[CT-NFB] Federationist Issue

Sat Dec 12 14:05:41 UTC 2020

Thanks to Brianna for coming up with this topic which will give us all a chance to learn more about each other. Thanks to you Justin for helping us to see how all of us have a story to tell that matters. We have this common thread of vision loss and that unifying trait provides us with an opportunity to get to know such a diverse group. 

Deborah J. Reed
Central Chapter President
NFB of CT
Deb.reed57 at gmail.com
860-378-5370
“Live the life you want, blindness is not what holds you back.” National Federation Of The Blind 

> On Dec 11, 2020, at 6:23 PM, Justin Salisbury via CT-NFB <ct-nfb at nfbnet.org> wrote:
> 
> 
> Hi everyone,
>  
> I hope everybody is doing well. I’ve found that shoveling snow has given me a really nice mental break from the pandemic. It’s like, once you go outside with the cold air and flannel-lined jeans to clear your driveway, the world is pretty quiet, and the coronavirus isn’t there.
>  
> I think this issue of the Federationist is really important, but I also think a lot of people don’t realize the value that they have to contribute. I think a lot of people don’t recognize that their own experience could actually help someone else.
>  
> If I think back to when I was newly blind, all the way up to being new and then relatively new in the Federation, one thing I really needed was to find someone else who, by my perception, was like me. I think, in a lot of ways, I connected with different people over ways that we were similar. When we talk about diversity, we often think about ways that we are different, but in that, we often find ways that we are similar. We are just in the beginning of coming to understand as a movement how our identities blend together.
>  
> If you’re a blind woman, so far as I am coming to understand, you likely receive a twin set of low expectations—those that come from being a woman and those that come from being blind. If you’re told to be a passenger in life, is it because you’re blind, because you’re a woman, or because you’re both? You might not know, but I know that I don’t have to deal with that question because I have male privilege. Use this issue of the Federationist to help people like me understand your lived experiences.
>  
> If you’re blind and Jewish, help me understand how those two things go together. I’ve heard that there are some really nice parts of Judaism that prime people to be good at social justice work. Tell me about that. When I attended my first NFB of Connecticut convention in 2008, I remember we had pork for dinner. I haven’t thought about that in 12 years, but I remember it because my girlfriend at the time who attended that banquet with me was Jewish. I’m ethnically Jewish, but my family gave up those traditions sometime around 1942 when they came to America as refugees. I hope my ancestors don’t mind how much I love bacon.
>  
> If you’re blind and Latina, maybe you can give us a good explanation of how the machismo affects you as a blind Latina. Or maybe you live in one of Connecticut’s Puerto Rican communities, so it doesn’t matter if you’re Latina yourself. I’ve heard a lot of blind Latinas telling me that the machismo leads men to put their hands all over a blind woman, invading personal space with no hesitation. I’m part Boricua myself, but I’m not a woman, so I am not on the receiving end.
>  
> If you’re a blind person who went to college as a first-generation student, that’s a big deal, too. I was the first person in my family to get a college degree. My sister was right behind me. We both got degrees in math and then master’s degrees in teaching. So much of the college process was foreign to me and to my family. Those who grew up in families where college was normal don’t understand how much my family did not know. Then, there was the blindness part. I’d like to see some first-generation students tell their stories.
>  
> If you’re blind and stupid, well, keep that to yourself. I’m kidding, of course!
>  
> Let’s hear some stories, people! Your life matters. Tell us about it.
>  
> Aloha,
>  
> Justin
>  
>  
> Justin Mark Hideaki Salisbury
> he/him/his
>  
> Phone: 808.797.8606
> Email: President at Alumni.ECU.edu
> LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/justin-salisbury  
> ResearchGate: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Justin_Salisbury
>  
>  
> “Once social change begins, it cannot be reversed. You cannot un-educate the person who has learned to read. You cannot humiliate the person who feels pride. You cannot oppress the people who are not afraid anymore.”
>  
> Cesar Chavez
>  
>  
>  
>  
>  
> From: CT-NFB <ct-nfb-bounces at nfbnet.org> On Behalf Of Brianna Rigsbee via CT-NFB
> Sent: Tuesday, November 17, 2020 2:42 PM
> To: NFB of Connecticut Mailing List <ct-nfb at nfbnet.org>
> Cc: Brianna Rigsbee <bri.rigsbee96 at gmail.com>; Isabel Rosario <rosarioi4 at southernct.edu>
> Subject: [CT-NFB] Federationist Issue
>  
> Dear Federationists,
>  
> I hope you’re all doing well. It’s that time of year again—yup, you guessed it—time to submit those articles for The Federationist. For this issue, I’d like us to focus on diversity and intersectionality. Intersectionality is a core component that combines different aspects of a person’s identity such as race, gender, etc. Now more than ever, diversity is so important. Everyone is unique and the more diverse society gets, the more we will be exposed to opinions that differ from our own. Diversity can reduce racism and discrimination, give a more colorful life experience, and build a more balanced world.
>  
> As I’ve said before, and will continue to say, everybody has a voice that matters, and everybody’s voice is valued regarding this topic. Whether you’re white, black, young or old—no one is exempt. So tell me your stories. How do all these aspects—race, gender, disability, age, sexuality, etc—intersect with each other?
>  
> This is a powerful topic that is close to my heart as well as others, and I am so proud to be working on it with you all.
>  
> Please send your submissions to me at editor.fedct at gmail.com by Monday, November 30. If people feel uncomfortable writing their pieces, I would be more than happy to conduct an interview with you. And based off of questions I’ll ask you, I can write something up myself. Just contact me (off list), and we’ll work something out.
>  
> Best,
> Bri
> --
> Brianna Rigsbee
> First Vice President | Connecticut Association of Blind Students, A proud devision of the National Federation of the Blind of Connecticut
> bri.rigsbee96 at gmail.com
> (203) 751-0199
> http://www.nfbct.org/ct-chapters/connecticut-association-of-blind-students
> “Live the life you want; blindness is not what holds you back.”
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