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<p class="s12" style="margin:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt"><span style="color:#1F497D">Fellow Federationists:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="s12" style="margin:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt"><span style="color:#1F497D"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="s12" style="margin:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt"><span style="color:#1F497D">For your reading pleasure, here is a letter we have sent to President Obama in response to his State of the Union Address.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="s12" style="margin:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt"><span style="color:#1F497D"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="s12" style="margin:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt"><span style="color:#1F497D">Yours,<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="s12" style="margin:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt"><span style="color:#1F497D"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="s12" style="margin:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt"><span style="color:#1F497D">Justin<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="s12" style="margin:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="s12" style="margin:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt"><span class="bumpedfont15">February 3, 2014</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="s12" style="margin:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="s12" style="margin:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt"><span class="bumpedfont15">President Barack Obama</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="s12" style="margin:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt"><span class="bumpedfont15">The White House</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="s12" style="margin:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt"><span class="bumpedfont15">1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W.</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="s12" style="margin:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt"><span class="bumpedfont15">Washington, DC 20500</span><a name="_GoBack"></a><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="s12" style="margin:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="s12" style="margin:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="s12" style="margin:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt"><span class="bumpedfont15">Dear Mr. President:</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="s12" style="margin:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="s16" style="margin:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt"><span class="bumpedfont15">In your January 28<sup>th</sup> State of the Union Address, and via a conference call with Vice President Biden and Secretary of Labor Perez on January 29<sup>th</sup>, it was
announced that all contractors would be required by executive order to pay their federally funded workers at least $10.10 an hour under any new contracts. The National Federation of the Blind, the oldest and largest nationwide organization of blind Americans,
urges you to include workers with disabilities in this executive order, affirmatively and explicitly. We further urge you to announce that you will sign the Fair Wages for Workers with Disabilities Act (H.R. 831) if and when that legislation reaches your desk. With
a Republican sponsor and substantial Democratic co-sponsorship, this nonpartisan piece of legislation will responsibly phase out the discriminatory practice of paying workers with disabilities less than the minimum wage.</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="s16" style="margin:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="s16" style="margin:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt"><span class="bumpedfont15">Our respect and prayers go out to Americans like Sergeant First Class Cory Remsburg, who are willing to make the ultimate sacrifice for the freedom and equality we seek to enjoy
as American citizens. We are thankful that Sergeant Remsburg is recovering from the wounds he suffered in service to this great nation. But we must point out that his value to our society is not a function of the restoration of his eyesight and ability to
walk, but of the simple fact that he is a human being with determination, belief in himself, love for the United States, and aspirations for his future. There are millions of others who actively seek to serve this nation we love with our unique talents and
strengths, whether or not we can benefit from technology or medical intervention that will mitigate or eliminate our disabilities. Some of us may be blind in both eyes; others may not be able to hear; some may be unable to walk; some may have developmental
disabilities that require innovative interventions; and still others may have other disabilities that require them to perform everyday tasks a little differently. We seek to have our different characteristics embraced as respected contributions to our nation’s
diversity, not as badges of inferiority that condemn us to a life of low wages and low expectations. We are no less valuable, we are no less capable, and we are no less American than any other citizen.</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="s16" style="margin:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="s17" style="mso-margin-top-alt:0in;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:5.25pt;margin-left:0in">
<span class="bumpedfont15">We wholeheartedly agree with you when you say, “The America we want for our kids – a rising America where honest work is plentiful and communities are strong; where prosperity is widely shared and opportunity for all lets us go as
far as our dreams and toil will take us – none of it is easy. But if we work together; if we summon what is best in us, the way Cory summoned what is best in him, with our feet planted firmly in today but our eyes cast towards tomorrow – I know it’s within
our reach.” We believe that this America includes people with disabilities, and we ask you to demonstrate that you believe it as well.</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="s17" style="mso-margin-top-alt:0in;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:5.25pt;margin-left:0in">
<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="s13" style="mso-margin-top-alt:0in;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:6.0pt;margin-left:0in">
<span class="bumpedfont15">Sincerely,</span><br>
<br>
<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="s13" style="mso-margin-top-alt:0in;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:6.0pt;margin-left:0in">
<span class="bumpedfont15">Marc Maurer, President</span><br>
<span class="bumpedfont15">NATIONAL FEDERATION OF THE BLIND</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="s7" style="margin:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt"><span class="bumpedfont15">cc: Vice President Joseph R. Biden</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="s7" style="margin:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt"><span class="bumpedfont15"> The Honorable Thomas E. Perez</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="s5" style="mso-margin-top-alt:0in;margin-right:.5in;margin-bottom:6.0pt;margin-left:.5in">
<o:p></o:p></p>
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