[nabs-l] [Blindtlk] [nfb-talk] {Disarmed} Federal lawpreemptsblindflyers'claims over airport kiosks

Josh Gregory joshkart12 at gmail.com
Tue May 31 23:37:17 UTC 2011 

Hi all,
If anybody is sued, we will need to be very careful.  These guys 
could have huge lawyer teams.  Look at, say...  oh IDK nintendo.  
Haha I love mario and stuff.  OK, let's say a small firm tried to 
sue them.  Well, those guys have like huge lawyer teams and 
stuff.  Now let's say this firm was upset because of a certain 
game they made.  If this firm was to sue them, they would need to 
be careful what they did, because Nintendo has a huge lawyer 
base, and could easily defend themselves and make the firm lose 
their case.  My point in that really bad example is if we do take 
legal action in this matter, we will need to be careful in what 
we do.  If I am wrong here or if there is something that I am 
missing or not understanding, please let me know so that I may 
understand.
Josh

sent from my Apex
Email:joshkart12 at gmail.com

----- Original Message -----
From: Chris Nusbaum <dotkid.nusbaum at gmail.com
To: National Association of Blind Students mailing 
list<nabs-l at nfbnet.org
Date sent: Tue, 31 May 2011 18:57:36 -0400
Subject: Re: [nabs-l] [Blindtlk] [nfb-talk] {Disarmed} Federal 
lawpreemptsblindflyers'claims over airport kiosks

Not the TSA, the FAA, oops! All these acronyms, we have enough in
blindness! * Smile!

 Chris

"A loss of sight, never a loss of vision!" (Camp Abilities motto)

--- Sent from my BrailleNote

 ----- Original Message -----
From: Jorge Paez <computertechjorgepaez at gmail.com
To: National Association of Blind Students mailing list
<nabs-l at nfbnet.org
Date sent: Wed, 25 May 2011 19:19:47 -0400
Subject: Re: [nabs-l] [Blindtlk] [nfb-talk] {Disarmed} Federal
law preemptsblindflyers'claims over airport kiosks

Chris:
Good point.
So,
should we rather sue the transportation department instead of the
airlines?


On May 25, 2011, at 4:05 PM, Chris Nusbaum wrote:

 Yes, but that's hopefully a temporary fix.  We're trying to get
* independent access to the kiosks, just like sighted people.  If
there's a big line at the manned counter, a sighted person has
the option of going over to the kiosk and checking in just as
easily.  We need that same access!

 Chris

 "A loss of sight, never a loss of vision!" (Camp Abilities
motto)

 --- Sent from my BrailleNote

 ----- Original Message -----
 From: "Brian Miller" <brian-r-miller at uiowa.edu
 To: "'Blind Talk Mailing List'" <blindtlk at nfbnet.org>,"'NABS
list'" <nabs-l at nfbnet.org>, "'NFBMD list'" <nfbmd at nfbnet.org
 Date sent: Tue, 24 May 2011 16:33:37 -0400
 Subject: Re: [Blindtlk] [nfb-talk] {Disarmed} Federal law
preempts blindflyers'claims over airport kiosks

 I agree that this is a set-back, and I do hope we continue to
press the
 issue.  However, I have to confess that as annoying as these
kiosks are,
 their presence has yet to keep me off a plane or prevent me from
checking
 in.  I just insist on getting assistance from a human being and
I always get
 it.  It's when we can't check in at all, or when there are no
longer any
 human beings at the counter at all that we are in trouble.
Another scenario
 could be that checking in at kiosks earns passengers special
privileges,
 such as better selection of seating, or discounted baggage fess.
I don't
 believe this is the case yet, but I wouldn't be surprised if it
is on the
 horizon.  When that day comes, we are in real trouble, and I
believe we will
 have an even stronger case of discrimination to make.

 I think also it has to be noted that it appears this judge
didn't rule on
 the merits of the case, or whether or not there was a violation
of state law
 -- just that state law didn't apply in this case due to the
overriding
 precedence of the Air Carrier Act.  In other words, if I
understand this
 correctly, the court in California wasn't saying we didn't have
standing at
 all, just that we didn't have standing in that court -- or at
the state
 level, and that we need to address the issue at the federal
level.

 Brian Miller


 -----Original Message-----
 From: blindtlk-bounces at nfbnet.org
[mailto:blindtlk-bounces at nfbnet.org] On
 Behalf Of Chris Nusbaum
 Sent: Tuesday, May 24, 2011 3:58 PM
 To: NABS list; Blind Talk list; NFBMD list
 Subject: [Blindtlk] [nfb-talk] {Disarmed} Federal law preempts
blind
 flyers'claims over airport kiosks

 And back to court we go...  just to be dismissed! Hope they
appeal!

 Chris

 "A loss of sight, never a loss of vision!" (Camp Abilities
motto)

 --- Sent from my BrailleNote

 ---- Original Message ------
 From: "Sherri" <flmom2006 at gmail.com
 Subject: [nfb-talk] {Disarmed} Federal law preempts blind
flyers'
 claims over airport kiosks
 Date sent: Tue, 24 May 2011 02:22:38 -0400

 I'm sure we'll think of some other way to solve this problem.

 Sherri


 Westlaw Journal Aviation
 Federal law preempts blind flyers' claims over airport kiosks
 5/23/2011 COMMENTS (0)


 May 23 (Westlaw Journals) - Federal law preempts a class action
brought by
 the National Federation of the Blind and several visually
impaired people
 over the accessibility of airport ticketing kiosks, a California
federal
 judge has ruled.

 U.S.  District Judge William Alsup of the Northern District of
California
 dismissed the NFB's lawsuit, finding the claims preempted by the
Air Carrier
 Access Act and the Airline Deregulation Act.

 The NFB and other plaintiffs alleged United Airlines violates
California
 disability law by failing to make airport ticketing kiosks
accessible to the
 blind.

 According to the complaint, the kiosks employ a visual computer
screen with
 prompts and touch-screen navigation but do not offer an audio
output or
 other medium to make the kiosks accessible to the blind.

 The plaintiffs brought their class action on behalf of all
legally blind
 people in the United States who have flown on United from a
California
 airport and have been unable to use the airline's kiosks.

 United moved for dismissal, arguing that the Airline
Deregulation Act and
 the Air Carrier Access Act preempt the plaintiffs' claims.

 Judge Alsup agreed.

 The claims are field-preempted under the ACAA because the
Department of
 Transportation pervasively regulates airport kiosk
accessibility, he said.

 In addition, the Airline Deregulation Act expressly preempts the
claims
 because they defendants provide an airline "service" as defined
in the
 statute.

 Finally, the judge rejected the plaintiffs' argument that the
Airline
 Deregulation Act was meant to target airline deregulation rather
than
 discrimination.

 "The Airline Deregulation Act unequivocally declares that no
state may enact
 a law related to airline service," the Judge Alsup said.
 "Congress could
 have drawn the preemption provision more narrowly.  It did not."

 National Federation of the Blind et al.  v.  United Airlines
Inc., No.  C
 10-04816 WHA, 2011 WL 1544524 (N.D.  Cal.  Apr.  25, 2011).

 (Reporting by Jennifer Long, Westlaw Journal Aviation)




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 http://www.raceforindependence.org/goto/Sherri.Brun
 If so, Thank you for changing what it means to be blind.
 If not, please go there now!
 Thank you.
 flmom2006 at gmail.com
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