[nabs-l] Blindness vs. other minority groups

[Jedi]

Bridgit,

Never apologize for what you say here if it comes from your deepest 
experience. This is exactly the discussion we should be having. And 
really, there is nothing dirty about feminism. In fact, feminists have 
been saying the same thing for decades that you've just said here on 
list. So while you personally may not identify as feminist, you do 
share feminist beliefs. I identify as a feminist, and we're not all 
bra-burning crazies out to get men, we're just men and women who are as 
sick of sex oppression as you are.

Respectfully,
Jedi

Original message:
> Arielle,

> I don't have the energy to discuss this topic- at least today. It is an
> important one though and something to be considered. It's not just
> blindness, though we tend to get the worse of it in my experience, that
> have to deal with societal stereotypes. We're still deemed less
> fortunate and viewed with fear and sadness. Those of us who "manage" to
> pursue higher education and employment and families, we're just brave
> and some exceptional breed of disabled people. It's interesting that
> people don't equate their comments to providing an underlying message
> that we're somehow less of a person or not as capable.

> It's tough to argue that kindness can be discrimination. I've tried, and
> even though I'm the one living the experience, most won't concede to my
> argument, and instead choose to think I'm a horrible person who likes to
> cause trouble. Okay, that may not be far from the mark, but there's a
> principle here! LOL

> One of the reasons I've stepped down from a lot of my involvement with
> the Federation for now is because I, to be honest, get tired of my life
> revolving around blindness. I believe in the Federation and know how
> important it is to continue the work of this organization, but before I
> lost my sight, I had dreams, desires, goals, passions, and they didn't
> go away just because my sight did. I want to pursue those same things.
> But I must admit buckets of cold water are thrown in my face each time I
> enter a situation and all people see is an indefinable person with a
> cane. I'm the monkey in the zoo; the rare wonder happening before
> peoples eyes. It takes a lot of aggression on my part just to prove that
> I am capable and to get others to understand I can participate. It's
> tough, and I am tired of always having to do this instead of being able
> to show up and just be accepted.

> You ask about those with blindness who also are apart of another
> minority- don't forget women. I notice how different I'm treated as a
> female who is also blind. There's chivalry and courteousness, and then
> there's annoying, demeaning and unfair. I've been told to my face that
> as a blind woman, I'm more of a victim and in danger. My dad has always
> pushed for me to use a service dog because a dog "could protect me." No
> matter that I explain that this isn't the job of a service dog, to him,
> I'm not safe on my own. Ross, my husband, who's also blind, is often
> treated differently than me even when together. I've been wrangled like
> a cow while Ross is left alone. Or, people will think that if Ross is
> with me than I'm okay, but if he's not, then I'm vulnerable.

> This makes me feel like I'm somehow not as capable as a man. I am
> cautious and understand that I need to be aware of my surroundings in
> order to keep safe, but anyone does. It's not about being feminist or
> trying to assert some power over men; it's about feeling equal and as
> though as an adult I can care for myself instead of being treated like a
> child. I notice women tend to be on the bottom of the barrel no matter
> what. Race, ethnicity, disability, gay, if female, it seems like more of
> a struggle. African-Americans were given the right to vote long before
> women. Women weren't expected to cultivate their intellect until the
> 70's and 80's. Before then, we attended university to find husbands. If
> women had to work, there was a small field of employment we could choose
> from. Women are still paid less even when working the same positions as
> men. My point is that women are still fighting for equality. I'm not
> against the traditional "roles" often attributed to men and women, but
> the problem is that we've often considered the "feminine role" as
> inferior; until we view everyone as equals, we will continue to struggle
> with these issues.

> I also want to point out that while most don't openly disrespect other
> minorities or make stereotypical comments out loud, things are said
> behind closed doors. It's become politically incorrect to comment like
> this, but racism and prejudice are still in existence and continue to
> flourish.

> I'm often called a cynic, but I only speak from life experience.
> Equality is a goal spouted by many but understood by few. As long as
> there are agendas to push, beliefs to be instilled, or forced,
> distinctions made to gather prejudicial statistics, equality and respect
> for all won't be achieved in this world.

> It's cold, raining and sleeting in Omaha today; perhaps the weather is
> affecting my mood. I apologize.

> Sincerely,
> Bridgit Kuenning-Pollpeter
> Read my blog at:
> http://blogs.livewellnebraska.com/author/bpollpeter/

> "History is not what happened; history is what was written down."
> The Expected One- Kathleen McGowan

> Message: 2
> Date: Mon, 31 Oct 2011 21:09:24 -0600
> From: Arielle Silverman <arielle71 at gmail.com>
> To: nabs-l at nfbnet.org
> Subject: [nabs-l] Blindness vs. Other Minority Groups
> Message-ID:

> <CALAYQJAPAqHssuA8M10iDwhrM5u9dmfWzPOg-OLu3K79zyC5JA at mail.gmail.com>
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> Warning-this topic has the potential to start a heated debate, but I
> also think it is an interesting and important topic for us as blind
> people to think about. Lately I have been thinking a lot about how the
> problems faced by the blind are similar to or different from those faced
> by other minority groups in this country historically and in the
> present. More than that, I have been thinking about how the general
> public sees us as a group in comparison to how they view other minority
> groups. It has struck me that oftentimes members of the general public
> treat us in discriminatory ways or stereotype us without even
> considering that this kind of treatment resembles stereotyping and
> discrimination against other minority groups. Let me give a concrete
> example. In his book Freedom for the Blind, Jim Omvig writes of a time
> when he was directing a training center and a female staff member at the
> center commented, "You do your job so well, sometimes I forget you're
> blind!" Seeing the teachable moment, Mr. Omvig brought up this incident
> to his students during a philosophy class, and to illustrate his point
> he said to the woman, "You are such a good teacher, sometimes I forget
> you're a woman!" From what I recall, the staff member got a bit upset
> and insisted that "no, what I said about you being blind was very
> different from what you said about my being a woman. I was just trying
> to give you a compliment!" Now, as blind people most of us understand
> the problem with her comment-the implication that being blind must not
> be very good, so someone who does a good job isn't like other blind
> people. To me this sounds like the same problem as making the analogous
> comment to a woman-but she didn't see it that way. Why not? Is there a
> difference here? I have often been quite frustrated when people I know
> and trust-friends or family members, who have very liberal views about
> race, would never utter a racial slur or support discrimination against
> racial minorities, women, gays etc. who nonetheless have no qualms about
> saying negative things about blindness. Like saying blind people are all
> worse than the sighted at something, or that blind people are more
> dependent or less successful than the sighted, etc. They will sometimes
> say these things to my face and don't understand why I don't like to
> hear these things. Sometimes family members will make comments comparing
> me favorably to other blind people. They think they are giving me
> compliments, and fail to understand that I don't want to hear negative
> things spoken about the blind as a collective. Yet these same people
> would never tell an African American that they are "smart for a black
> person" etc. I remember during the protests against the Blindness film
> in 2008, I was perplexed by how many people just didn't get it, and
> didn't see what harm the film could do-and yet an analogous film where
> everyone developed black skin or female anatomy with such dire
> consequences would never be accepted in our modern society. And finally,
> in my research, I have observed that the college students in my
> experiments have no problem saying on a survey that the blind are much
> less competent than the sighted, yet would never say such things
> directly about another minority group-in fact, lots of fancy indirect
> measures have been developed to tap those attitudes because people
> nowadays are so unwilling to admit their prejudices, unless it's toward
> the blind. So, what's up? Are stereotypes about the blind somehow more
> accurate than stereotypes about ethnic minorities? Is discrimination
> against the blind somehow more justified? Or is it just that we are such
> a small group that we haven't developed the same history, had the same
> scale of civil rights activism, etc. to raise people's awareness? Do you
> guys think we deserve the same considerations as other minorities in
> this country? If not, am I missing something? If so, how do we get
> members of the public to see this? Also, as an aside, I'm curious to
> hear from those of you who are "dual minorities" being both blind and a
> member of a minority group in this country (ethnicity-wise, or a
> different group like GLBT, uncommon religious beliefs etc.) How do you
> think your two identities are similar? Different? Do you feel they
> interact with one another? I look forward to the discussion. Best,
> Arielle


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