[Mn-at-large] NFB President’s Notebook - week of 09/19/ 2016

Tue Sep 20 16:59:18 UTC 2016

Presidentâ€™s Notebook

National Federation of the Blind

Mark A. Riccobono

<mailto:officeofthepresident at nfb.org>officeofthepresident at nfb.org

(410) 659-9314

Dear Fellow Federationists,

This past weekend an organization released a 
social media campaign with the hashtag 
HowEyeSeeIt. The people using this hashtag are 
making videos of themselves attempting to do 
everyday tasks under blindfold with the misguided 
view that this experience will help them know 
what it is like to be blind. The motivation for 
the campaign is to raise funds to eliminate 
blindness. We in the National Federation of the 
Blind know that blindness doesn't hold us back. 
We also know that living with blindness requires 
learning the techniques blind people use to do 
everyday tasks without vision. We are not opposed 
to medical research, but the way to generate 
interest in medical research is not by further 
spreading the fear of blindness and strengthening 
misconceptions about the lived experience of blind people.

The current videos being circulated with the 
#HowEyeSeeIt campaign are perpetuating the idea 
that blindness is something to be feared and that 
blind people adhere to low expectations. Some of 
the tasks people are encouraged to do in this 
campaign are having a friend give them an 
unidentified amount of cash and then, under 
blindfold, attempting to pay for a meal with this 
money. Another particularly outrageous example is 
people are asked to attempt to take care of their 
child for one minute while blindfolded. At a time 
when we have launched new efforts for blind 
parents who have their children taken away 
because of misconceptions about blindness, this 
is dangerous and offensive. These examples and 
the dozens of others used in the campaign rely on 
the notion that vision is a requirement for 
success, but we know the truth—blindness does not define us or our future.

We've published a blog, 
"<https://nfb.org/blog/vonb-blog/challenging-fear-blindness>Challenging 
the Fear of Blindness," that I encourage you to 
share. See below for some related critical actions.

Critical Actions This Week:

Challenging the Fear of Blindness - #HowEyeSeeIt:
It is critical that we now join together to 
combat this harmful campaign. I urge all 
Federation leaders to lead by example and to 
encourage the members of the Federation in your 
state to join with me in changing the perception 
that blindness is something to be feared and 
something that significantly limits our lives. 
Now is the time to turn our fear into power and 
that power into action. We have the opportunity 
to demonstrate how we live the lives we want as 
blind people in a commanding way. All you have to do is:

1.       Make a video of yourself accomplishing 
an everyday task as a blind person. For example, 
show how you dance, sing, exercise, care for your 
children, go to school or work, play sports, 
manage your finances, travel, participate in 
social events, enjoy your hobbies—in short, take 
a video of yourself living the life you want.

2.       At the end of your video, say that 
you're a proud member of the National Federation 
of the Blind, and tag three friends or family 
members to keep the trend going. You can also 
urge your audience to make a donation to the NFB.

3.       Upload your video to social media using 
the hashtag #HowEyeSeeIt. Make sure to link to 
our website, <http://www.nfb.org>www.nfb.org, and 
tag the NFB in your Tweet, Facebook, or Instagram 
post. If the people you mentioned in your video 
are on social media, be sure to tag them, too.

News:

Space Available Program:
Norma Crosby, president of the NFB of Texas, has 
written an article addressing the issue with the 
Space Available program. The article can be found 
at 
<http://thehill.com/blogs/congress-blog/economy-budget/293784-support-thornberrys-bid-to-fix-space-available-program>http://thehill.com/blogs/congress-blog/economy-budget/293784-support-thornberrys-bid-to-fix-space-available-program.

Video:
The most recent video, featuring Dave Hyde, can 
be found at <https://youtu.be/mO8MxX_tZwQ>https://youtu.be/mO8MxX_tZwQ.

Reminders:

Meet the Blind Month:
Meet the Blind Month is fast approaching. Weâ€™d 
love to hear about what members of your affiliate 
are doing to go out into the community and 
educate folks about blindness. This yearâ€™s 
hashtag is MTBM16; please be sure to share your activities on social media.

Dates to Keep in Mind:

*        <https://nfb.org/state-conventions>Fall Conventions
*        September 30-October 2: NFB BELL Academy 
Training Seminar (Advanced) in Baltimore, Maryland

*        September 26: 
<https://nfb.org/free-accessibility-training-boutiques>Free 
Accessibility Training Boutique: Accessible 
Websites, Made Accessibly: An Introduction to Drupal

*        October 20-23: NFB BELL Academy Training 
Seminar (Novice/Intermediate) in Baltimore, Maryland

The National Federation of the Blind knows that 
blindness is not the characteristic that defines 
you or your future. Every day we raise the 
expectations of blind people, because low 
expectations create obstacles between blind 
people and our dreams. You can live the life you 
want; blindness is not what holds you back.

Mark A. Riccobono, President
National Federation of the Blind
200 East Wells Street at Jernigan Place
Baltimore, Maryland 21230
Phone: (410) 659-9314
Fax: (410) 659-5129
Email: <mailto:officeofthepresident at nfb.org>officeofthepresident at nfb.org
Twitter: @Riccobono and @NFB_Voice
Web: <http://www.nfb.org/>www.nfb.org

The National Federation of the Blind knows that 
blindness is not the characteristic that defines 
you or your future. Every day we raise the 
expectations of blind people, because low 
expectations create obstacles between blind 
people and our dreams. You can live the life you 
want; blindness is not what holds you back.

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