[nabs-l] Of Things that Matter

[Beth]

Joe,
	I agree with all the stuff you are saying.  I think the 
survey is irreleevant now that I think about it and is a 
useless waste paper baket of .. well, wastepaper.  Crumpled 
up receipts can go on top of the survey if possible. 
*crumples up the survey sheets and throws them into 
wastepaper basket).  IF only I could do what I think I just 
did virtually.
Beth

 ----- Original Message -----
From: "Joe Orozco" <jsorozco at gmail.com
To: "'National Association of Blind Students mailing list'" 
<nabs-l at nfbnet.org
Date sent: Thu, 3 Feb 2011 13:47:20 -0500
Subject: [nabs-l] Of Things that Matter

For me, the sex study is irrelevant and insignificant.  The age 
range is
limited, making me wonder about a sufficient sample, and we 
really don't
have a clue as to what exactly it is that the research hopes to 
accomplish.
And this survey is merely preparatory for a future survey?  What 
does
trouble me is the validity people have given the project.  From 
what little
we know of the project, it would appear the professor believes 
there is
something inherently different in blind people that would make 
sex education
a special circumstance for this population.

Maybe I'm missing something.  Is your perception of sex different 
because
you're blind?  Was your inability to see a significant challenge 
to figuring
out how it works?  Was your childhood so isolated that your 
friends did not
fill in the gaps?

Okay, let's say we agree the study is a joke.  You say it's 
important to
educate the public that blind people are every bit as capable of 
intercourse
as anyone else.  The million-dollar question is quite simply:  
Why?
Seriously, why is it necessary to tell scholars that blind people 
learn
about sex the same as any other adolescent.  You could claim it's 
everyday
advocacy, but advocacy is only necessary if you are being barred 
from
equally participating in certain activities.

This specific study is intellectual waste because it makes blind 
people feed
into public misconceptions.  It makes blind people feel they need 
to defend
themselves against something for which no defense is necessary.  
The
research presumes blind individuals are subjects worthy of unique
examination, and we allow ourselves to be reduced to odd samples 
the second
we begin to engage the researcher in his own experiment.  You're 
not going
to educate him, because it's not just about disproving a 
hypothesis.  It's
about disproving the preconceived prejudice that triggered the 
research in
the first place.

Ultimately, people will wonder but will probably not publicly 
ask:  Why are
sighted people generally put off by the idea of intercourse with 
a blind
person?  My educated guess is fear of the unknown.  We have all 
been in
situations where we feared too many questions would be just plain 
rude.
Well, you think, how is it that we're supposed to change minds if 
we're not
supposed to advocate?  Remember, you're not trying to have sex 
with the
general public.  There are things for which you do not need to 
make a
statement to make happen with the one person that is the target 
of your
natural instincts.

Is there a place for an examination of sex and blindness in the 
same
context?  Certainly.  We should examine the depravity of certain 
humans who
force themselves on blind people simply because they perceive the 
victims as
easy prey.  This is an idea worth investigating and finding 
solutions.

But, there is a difference between a victim of violence and a 
victim of
society.  In the case of the former, one may not always have the 
resources
to protect oneself against the circumstances.  In the case of the 
latter,
however, you do have a choice, and you do not need to feel 
pressured to send
a signal over something so insubstantial as to almost be 
laughable.
Hard-core disability activists who feel moved to write books 
about sexual
equality irritate me because all that time that was spent 
preaching could
have been spent...But, I digress.

We need to keep things in perspective.  We need to not be lured 
into
dialogues that do nothing to advance our equality.  There are 
plenty of
fields where we need to educate the public of our abilities, and 
as far as
I'm concerned, the three main people in that big diverse public 
for whom the
extra mile is required are the people you call family, the people 
who cut
your check, and the people you take home to meet mama.  How I 
learned about
and fulfilled my private tasks is not a matter of academic 
speculation,
because my disability does not make me any different from anyone 
else.

Alright, now I'm going to smack myself around for succumbing to 
the urge to
fall victim to this irrelevant distraction.  I am copying the 
professor here
in hopes he might enlighten me as to his motives.  Maybe there's 
something
there I'm just too dense to see?  Criticisms aside, I'm open to 
being
educated.

Regards,

Joe

"Hard work spotlights the character of people: some turn up their 
sleeves,
some turn up their noses, and some don't turn up at all."--Sam 
Ewing


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