[IABS-Talk] President Riccobono's notebook for the week of May 17

Wed May 19 12:00:22 UTC 2021

Critical Actions:

Double Your Dollars: NFB and Deque GAAD Gift Matching Campaign:

Thanks to the generous donations from Deque Systems and an anonymous
donor, there will be a gift-matching campaign during the week of
Global Accessibility
Awareness Day. A gift-matching donation means that every dollar you
donate to the National Federation of the Blind will be matched up to
$25,000 during
the week of May 16 through May 23. This will also be part of our Give
20 campaign, so donations during the gift matching will also be
included in the Give
20 drawing to either win a trip to the 2022 National Convention OR
take the cash prize of $2,000. Double your dollars: learn more about
the gift matching campaign.

Celebrating Global Accessibility Awareness Day:

May 20 is the tenth Global Accessibility Awareness Day, a day to
emphasize the importance of integrating accessibility into everything
digital (web, software,
mobile, etc.). The National Federation of the Blind is celebrating all
week. Follow us on
Facebook
 and
Twitter
 to join the conversation.
Share our accessibility work.

Attend the Center of Excellence in Nonvisual Access GAAD Presentation:

The presentation will be held on May 20 from 11:00 a.m.–1:00 p.m.
eastern via Zoom. The National Federation of the Blind will be
highlighting our 2020-2021
efforts to promote accessibility. Register now:
https://nfb.org/programs-services/center-excellence-nonvisual-access/cena-2021-gaad-presentation.

News:

Congratulations to the 2021 Scholarship Program Finalists!:

Each year the National Federation of the Blind is proud to honor blind
scholars, all of whom are raising expectations and expanding
possibilities. On May
12, we announced the 2021 scholarship finalists. The scholarship
program provides financial assistance and connects students with
mentoring and other resources.

Meet the finalists and learn about their vocational goals.

Mark Your Calendars: Next Presidential Release on June 1—Captioning
and Spanish Available:

The next Presidential Release of the National Federation of the Blind
will be delivered on Tuesday, June 1, at 8:00 p.m. eastern. After the
remarks there
is an opportunity for questions. Submit questions in advance to
cdanielsen at nfb.org
 and put PR506 in the subject line, or call 410-659-9314, extension
2473. Closed captions and Spanish interpretation will be available.
Mark your calendars!
Zoom details will be available soon.

Upcoming: Open Call on Code of Conduct FAQs:

May 23 at 8:00-10:00 p.m. eastern via Zoom – The Survivors Task Force
invites Federationists and other members of the blind community to
attend open calls
to review the Code of Conduct Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) and to
collect feedback on the Code of Conduct itself. Aggregated concerns
collected during
the Code of Conduct feedback sessions will help inform the Code
review, which is presently underway. The tentative agenda, 1CapApp,
Zoom participation
information, and other Survivor Task Force branch meeting dates are
available for review at
https://nfb.org/programs-services/safety-support/safety-support-upcoming-events

Required Training for NFB BELL Coordinators and Volunteers:

We will be offering two training sessions for all NFB BELL®
coordinators and volunteers who will be working with youth during the
2021 summer. The first
session will be held May 22 from 5:30-7:00 p.m. eastern, and the
second will be held May 26 from 7:00-8:30 p.m. eastern. This training
is required for
anyone planning to work with youth in our 2021 NFB BELL Academy
In-Home Edition. The information in these sessions will be identical,
so individuals only
need to plan to attend one. Zoom information has been sent out to
those individuals who have been identified as BELL coordinators, as
well as those who
have been identified as mentors and whose background checks have been
requested. For more information, or to request that someone be added
to the list
of attendees, please email us at
bell at nfb.org.
 Please note that any individuals who do not attend one of these two
training sessions will not be allowed to serve in the 2021 NFB BELL
Academy In-Home
Edition.

Mandatory Reporting Resource:

Some of you have asked for some additional resources related to
mandatory reporting. On
RAINN's website
 you can look up details of laws in each state related to mandatory
reporting, as well as consent, sexual violence crime definitions, and
a number of other
legal- and policy-related aspects of sexual misconduct. I also want to
share that elsewhere on
RAINN's website
 you can find a local, in-person sexual assault service provider by
entering a state or zip code.

May Braille Monitor—Access Now:

The latest issue of the National Federation of the Blind’s flagship
publication is now available.
Articles include an update on our progress to make the Federation a
safe space in all of its activities; a discussion about the history of
Maryland as
the affiliate prepares to host our 2021 National Convention; a
discussion about integrating Federation activities so they do not
conflict with religious
holidays; a feature highlighting some of our black leaders; an article
about chainsaws and missionary work; a discussion about personal
boundaries, how
to establish them and see they are respected; and a discussion about
web accessibility and the way we deal with the challenge of getting
quality access
when so many sites are being created and comprise a vital part of our
ability to participate in the commerce of the nation
. Read the
May issue of the Braille Monitor.

Submit an Article for the Braille Monitor—No Experience Needed:

The National Federation of the Blind is seeking articles for the
Braille Monitor that focus on your lived experiences. Share a blind
moment or a strategy
that other blind people should know about. To learn more or submit an
article, connect with Gary Wunder, Braille Monitor editor, at
gwunder at nfb.org.

Amendment to the Endless Frontier Act from Senator John Thune:

Last week Senator John Thune of South Dakota introduced an amendment
to the Endless Frontier Act that contained two important provisions to
ensure that
people with disabilities would be included in the design and
utilization of highly automated vehicles. The first would create an
exemption classification
for manufacturers who “provide transportation access for individuals
with disabilities (as defined in section 3 of the Americans with
Disabilities Act
of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12102)), including non-visual access for
individuals who are blind or visually impaired,” as long as the
vehicle was equivalently safe
to a non-exempt vehicle. The second would prohibit a state from
issuing a “motor vehicle operator’s license for the operation or use
of a highly automated
vehicle in a manner that discriminates on the basis of disability.”
Despite support from both automobile manufacturers and disability
advocates, Senator
Thune reluctantly withdrew his amendment on May 12 due to a lack of
support from other senators on the Commerce, Science, and
Transportation Committee
over safety and liability concerns. The Endless Frontier Act has been
moved to the Senate floor for debate this week, and we believe Senator
Thune will
try to introduce his amendment for the full Senate to debate. Please
contact your senators and ask them to support this important
amendment.

Gratitude to Our Affiliates:

Thanks go to the NFB of Alabama, the NFB of Florida, and the NFB of
Illinois for recent gifts sent to our national office for educational
programming.
We can make great strides together and affiliate contributions help.

Recent Blog: “Thinking Fast for a Show: How I Conquered My Anxiety to
Perform on Stage”:

Being a performer is no cakewalk; read Precious Perez’s experience the
first time she organized a gig herself in our recent
Voice of the Nation’s Blind Blog.

App Development Seminar:

On Wednesday, June 9, the National Federation of the Blind, in
collaboration with Google, is hosting an app development seminar
focused on accessibility.
Anyone who develops or is considering developing apps is encouraged to
register for this Zoom event. The registration page will be live
shortly, check

www.nfb.org/cena
 for updates.

Reminders:

Calling All Veterans:

Vernon Humphries, the president of the National Association of Blind
Veterans, is looking for all veterans to include in the convention’s
Celebration of
Freedom. This year he is asking to receive a ten-second audio
recording of each veteran introducing themself and providing a short
glimpse of their service.
He is requesting that you all spread the word and to assist veterans
who might have difficulty in creating an audio recording. He would
like to receive
these at
mr_president at nabv.org
 before June 6.

Dates to Keep in Mind:

(all times eastern)

list of 4 items
•
May 20: Global Accessibility Awareness Day (GAAD)
• June 1: Presidential Release LIVE, 8:00 p.m.
• June 9: App Development Seminar,
www.nfb.org/cena
• July 6-10: NFB National Convention, anywhere and everywhere

-- 
Marilyn Green, President
National Federation of the Blind of Illinois
312-343-8396
www.nfbofillinois.org