmallow over flame to toast. There are two</span><br><span>schools of thought on the proper technique to roast a marshmallow: one says</span><br><span>you hold the marshmallow slightly above the flame, turning slowly to allow</span><br><span>the marshmallow to toast to an even golden brown. The other says to stick</span><br><span>the marshmallow into the flame, then lift it out. Allow the marshmallow to</span><br><span>burn briefly, creating a black crust around it before blowing the flame on</span><br><span>the marshmallow out. Place the chocolate chip onto one piece of cereal,</span><br><span>then rest the marshmallow on top of the chocolate chip. Place the other</span><br><span>piece of cereal on top of the marshmallow, then pinch the cereal together</span><br><span>and use it to pull the marshmallow off the paper clip. Repeat until candle</span><br><span>burns out, you run out of ingredients, or get sick of dessert, whichever</span><br><span>happens first.</span><br><span> ----------</span><br><span> Bird Seed</span><br><span></span><br><span> This recipe is a great way to practice using measuring spoons or cups</span><br><span>as well as fractions, and allows for great personalization in this heathy</span><br><span>snack mix to allow for picky eaters who disagree to exist in harmony on</span><br><span>family road trips, sporting events, and other outings. Because there is no</span><br><span>chocolate, this recipe is great for taking along in the summer heat without</span><br><span>as much worry about mess.</span><br><span></span><br><span>Ingredients:</span><br><span>1 Ziploc bag per person</span><br><span>Toasted corn kernels</span><br><span>Sunflower seeds (hulled)</span><br><span>Chopped nuts (cashews, peanuts, almonds, pecans, or mix)</span><br><span>Plain granola cereal</span><br><span>Dried fruit (banana chips, raisins, currants, bananas, etc.)</span><br><span></span><br><span> Method: Each person measures 3 tablespoons of each ingredient into</span><br><span>their Ziploc bag, shake to mix.</span><br><span> ----------</span><br><span> Breakfast Cookies</span><br><span></span><br><span> Early morning marching band practice, summer school classes, or day</span><br><span>camp? These breakfast cookies are easy and fun to make, then fast to grab</span><br><span>and eat on the way out the door later.</span><br><span></span><br><span>Ingredients:</span><br><span>1/2 cup butter, softened</span><br><span>2/3 cup packed brown sugar</span><br><span>1 teaspoon baking soda</span><br><span>2 eggs</span><br><span>1 3/4 cups white whole wheat flour</span><br><span>3 cups multigrain cereal flakes with blueberries</span><br><span></span><br><span> Method: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray cookie sheet with nonstick</span><br><span>cooking spray or cover with parchment paper. Place butter in a medium</span><br><span>mixing bowl. Beat with electric mixer for thirty seconds. Add brown sugar</span><br><span>and baking soda, beat until mixed. Add the eggs, then beat until mixed. Add</span><br><span>flour and beat until the mixture no longer looks dry. Stir in the cereal</span><br><span>using a wooden spoon. For each cookie, pack the mixture into a 1/4-cup</span><br><span>measuring cup, using a rubber scraper to get it out of the cup and onto the</span><br><span>cookie sheet. Press mound of dough with your fingers to flatten it</span><br><span>slightly. Repeat with remaining dough, leaving about three inches between</span><br><span>cookies. Bake cookies for eight to ten minutes or until edges are golden</span><br><span>brown. Let cookies stand on the cookie sheet for one minute before</span><br><span>transferring to wire rack to let them finish cooling. Makes twelve cookies.</span><br><span> ----------</span><br><span> Bug Juice</span><br><span></span><br><span> A fun and funky punch mixture that produces unusual colors and</span><br><span>flavors to experiment with.</span><br><span></span><br><span>Ingredients:</span><br><span>1 package of Kool-Aid or other non-sweetened drink mix powder per child,</span><br><span>different flavors</span><br><span>Sugar in quantity required by drink mixes</span><br><span></span><br><span> Method: Combine drink mix packages and sugar as directed by mix</span><br><span>packages in large pitcher, bowl, size of container determined by size of</span><br><span>group. If group is large enough, mix packages in twos or threes in multiple</span><br><span>gallon jugs. Add water as directed. The combinations of two to three</span><br><span>flavors give that odd "byproduct of bugs" appearance.</span><br><span> ----------</span><br><span> Aquarium Jell-O</span><br><span></span><br><span> This cool treat is a cool treat for a hot summer, whether for a</span><br><span>birthday party or just as a fun family dessert.</span><br><span></span><br><span>Ingredients:</span><br><span>1 package blue Jell-O</span><br><span>1 package Swedish Fish</span><br><span>1 Package Life Savers Gummies</span><br><span></span><br><span> Method: This can be made in one large container, such as a glass</span><br><span>fishbowl, or in smaller individual servings in a clear plastic punch cup or</span><br><span>smaller glass drinking glass. First use scissors to cut Life Savers Gummies</span><br><span>into smaller pieces to make the pebbles the bottom of your aquarium (bowl</span><br><span>or cups). Judge the depth of the pebble layer for your own preferences. Mix</span><br><span>Jell-O according to package instructions. Pour over pebble layer. Place</span><br><span>Jell-O into refrigerator for several hours to set. Once Jell-O has set, use</span><br><span>a long, thin knife to cut a slit in the Jell-O to the depth you want your</span><br><span>fish to "swim." Poke Swedish Fish into slit, using knife to push fish down</span><br><span>into position. Repeat to populate your aquarium with as many fish as you</span><br><span>like. You can sometimes also find gummie sharks or other creatures to</span><br><span>populate your aquariums with.</span><br><span> ----------</span><br><span> Monitor Miniatures</span><br><span></span><br><span> News from the Federation Family</span><br><span></span><br><span></span><br><span>Braille Book Fair Volunteering:</span><br><span> The Braille Book Fair has become one of the highlights of the</span><br><span>convention for many teachers, parents, blind kids, blind parents, and adult</span><br><span>beginning Braille readers. But the event could not take place without the</span><br><span>help of many dedicated, talented volunteers. And that's where you come in.</span><br><span>As a past worker, or simply interested supporter of the Braille Book Fair,</span><br><span>I hope you can either volunteer, or give me the contact information for</span><br><span>someone that you recommend.</span><br><span> We need people from 9:00 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. on Wednesday, July 12. You</span><br><span>do not need to work the entire afternoon or evening, but I do ask that you</span><br><span>try to work an entire shift, and we prefer a two-hour shift. We especially</span><br><span>need for people who help customers to come before we open the doors at 5:00</span><br><span>p.m. and to commit to staying until at least 6:30 p.m. Book lovers are</span><br><span>great for this shift, as you will assist visitors in book</span><br><span>decisions/selections.</span><br><span> Thanks so much for taking time to consider this request, and I look</span><br><span>forward to hearing from you soon!</span><br><span>If you can help, please contact Sandra Oliver, NOPBC Board Member at (713)</span><br><span>825-4573 or <a href="mailto:Sandra.Oliver@ey.com">Sandra.Oliver@ey.com</a>. If emailing, please provide the following</span><br><span>information:</span><br><span> . YES...I can work the following shift(s):</span><br><span></span><br><span> . My cell phone number that I will have at convention is:</span><br><span></span><br><span> . I live in (state):</span><br><span></span><br><span> . MAYBE.....I'll check my schedule. If possible, my preference is to</span><br><span> work these hours</span><br><span></span><br><span> . Braille skills (including if you read by touch or by sight as a</span><br><span> sighted person)</span><br><span></span><br><span> Note: If you are a parent of a blind child under the age eighteen (or</span><br><span>still in high school or below), we know that you will want to attend the</span><br><span>NOPBC Annual Meeting which takes place just before the BBF, but we would</span><br><span>welcome you to work either during the event or on the clean-up shift after</span><br><span>the event.</span><br><span></span><br><span>Elected:</span><br><span> On Saturday, April 8, 2017, the Chicago Chapter held its annual</span><br><span>election for all officers and board members. We elected the following:</span><br><span>president, Steve Hastalis; first vice president, Patti Chang; second vice</span><br><span>president, Jemal Powell; secretary, David Meyer; treasurer, Marco Gianotti;</span><br><span>and board members Denise Avant, Gina Falvo, Howard Wilson, and Melissa</span><br><span>Fuller.</span><br><span></span><br><span>Kernel Books Available to All:</span><br><span> In 1991 the National Federation of the Blind began publishing a series</span><br><span>of small volumes called Kernel Books. The books contained stories written</span><br><span>by blind people about our lives, designed to show that they are not much</span><br><span>different from the lives of our sighted friends, family members, and peers.</span><br><span>We called them Kernel Books because each story contained a "kernel," such</span><br><span>as an incident or a challenge that revealed a truth about blindness and</span><br><span>blind people. We encouraged the sharing of these volumes with the public to</span><br><span>increase understanding and combat low expectations and misconceptions about</span><br><span>blindness.</span><br><span> The Kernel Books are a valuable part of our organizational literature</span><br><span>and heritage. As an organization, we deeply value and treasure the real-</span><br><span>life stories of hope and inspiration contained in our Kernel Book series.</span><br><span>But the way that the public acquires information has changed, with more and</span><br><span>more people reading and consuming information in a digital form. While the</span><br><span>stories in the Kernel Books are timeless, the paperback volumes that</span><br><span>contain them are not. Consequently, we are planning to repurpose these</span><br><span>stories to make them more widely available in digital formats. At the same</span><br><span>time, we would like to get many of the existing paperback Kernel Books in</span><br><span>our storage facility out into the world and into the hands of those who</span><br><span>would benefit from reading them. To that end, we are offering free cases (a</span><br><span>case contains fifty books) on a first-come, first-served basis of the</span><br><span>following Kernel Books published after 2000:</span><br><span> . Oh, Wow</span><br><span> . Safari</span><br><span> . Reaching for the Top in the Land Down Under</span><br><span> . Not Much of a Muchness</span><br><span> . The Lessons of the Earth</span><br><span> . Imagine</span><br><span> . Celebrate</span><br><span> . To Reach for the Stars</span><br><span> We are making these cases of books available so that chapters,</span><br><span>affiliates, and divisions can distribute them within their local</span><br><span>communities or to new members and supporters. You might donate some books</span><br><span>to your local library, distribute copies to senior centers, take some books</span><br><span>to church or to meetings of community organizations with which you are</span><br><span>involved, give the books out as free literature at community festivals and</span><br><span>events, and more. If you are interested in receiving a free case of any of</span><br><span>these titles, please contact Ellen Ringlein in the Independence Market at</span><br><span>(410) 659-9314, extension 2216, or at <a href="mailto:independencemarket@nfb.org">independencemarket@nfb.org</a>.</span><br><span> We hope that many individuals, chapters, and affiliates will take</span><br><span>advantage of this opportunity to spread our message of hope, love, and</span><br><span>determination far and wide. The Kernel Books show how blind people live the</span><br><span>lives we want and invite others to understand and support our work for the</span><br><span>full and equal integration of the blind into society. Let's make sure that</span><br><span>all of the copies of these books we can get into circulation are</span><br><span>distributed before we transition these stories to new platforms and formats</span><br><span>oriented towards reaching a new generation of readers.</span><br><span></span><br><span> In Brief</span><br><span></span><br><span> Notices and information in this section may be of interest to Monitor</span><br><span>readers. We are not responsible for the accuracy of the information; we</span><br><span>have edited only for space and clarity.</span><br><span></span><br><span>NYSSB Alumni Association to hold Annual Reunion:</span><br><span> The members of the Alumni Association of the New York State School</span><br><span>for the Blind will gather for their annual reunion from Friday, June 9,</span><br><span>through Sunday, June 11, at the Quality Inn and Suites, 8250 Park Road,</span><br><span>Batavia, New York. Activities will include:</span><br><span> . A technology demonstration</span><br><span> . Bingo and Jeopardy with prizes</span><br><span> . Our annual banquet, opening meeting, and business meeting</span><br><span> . Lots of chances to socialize with old friends and make new ones</span><br><span> . A picnic with the current students of NYSSB</span><br><span> . Our memorial service to remember recently deceased alumni</span><br><span> . A 50/50 raffle, money tree drawing, and auction</span><br><span> . A public reading demonstration to support our third annual read-a-thon</span><br><span> Annual membership dues are $15.00 with multi-year plans available.</span><br><span>Our association began in 1918 and was incorporated in 1924. We will be</span><br><span>celebrating our centennial and the 150th birthday of the school at our 2018</span><br><span>reunion.</span><br><span> Membership is open to anyone at least eighteen years of age who</span><br><span>either attended the New York State School for the Blind or has a</span><br><span>substantive relationship to or is recommended by a member in good standing</span><br><span>of the Association. If you wish to become a member or have questions about</span><br><span>the reunion, please call Diane Scalzi at (586) 337-5226 or email</span><br><span><a href="mailto:dscalzi@comcast.net">dscalzi@comcast.net</a> or send using postal mail to 21621 Briarcliff St.,</span><br><span>Saint Clair Shores, MI 48082.</span><br><span> ----------</span><br><span> NFB Pledge</span><br><span> I pledge to participate actively in the efforts of the National</span><br><span>Federation of the Blind to achieve equality, opportunity, and security for</span><br><span>the blind; to support the policies and programs of the Federation; and to</span><br><span>abide by its constitution.</span><br><span></span><br></div></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><div><span>_______________________________________________</span><br><span>Brl-monitor mailing list</span><br><span><a href="mailto:Brl-monitor@nfbcal.org">Brl-monitor@nfbcal.org</a></span><br><span><a href="https://nfbcal.org/mailman/listinfo.cgi/brl-monitor">https://nfbcal.org/mailman/listinfo.cgi/brl-monitor</a></span><br></div></blockquote></body></html>