[il-talk] Fw: [Nfbc-info] Blind couple barred from bus
Leslie Hamric
lhamric930 at comcast.net
Fri Jan 2 00:48:02 UTC 2015
Thanks Patti.
Leslie
Sent from my iPhone
> On Jan 1, 2015, at 6:42 PM, Gregory Chang Patti via il-talk <il-talk at nfbnet.org> wrote:
>
> I did a survey not too long ago. We decided that people could post items of general interest. I hardly think that anyone will take the time to post every news article in the United States to this list.
>
> "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 Jan 1, 2015, at 5:34 PM, Robert Hansen via il-talk <il-talk at nfbnet.org> wrote:
>
> 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."
>>>>>>
>>>>>> _______________________________________________
>>>>>> Nfbc-info mailing list
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>>>>>> Nfbc-info:
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>>>>> _______________________________________________
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>>>>>
>>>>>
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