[il-talk] Fw: [Nfbc-info] Blind couple barred from bus

Thu Jan 1 23:34:07 UTC 2015

  Good point Kelly.  I really think we should have some policy in place 
defining what should be posted and what should not.  Maybe a friendly 
reminder needs to be posted about what is appropriate.  I have no 
problem with that.

Robert H

On 1/1/2015 5:18 PM, Kelly Pierce via il-talk wrote:
> Of course, discriminatory actions across the United States
> tangentially affect all of us. This article was found as the first hit
> in a Google News search on the terms blind and ADA. Should every
> article be forwarded to IL-Talk that matches these terms? Is it not
> possible for folks to search for their own articles? Lesly and Linda,
> why  should IL-talk be turned into a blindness news service. I
> subscribe to this list for issues relating to Illinois, not for
> articles appearing on every TV station and in every newspaper in
> America about blindness.  If the list were turned into what you
> desire, we would have 20 to 30 posts a week on news stores of one kind
> or another. This is in addition to the information about blindness
> issues in Illinois.
>
> Currently, tools like Google news are highly accessible and extremely
> easy to use. People can also create alerts to receive daily updates
> about new articles that match their search criteria. Why can’t those
> interested in this information use this tool?
>
> Kelly Pierce
>
>
>
>
>
>
> On 1/1/15, Leslie Hamric via il-talk <il-talk at nfbnet.org> wrote:
>> I agree with Linda. We should not just isolate ourselves to Illinois issues
>> because this kind of issue could have been anywhere. It's good for us to
>> know it.
>> Leslie
>>
>> Sent from my iPhone
>>
>>> On Jan 1, 2015, at 7:57 AM, Lin H. via il-talk <il-talk at nfbnet.org> wrote:
>>>
>>> I think if it's about a blind issue, it concerns all of us.    And we
>>> should know about such issues!    Sincerely, Linda
>>>
>>> -----Original Message----- From: Edwin via il-talk
>>> Sent: Thursday, January 01, 2015 7:42 AM
>>> To: 'Kelly Pierce' ; 'NFB of Illinois Mailing List'
>>> Subject: Re: [il-talk] Fw: [Nfbc-info] Blind couple barred from bus
>>>
>>> Well,
>>> I don't agree with the thread of this message, but I thought it an
>>> appropriate time to share a concern.
>>> I love the freedom of subscribing to newsletters, however to  have them M
>>> posted on the list seems to me not appropriate.  This does not allow me to
>>> unsubscribe without having to leave ill/talk.  Am I alone in this thought?
>>> -----Original Message-----
>>> From: il-talk [mailto:il-talk-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf of Kelly
>>> Pierce via il-talk
>>> Sent: Wednesday, December 31, 2014 10:16 AM
>>> To: Gregory Chang Patti; NFB of Illinois Mailing List
>>> Subject: Re: [il-talk] Fw: [Nfbc-info] Blind couple barred from bus
>>>
>>> If the pair boarded the bus, the driver could have contacted police,
>>> demanding their arrest.  The argument being that the couple was
>>> informed that their personal safety as well as that of the public
>>> would be endangered if they were to have ridden that specific bus.  If
>>> they were to have ignored these specious warnings, the couple would
>>> then be trespassing on public property, a criminal misdemeanor in
>>> Illinois.  Whether or not someone engages in civil disobedience is a
>>> personal choice.  I do not make judgments on that decision, which may
>>> not be appropriate at a particular place and time for even the most
>>> strident activists.
>>>
>>> I do question though the need to take time and attention from Illinois
>>> Issues to an isolated incident by a nasty bus driver in a distant
>>> state.  I don’t want this list to be a forum for every hassle and
>>> discriminatory ill of thousands of blind persons around the country.
>>> I wish we could keep the list confined to issues impacting people in
>>> Illinois.
>>>
>>> Kelly Pierce
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>> On 12/31/14, Gregory Chang Patti via il-talk <il-talk at nfbnet.org> wrote:
>>>> Pls sign il-talk messages.
>>>>
>>>> "The National Federation of the Blind knows that blindness is not the
>>>> characteristic that defines you or your future."
>>>>
>>>> Patti S. Gregory-Chang
>>>> NFBI Treasurer
>>>> NFB Scholarship Comm. Chair
>>>> Sent from my iPhone
>>>>
>>>> On Dec 30, 2014, at 8:10 PM, Rob Kaiser via il-talk <il-talk at nfbnet.org>
>>>> wrote:
>>>>
>>>> Hello my friends from Illinois: This was sent out to the California list
>>>> serve. I wanted to send this out to the Illinois list serve as well.
>>>> Enjoy
>>>> this. It really gets to the point regarding the earlier article I sent
>>>> out.
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> Rob Kaiser, President National Federation of the Blind of California
>>>> Orange
>>>> County Chapter cell#(760)792-0525 email;
>>>> rcubfank at sbcglobal.net
>>>> -----Original Message----- From: Frida Aizenman via Nfbc-info
>>>> Sent: Tuesday, December 30, 2014 5:48 PM
>>>> To: Tina Thomas ; NFB of California List
>>>> Subject: Re: [Nfbc-info] Blind couple barred from bus
>>>>
>>>> A Little Bit of Inspiring History:
>>>>
>>>> *Blindness: The Coming of the Third Generation *
>>>>
>>>> An Address Delivered by Kenneth Jernigan
>>>> President, National Federation of the Blind
>>>> At the Banquet of the Annual Convention
>>>> Kansas City, Missouri, July 3, 1986
>>>>
>>>> When Terry McManus rode on a city bus and the driver and the other
>>>> passengers tried to make him play the part of the helpless blind man, he
>>>> remembered---and refused. Here is his letter:
>>>>
>>>> I am writing to relate a blatant incident of discrimination which
>>>> occurred against me on Tuesday, January 14, 1986. I think you will find
>>>> it strikingly similar to the outrages blind people have experienced at
>>>> the hands of airline officials.
>>>>
>>>> On that afternoon at about 5:15 I boarded a standing- room-only Port
>>>> Authority Transit Bus. Just as I stepped through the door, the driver
>>>> shouted, "Handicapped passenger; give him a seat." I explained to him
>>>> that blindness did not in any way limit my ability to stand, that I had
>>>> good balance and preferred to stand. At this he became quite irate and
>>>> proclaimed that if I didn't immediately take a seat, he would not move
>>>> the bus. calmly told him that I would continue to stand. He began
>>>> apologizing to the passengers for the inconvenience I was causing them.
>>>> Then, he spotted a supervisor on the street and got off to consult with
>>>> him. Meanwhile, the other passengers began bitterly attacking me,
>>>> calling me "crazy," "inconsiderate," "ignorant," "arrogant," and a few
>>>> other things which are not printable. One man sarcastically said that he
>>>> hoped I would sleep well that night. I tried to explain to them that it
>>>> was not I, but the driver, who was inconveniencing them, and that it was
>>>> a matter of discrimination and a violation of my civil rights that was
>>>> involved. They didn't want to listen and grew angrier. I was frightened
>>>> but knew that I had to continue standing.
>>>>
>>>> You see, this was not the first time I had been harassed by a bus driver
>>>> in this manner. It had happened a number of times in the past, and on
>>>> each occasion I sat down after a violent argument. Each time I was
>>>> embarrassed and humiliated and felt that I had sold out my blind
>>>> brothers and sisters, who were courageously battling similar
>>>> discriminatory actions. The last time it happened I promised myself that
>>>> it would never happen again.
>>>>
>>>> The driver returned with the supervisor, who said he concurred with the
>>>> driver's decision not to move the bus if I didn't sit. I told him I
>>>> would stand. He said the seats in the front of the bus were reserved for
>>>> handicapped persons. I told him I was not handicapped in my ability to
>>>> stand. I said that if I was breaking some law, he should have me
>>>> arrested and that if I was not, he should order the driver to move the
>>>> bus. He obviously knew that I wasn't doing anything wrong because he did
>>>> not call the police. He said there was an empty bus behind the one I was
>>>> on and that I could get on that one and sit without feeling that I was
>>>> being discriminated against. I said I would stay where I was. The driver
>>>> and the supervisor conferred a bit longer and then decided to take all
>>>> of the other passengers off the bus and put them on the one behind. They
>>>> all filed past me, continuing to pour out abuse and make disparaging
>>>> comments, until only an elderly woman and I remained on board. She
>>>> explained that she was not able to stand on the other bus. The driver
>>>> went to see if there was space and returned to report that there was
>>>> room but that he didn't want to inconvenience the passengers by asking
>>>> one of them to stand for her. How ironic! He created a major incident by
>>>> harassing a blind person who was perfectly capable of standing but would
>>>> not ask passengers to stand for someone with a legitimate reason for
>>>> requiring a seat. Finally, another bus came, and the elderly woman left.
>>>>
>>>> The supervisor returned, and he and the driver continued to badger me
>>>> with excuses for their actions:
>>>>
>>>> Since, as the supervisor put it, I didn't have the "privilege of
>>>> seeing," I wouldn't know when people wanted to get past me and thus
>>>> would create an obstruction. (They obviously had no trouble filing past
>>>> me to get to the other bus.)
>>>>
>>>> People are crazy and might knock me down. (I weigh close to 200 pounds,
>>>> so that is not likely.)
>>>>
>>>> I was standing too close to the driver and obstructing his view. (Other
>>>> people were standing as close to him as I was, and I would have been
>>>> happy to move; but the bus was jammed, and there was nowhere to go.)
>>>>
>>>> I had been standing there for about thirty minutes and was beginning to
>>>> fear that I would spend the rest of the evening on that bus, being
>>>> badgered to sit---or something even worse. Finally, believe it or not,
>>>> they decided to take the bus out of service for the general public and
>>>> drive me to my stop. In retrospect I guess that this is no more
>>>> unbelievable than cancelling a flight to get rid of a blind passenger.
>>>> Of course, I continued to stand as we drove to my stop.
>>>>
>>>> The driver went on harassing me about what an ignorant and inconsiderate
>>>> person I was. I again repeated that it was a question of civil rights. I
>>>> explained that this was just a small part of a large pattern of
>>>> discrimination faced by blind people every day. He said that, as a black
>>>> man, he had been facing discrimination for four hundred years---but of
>>>> course this was different since sitting down would have in no way
>>>> prevented me from reaching my destination. I explained that this was
>>>> precisely the argument used against blacks who dared to object to being
>>>> forced to sit at the back of the bus, but he refused to see my point. I
>>>> told him that all of the employers, landlords, insurance carriers,
>>>> airline officials, and other service providers who practice
>>>> discrimination feel that their situations are also "different." He
>>>> informed me that if he ever saw me waiting for a bus again, he would
>>>> pass me up, and he hoped and anticipated that other drivers would do the
>>>> same. He further stated that I might have "signed my own death warrant,"
>>>> because the passengers I had inconvenienced would remember me and take
>>>> action against me on the street. I asked for his bus number, and he
>>>> sarcastically replied that I should "go out and look at it." Finally, we
>>>> reached the stop, and I bade him good day. He said I had already ruined
>>>> it.
>>>>
>>>> As I began walking up the hill toward my home, the shock began to take
>>>> full effect, and I felt badly shaken by the brutal and dehumanizing
>>>> treatment I had just received. At the same time I was grateful that my
>>>> involvement in the National Federation of the Blind had given me the
>>>> courage to endure such an experience---not only for myself but for all
>>>> blind people. I was also grateful for the hard work of the members of
>>>> the National Federation of the Blind of Pennsylvania in securing passage
>>>> of the amendments to our state's human relations act, which outlaws this
>>>> type of behavior. I determined to file complaints with both the city and
>>>> state human relations commissions, requesting the following relief: 1)
>>>> The Port Authority be required to issue a clear policy statement
>>>> indicating that its drivers may not order blind passengers to be seated
>>>> on buses when no seats are available and when other passenters are
>>>> permitted to stand, and that drivers may not in any way treat blind
>>>> passengers differently from others; 2) The driver be required to publish
>>>> in the newspaper a public apology for his abusive behavior; and 3) the
>>>> Port Authority be required to pay me fifteen hundred dollars in personal
>>>> damages.
>>>>
>>>> I also decided to bring the matter to the attention of the media. The
>>>> story received coverage on radio, television, and in the press with
>>>> varying degrees of support. At first the Port Authority refused to
>>>> comment, saying that I had threatened legal action. (I never made such a
>>>> statement to them.) Later they began to claim that I had refused to
>>>> stand anywhere but in the front of the bus and that I was obstructing
>>>> the driver's view. (As I have already said, this is not the truth.) The
>>>> company refused to have a representative appear on camera, but they
>>>> issued a written statement to the media which claimed that their policy
>>>> was that elderly and handicapped passengers could stand on buses,
>>>> provided that they did not interfere with the operation of the bus. In
>>>> the opinion of the driver, I had done just that. Later, on a call-in
>>>> talk show, the president of their board of directors indicated that it
>>>> was the company's policy that handicapped passengers be required to sit.
>>>> This further demonstrates the need for a clear policy statement. About
>>>> two weeks later their director of public relations appeared on a talk
>>>> show, gave a total fabrication of the incident, and poked fun at me.
>>>>
>>>> Thus far, the pain I have suffered has borne some fruit. I have been on
>>>> several buses since then where the drivers have allowed me to stand.
>>>> They may have learned something.
>>>>
>>>> *Blindness: The Coming of the Third Generation *
>>>>
>>>> An Address Delivered by Kenneth Jernigan
>>>> President, National Federation of the Blind
>>>> At the Banquet of the Annual Convention
>>>> Kansas City, Missouri, July 3, 1986
>>>>
>>>> https://nfb.org/images/nfb/publications/convent/banque86.htm
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>> On 12/30/2014 12:43 PM, Tina Thomas via Nfbc-info wrote:
>>>>>
>>>>> Here is the article from komonews.com.
>>>>>
>>>>> SEATTLE -- A blind Seattle couple says they were barred from a bus by a
>>>>> driver who insisted the seats for people with disabilities were full.
>>>>>
>>>>> Cindy Bennett and Michael Mello were trying to catch the bus on Capitol
>>>>> Hill
>>>>> Sunday when they say the driver insisted they get off the bus and wait
>>>>> for
>>>>> the next one because no priority seats were available.
>>>>> "He was making an assumption that the only seats we could sit in were
>>>>> those
>>>>> designated as ADA seats," Bennett said. "We felt that it was a pretty
>>>>> clear
>>>>> indication that we were not welcome on that bus."
>>>>> "He started kind of getting louder and more irate with me and saying,
>>>>> 'the
>>>>> ADA section is full.' I said, 'that's fine. We can sit anywhere else on
>>>>> this
>>>>> bus. It's no problem,'" added Mello.
>>>>> King County Metro Transit, which operates buses in Seattle, apologized
>>>>> to
>>>>> the couple Monday and said it would investigate what happened.
>>>>> The Americans with Disabilities Act <http://www.ada.gov/>  says that
>>>>> people
>>>>> who are blind and visually impaired have the right to use public transit
>>>>> but
>>>>> that they do not have to ride in special seating, said Marci Carpenter,
>>>>> president of the National Federation of the Blind of Washington.
>>>>> "For us, it's the same as African-Americans being told they have to sit
>>>>> in
>>>>> the back of the bus. Mike and Cindy were told, 'you have to sit in the
>>>>> front
>>>>> of the bus or you cannot ride,'" Carpenter said. "It's a civil rights
>>>>> issue."
>>>>> "What happened is unacceptable and we apologize," said Jeff Switzer, a
>>>>> spokesman for Metro Transit, in a statement. "Blind passengers are not
>>>>> required to use the ADA priority seating area. We've identified the
>>>>> operator
>>>>> and his chief will be working with him on this issue and will take
>>>>> appropriate action."
>>>>> Switzer declined an on-camera interview.
>>>>> Bennett and Mello, who live in Seattle, were catching the number 11 bus
>>>>> Sunday near the intersection of Pike and Broadway on Capitol Hill. They
>>>>> had
>>>>> just left brunch with friends, they said.
>>>>> "We were so shocked when we got off the bus because we hadn't
>>>>> experienced
>>>>> that before and we didn't know what to do," said Mello. "I mean, the
>>>>> point
>>>>> of public transit is to provide us with more independence. That's what
>>>>> it
>>>>> does on a regular basis."
>>>>>
>>>>> _______________________________________________
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