[Colorado-talk] NFB NEEDS YOUR HELP WITH INACCESSIBLE KINDLE

Mon Nov 26 04:15:52 UTC 2012

Hello Jessica;
I was trying to use the NFB newline today, but realized i need a subscriber ID and security code…How do i get those?
thanks!
Andre van Hall
avanhall at me.com
1518 S. Logan St.
Denver, CO 80210
720-489-8824

On Nov 21, 2012, at 10:54 AM, Jessica Beecham <jbeecham at cocenter.org> wrote:

> Hello NFBCO!
> 
> We need our PARENTS, STUDENTS, and SUPPORTERS to rally in support of our
> efforts to MAKE THE KINDLE ACCESSIBLE!  Below you will find a message that
> was sent from our National office explaining our efforts.  We would like to
> ask each of you to write a letter to Amazon.com, encouraging them to make
> Kindle and Kindle products accessible!
> 
> In the below text are two sample letters (one from an adult and one from a
> child).  These can be used as a template for your letter.  After your
> letter is written, please mail it to NFB at:
> 
> 200 E. Wells St. at Jernigan Place
> Baltimore, MD 21230
> 
> Letters may be sent in print, braille, or both.  If you would like you can
> also e-mail your letters to jbeecham at cocenter.org and I will make sure that
> they go to the correct place.
> 
> After you have written and sent your letter, please let me know so that we
> can have an idea of how many letters have been sent from Colorado.  You can
> do this via e-mail at jbeecham at cocenter.org or by phone at 720-440-2632.  I
> will be out of the office from November 22-November 30 so please do use the
> above number if you wish to reach me.
> 
> Best Wishes
> 
> Jess
> Hello everyone:
> 
> As you know, we are asking members and supporters to write letters to Jeff
> Bezos, founder and CEO of Amazon.com, insisting that he make Kindle content
> accessible in light of the fact that Amazon is aggressively pushing Kindle
> books to schools. Some of you have asked for template letters that you can
> use to help write letters of your own. Attached and pasted below are two
> template letters, one from a child and one from a parent, teacher, or other
> interested adult. Please encourage your members to personalize these
> letters and send them to us. (Please send them to the NFb, even though they
> are pre-addressed to Amazon. Our plan is to "deliver" the letters during
> our protest set for December 12, 2012.) Please print the letters and send
> them to my attention at National Federation of the Blind, 200 East Wells
> Street at Jernigan Place, Baltimore MD 21230. You may send the letters in
> print, Braille, or both. If you cannot send physical letters, please e-mail
> letters to me at cdanielsen at nfb.org and we will print and emboss the
> letters for you. Please stay tuned to all NFB e-mail lists, since we will
> be putting out more materials on this topic. Thanks as always.
> Together we will win this battle and gain access to Kindle books for blind
> children.
> 
> Sincerely:
> 
> Chris Danielsen
> Director of Public Relations
> NATIONAL FEDERATION OF THE BLIND
> 
> Mr. Jeff Bezos
> Amazon.com, Inc.
> 410 Terry Avenue North
> Seattle, Washington 98109
> Dear Mr. Bezos:
> I have become aware that Amazon.com is undertaking a massive effort to
> deploy its Kindle e-readers and Kindle books to K-12 schools across the
> United States. Amazon has built a system called Whispercast that allows
> teachers and school administrators to distribute Kindle content to devices
> other than Kindles. The problem with all of these plans is that neither the
> Kindle devices nor the book files used in conjunction with them are
> accessible to students who are blind or who have other print disabilities.
> Even if a student has an accessible device like a personal computer,
> laptop, or iPad, he or she still will not be able to gain full access to
> these books. Although the books can be read aloud with text-to-speech, the
> student can’t use the access features of his or her device to learn proper
> spelling and punctuation, look up words in the dictionary, annotate or
> highlight significant passages, or take advantage of the many other
> features that Kindle devices and applications make available to sighted
> students. This is because Kindle books are designed so that the text is not
> exposed to screenreaders, like JAWS for Windows or Apple’s VoiceOver
> application, which are used by blind students. This also means that the
> text of Kindle books can’t be displayed on Braille devices. Listening is
> not reading; if students who can’t read Braille cannot access Kindle books
> in Braille, they are not reading.
> Since school districts have an obligation under federal law to purchase or
> deploy only accessible technology and content, Amazon must either make
> Kindle books accessible or cease and desist from its efforts to have them
> used in the classroom. I sincerely hope that you will make the vast library
> of Kindle books available to all students, including those who are blind.
> If you do, you will be making history by providing more access to books for
> blind students than they have ever had in all of human history.
> 
> Sincerely,
> xx
> 
> Mr. Jeff Bezos
> Amazon.com, Inc.
> 410 Terry Avenue North
> Seattle, Washington 98109
> Dear Mr. Bezos:
> My name is xx. I am in the xx grade and attend xx school. I am writing to
> you to ask that you please make your Kindle books accessible to me. I need
> to have access to the same books and textbooks that my classmates are using
> so that I can do my assignments and keep up with my classmates. I know that
> you can make this happen. If you do, I’ll get the same education as all of
> my friends. If you don’t, I won’t get the same education, won’t learn to
> read properly, and won’t have the same opportunities as my sighted friends.
> Please make Kindle content accessible to me as soon as possible.
> Sincerely,
> xx
> -- 
> Jessica Beecham
> Chapter and Community Development Coordinator
> National Federation of the Blind of Colorado
> 2233 West Shepperd Ave.
> Littleton, CO 80210
> jbeecham at cocenter.org
> 720-440-2632
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