[Colorado-Talk] a Message from Our National President, Love Conquers Hate

[Amy Sabo]

hello scott,
thanks for posting the letter that president riccabanno posted to all
of the nfbnet lists over the weekend. I got it and, I was sooo moved
by the words of it on how it was written. it reminded me of something
that martin luther king jr. would've written like his I have a dream a
speech but, it was involving with the issues that we have dealt with
the past weekend with the issues in Minnesota and, in the world.

I watched it on the news most of the weekend and, I was sooo sad of
what happened and, also with the riots and protests there in Minnesota
and, also in Denver too! I didn't know that you had lived near where
the victim was killed! I bet that hit you home indeed! I was thinking
of you when i saw the news coverage over the weekend since you are
from Minnesota.

again, thanks for posting this letter again to the list and, i will
talk to you all soon!


hugs,
amy sabo

On 6/1/20, Scott C. LaBarre via Colorado-Talk <colorado-talk at nfbnet.org> wrote:
> Good morning Colorado!
>
>
>
> Yesterday afternoon, you should have received an open letter to the
> Federation from President Riccobono.  It is beautiful, powerful, and
> strikes
> the right tone for the Federation.  I share the text of the letter below to
> echo his remarks and to amplify the message.  The only other thing I can
> say
> about this letter is AMEN!!  The events of the last several days have hit
> me
> hard because, as many of you know, I grew up in Minnesota and while in law
> school, I lived very near the area where George Floyd tragically died.
> Personally, let me add that I love each and everyone of you and know that
> together we can build a better tomorrow for all of us!!
>
>
>
> Warmly,
>
> Scott
>
>
>
> From Mark A. Riccobono, President
>
> National Federation of the Blind
>
>
>
> I write this message to you as the elected President of the National
> Federation of the Blind. I also write it to you as an American who is
> struggling this week. I call upon members of our organization to recognize
> the solidarity we share as blind people and that the value we place on love
> within our movement is needed more today than at any other time in our
> history.
>
> I watched the horrific video shot by a brave seventeen year-old of the
> killing of George Floyd, a citizen of our great nation. Before I watched
> the
> video, I wondered what I could do and how I could contribute to healing the
> pain. I had no answers. After I watched the video, I realized I still did
> not have the answers and I was sad, angry, scared, frustrated, and without
> hope. Then I realized that we share tools in the National Federation of the
> Blind that can help. We can not look away and we need to share what we know
> from our experience in this people's movement.
>
> Our movement has been sustained for the purpose of serving as a vehicle for
> collective action by the blind of the nation to promote the vocational,
> cultural, and social advancement of the blind; to achieve the integration
> of
> the blind into society on a basis of equality with the sighted; and to take
> any other action which will improve the overall condition and standard of
> living of the blind. While racial equality in our nation is not within our
> mission, we also recognize that blindness affects all races and that the
> society we live within has an impact on our membership.
>
> The Federation's Code of Conduct
> <https://www.nfb.org/libraries/civicrm/extern/url.php?u=17129&qid=3711049>
> specifically emphasizes our commitments to diversity. In short "We respect
> differences of opinion, beliefs, identities, and other characteristics that
> demonstrate that blind people are a diverse cross section of society...In
> promoting a diverse and growing organization, we expect integrity and
> honesty in our relationships with each other and openness to learning about
> and experiencing cultural diversity. We believe that these qualities are
> crucial to fostering social and intellectual maturity. Intellectual
> maturity
> also requires individual struggle with unfamiliar ideas." This week, I have
> been struggling to comprehend the fear and anger that black members of my
> Federation family are experiencing. I do not, and never can, have the
> authentic lived experience that you have, but yet I am also completely
> outraged by the hate and injustice that fell upon George Floyd on Monday. I
> recognize there are many centuries of painful layers wrapped up in that
> moment. I recognize that George is neither the first nor the last in a
> chain
> of injustices that need to be addressed. I want you to know I stand with
> you
> in facing the injustice that persists against you because of the color of
> your skin. I want you to know that I love you and I struggle with not being
> able to fully know your pain and fear. I want you to know I am prepared to
> be guided by you as to how I can make a difference. I cannot say that I
> have
> not become desensitized in times past, but I can tell you I will never turn
> away again.
>
> While our organization is dedicated to advancing the rights of blind
> people,
> we should not act as though race does not exist. As our chapters attempt to
> do business, as we urge our members to take up our priorities, we should
> recognize that thousands of our members are impacted by the painful
> realizations of this week. As a people's movement, we cannot pretend that
> our people only have one characteristic. Now is the time to let each member
> know we love them and we recognize their hurt. Now is also the time for us
> to recognize, as individuals, that we carry implicit bias learned from the
> society around us, and to seek the training that will enhance our
> awareness.
> Now is the time to give love to our black members so that we might learn
> how
> we can do better in building the understanding that powers the organized
> blind movement.
>
> Now is not the time for us to use our organizational communication tools to
> offer position statements about the activities playing out on the streets
> of
> our nation. it is easy to write messages and posts of solidarity without
> having a true understanding of the issues. It is easy to suggest that we
> share the concerns of our black members. The harder thing for us to do is
> to
> consciously listen and seek understanding while supporting others in their
> pain and frustration. The Federation has never been known for merely doing
> what is easy. The priority today is to ensure all of our black members know
> they are welcomed and loved in this movement. In fact, we should extend
> that
> same truth to any others who feel the real pain sweeping our nation. Please
> do not use organizational assets to enter the dialogue around race. That is
> not our purpose as an organization and we may unintentionally make it
> worse.
> We need to continue to coordinate messaging and to be guided by the wisdom
> of our diversity and inclusion committee. As leaders of our movement, we
> should also be conscious that our public posts may be misunderstood as
> representing the Federation. Our personal feelings and misunderstanding
> around the death of George Floyd, the protests sweeping our nation, and the
> underlying systemic discrimination may hurt and divide members of the
> organization. We cannot let that happen and we must be careful as leaders
> not to add to the pain our members are experiencing. As it relates to our
> public messaging, let us stay focused on the priorities of the organized
> blind movement. As it comes to our cherished friends, let our priority be
> to
> reach out personally to listen and offer our hands in support.
>
> I have had the opportunity to gather virtually with some of our top black
> leaders-a group who will continue to guide my actions related to these
> issues. I asked them for wisdom and love in finding ways that I could guide
> our membership during this trying time in our nation. Their message was
> clear. Our movement is built on love and love always conquers hate. The
> Federation family needs to shine a light for the rest of the nation by
> continuing to demonstrate that the love, and solidarity, that we share with
> each other in this movement makes all the difference. They also noted that
> our organization has always valued civil disobedience and persistent
> pursuit
> of equality. They urged that we continue to pray for peace, justice, and
> equality. I could not agree more with these friends I have been blessed to
> learn from in our movement. Furthermore, I am thankful that we have a
> movement that provides us a meaningful opportunity to know people whose
> lived experience is so different from our own while sharing a common bond
> as
> blind people.
>
> In the National Federation of the Blind we know that blindness is not the
> characteristic that defines us or our future. Blindness is the thing that
> brings us together but it is not the thing that makes us want to stay
> together. That, in a word, is love.  We have love in our movement and we
> strengthen it by giving it. We have some wisdom and we strengthen it by
> continuing to seek greater understanding. We need more of both love and
> wisdom at every opportunity. Let's continue to share love, hope, and
> determination with each other so that together we transform our dreams into
> reality. One of those dreams still left tobe transformed is that of a
> nation
> where we can join together regardless of our unique characteristics. That
> is
> a dream I am struggling to help my own children understand so they may do
> better than I in making it come true. I speak for all of our national board
> members when I say we sincerely believe that the love and togetherness
> demonstrated in our movement can go a long way in contributing to that
> dream. It can be hard to remember that in this moment when so many of us
> are
> hurting, angry, frustrated, and scared. Let us continue to support each
> other in the Federation family. Let us avoid the harmful language that will
> only serve to divide us in this time. Let us go forward together, love one
> another, and change the world for the better.
>
>