[nabs-l] eHow internet article series on blindness
Sophie Trist
sweetpeareader at gmail.com
Sat Mar 23 08:00:01 UTC 2013
Kaiti, I'm sorry I misunderstood what you said earlier. If these
articles go against eHow's policy of deliberate discrimination
and misinformation, then yes it is cause for concern. And about
the Helen Keller thing, she didn't do anything wrong--her story
is very inspiring--but it could be the reason that deafness and
blindness seem to be linked in sighted people's minds. That's
just my theory. :)
----- Original Message -----
From: Kaiti Shelton <crazy4clarinet104 at gmail.com
To: National Association of Blind Students mailing list
<nabs-l at nfbnet.org
Date sent: Sat, 23 Mar 2013 03:21:07 -0400
Subject: Re: [nabs-l] eHow internet article series on blindness
Sophie,
I didn't say that we should restrict free speech; all that was
meant
that there should be some consideration towards the people this
negative stuff is written about, (In this case blind people,
although
I've seen some similar articles about people with other
conditions now
that I've actually looked). Most sites have a policy which
covers
nondescrimination or something, and I'd say some of this stuff is
definitely descriminatory in the sense that it paints the picture
of a
blind person as someone who can't do anything for themselves,
which we
all know is not the case. Someone else pointed out that E-How
has a
policy regarding the submission of misinformation to their
articles,
so if they do have this policy in place then they're obviously
not
following their own guidelines. In short, people can write what
they
want; but when it effects a large group of others in a negative
way
then I think that is cause for concern.
It wasn't really Helen Keller's fault; she was blind and deaf and
did
what she had to do. In terms of the spotlight she was also the
world's second deafblind person to learn to communicate, so
naturally
people would find her inspirational or exceptional, many other
terms.
I think the real issue stems from misinformation in articles such
as
this. Obviously not all blind people are also deaf, and
obviously
most blind people do not also require wheelchairs as airports
seem to
commonly think. I don't necessarily see pointing this
misinformation
out to E-How as a bad thing or something that would infringe on
people's first amendment right considering what was written.
On 3/23/13, Sophie Trist <sweetpeareader at gmail.com> wrote:
Kaiti, if we restricted people from writing these articles, as
stupid and bogus as they might be, we'd be violating the first
amendment. Free speech can be a double-edged sword in cases like
this. As for the teaching ASL to blind people, that's a common
stereotype. This might sound mean, but I blame Helen Keller for
that. Ever since her story went viral, blindness and deafness
have been associated.
----- Original Message -----
From: Kaiti Shelton <crazy4clarinet104 at gmail.com
To: National Association of Blind Students mailing list
<nabs-l at nfbnet.org
Date sent: Fri, 22 Mar 2013 16:53:58 -0400
Subject: Re: [nabs-l] eHow internet article series on blindness
Hi all,
Brandon's last post made my week! I don't think it is right for
stuff
like this to be available to give sighted people a false idea of
what
blind people are like, but I too have seen many other articles
that
don't make sense. (Have you seen the article about the
importance of
teaching ASL to blind people yet?) There are plenty of
non-blindness
related ones that are total trash to if you just look them up,
and
nothing from E-How should be taken seriously. That being said,
I
think I'm somewhere in between; I've recognized E-How for what
it
is
as Brandon pointed out, but I think that there is a definite
line
between sensitivity and humor and in this case some of these
articles
do cross that line. I know I would probably give someone the
whatfor
if they tried to feed me or refused to give me a full glass of
Coke
because I'm blind, but it's just a matter of letting E-How know
they
should evaluate some of these grossly insensitive articles.
Brandon: I know people from a music program I attend in the
summers
called Braille Beats who actually describe sighted people as
"Light
dependent." Your post reminded me of that and captured that
idea
perfectly.
How to manage a day with a Light-ependent person.
People who have the misfortune of being congenitally dependent
upon
light for survival need several accomodations including patience
and
understanding from those not afflicted by the condition. In
this
article I will present some everyday situations and ways you can
help
your light-dependent friend or family member get through the
day.
Driving in the car going somewhere: When the person complains
about
the bad driving of others, simply smile and distract him/her
from
the
road rage. Find a topic of conversation which interests both of
you,
but still make sure they focus on their personal driving. Be
patient
with them, although nothing is really solved by getting mad at
other
drivers. They really can't help it sometimes.
Reading their own writing: Another factor of frustration for
light-dependent people is reading their own writing.
Light-dependent
people don't have the advantage of using a system so eligant as
braille where letters are confused not too often, especially
when
contractions are used. Because their system is more cumbersome
and
they have the poor tendency to write sloppily when rushed they
sometimes can't even read what they've written. They also don't
have
access to a refreshable display for their writing, so papers are
frequently lost in the shuffle. This leads to frustration and
other
factors such as getting lost on the way to a destination or
forgetting
something they needed from the store. Try to be patient and
help
them
remember what it is they wanted to buy, or perhaps that exit
number
they told you they'd need to take off the highway.
In a college dorm at night: Sometimes your roommate may need to
stay
up later than you and in order to complete their work they may
need a
light. Again, be patient; if noise bothers you plug yourself
into
your IPod and try falling asleep to music. If the light is
bothersome
try to block it out; if you only have vision from one eye
putting
that
side of your face into the pillow does the trick wonderfully.
Do
this, and be thankful that you don't necessarily need light to
read a
book or that you can turn off the screen on your laptop out of
consideration for others.
Okay, the last one was me grasping for straws, but you get the
picture. I also didn't mean to talk down sighted people; just
an
attempt at humor.
On 3/22/13, Brandon Keith Biggs <brandonkeithbiggs at gmail.com
wrote:
Hello,
I'm pretty sure this is a gag, most of their other articles
seem
pretty
ridiculous as well. I may write an article on how to prep a
room
for a
sighted person.
Make sure lights are turned on and not facing toward the door.
Sighted
people don't like walking into dark rooms. They also don't like
walking into
bright lights, so one needs to find the perfect balance.
Open the curtains if it is day time, even if it is really warm
outside and
the AC is on. Sighted people love to have the sun shining into
their house
even though it raises the electrical bill. Make sure print
labels on food
and appliances aren't covered by anything so the sighted person
can feel
comfortable reading the familiar labels. If there aren't
already
print
labels on something, make sure they are printed in at least 12
point font
with black letters on a white background. Make sure your TV
screen is on and
make sure your computer screen shows what you are doing at all
times. If you
wish to be safe, slow down your screen reader so the sighted
person won't
feel left out of what you are doing.
If you plan on cooking with the sighted person in the house,
make sure to
wear big gloves, because it raises the anxiety level of the
sighted person
seeing someone cutting and using hot items without protection.
If you follow all these instructions, you will be able to
interact with a
sighted person comfortably in your house.
Thanks,
Brandon Keith Biggs
-----Original Message-----
From: Josh Gregory
Sent: Friday, March 22, 2013 12:58 PM
To: Misty Dawn Bradley ; National Association of Blind Students
mailing
list
Subject: Re: [nabs-l] eHow internet article series on blindness
It's all good, we all make mistakes sometimes, :-)
Sent from my iPhone
On Mar 22, 2013, at 3:35 PM, Misty Dawn Bradley
<mistydbradley at gmail.com
wrote:
Hi,
I am sorry, but I meant to say EHow rather than EZine Articles
in my
earlier post.
Misty
----- Original Message ----- From: "justin williams"
<justin.williams2 at gmail.com
To: "'National Association of Blind Students mailing list'"
<nabs-l at nfbnet.org
Sent: Thursday, March 21, 2013 3:26 PM
Subject: Re: [nabs-l] eHow internet article series on blindness
It is important to read their trash. Remember, other people
are, and to
their mind, they no things about you. You can more easily
refute them
if
you have some idea on what people are saying. You can't
advocate
without
proper information.
-----Original Message-----
From: nabs-l [mailto:nabs-l-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of
Josh
Gregory
Sent: Friday, March 22, 2013 3:18 PM
To: National Association of Blind Students mailing list
Subject: Re: [nabs-l] eHow internet article series on blindness
Hi Joshua, you don't want to read their trash, so you say, but
you say
that
it is important to educate them. I get that, but if you read
it,
you can
assist in educating them. Doing nothing is not a good idea
here,
and when
I
get a chance in a bit, I'm going to find these articles and see
what
they're
like.
Sent from my iPhone
On Mar 22, 2013, at 3:11 PM, Joshua Lester
<JLester8462 at pccua.edu
wrote:
I don't want to read their trash.
If they have something negative to say, I'd usually E-Mail them
and
give
them my take on the matter, and teach them some old school NFB
philosophy!
Does EHow have a captcha on their contact form?
BTW, the ideas come from the ignorant people that don't know
anything,
and
have never seen a blind person do anything independently!
We need to do something, and I posted a suggestion on another
thread
that
I just started.
Thanks, Joshua
________________________________________
From: nabs-l [nabs-l-bounces at nfbnet.org] on behalf of Carrie
Gilmer
[carrie.gilmer at gmail.com]
Sent: Friday, March 22, 2013 1:56 PM
To: National Association of Blind Students mailing list
Subject: Re: [nabs-l] eHow internet article series on blindness
They are no gag. They are on a well viewed and well shared
site.
You
think
we all are not tired? Saying nothing does nothing but allows
them to go
on,
unimpeded. There was just an article about the real and large
problem of
employment discrimination for blind people. Where do the ideas
come
from?
how do they go on and on and on? Doing nothing does nothing to
correct
or
stop. It makes me terribly sad and dismayed to hear "they are
not worth
my
time". Is correcting even one mind which may affect a blind
person's
employment or education worth your time? what if that blind
person is
you?
Carrie
Sent from my iPad
On Mar 22, 2013, at 1:41 PM, Joshua Lester
<JLester8462 at pccua.edu
wrote:
Those articles aren't worth my time, if they're going to paint
a
terrible
picture of blindness!
I'm tired of these negative ideas that come from the 16th
century and
before!
Blessings, Joshua
________________________________________
From: nabs-l [nabs-l-bounces at nfbnet.org] on behalf of Carrie
Gilmer
[carrie.gilmer at gmail.com]
Sent: Friday, March 22, 2013 1:31 PM
To: National Association of Blind Students mailing list
Subject: Re: [nabs-l] eHow internet article series on blindness
http://www.ehow.com/how_2040980_care-blind-person.html
There are links on the pages of articles to a good dozen
more...one is
also titled "how to feed a blind person"
What kind of blind person can they possibly be depicting? There
is no
distinguishing between a newly blinded person from a major auto
accident
practically in a coma or a child with multiple disabilities,
or
a 90
year
old in feeble health or visually impaired teenager in good
health or a
normal person born blind.
The aura of tragedy and burden and superhuman challenge
abounds.
Carrie
Sent from my iPad
On Mar 21, 2013, at 1:00 PM, "justin williams"
<justin.williams2 at gmail.com> wrote:
Where are the articles?
-----Original Message-----
From: nabs-l [mailto:nabs-l-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of
Carrie
Gilmer
Sent: Friday, March 22, 2013 9:49 AM
To: Blind Kid Mailing List; National Association of Blind
Students
mailing
list
Subject: [nabs-l] eHow internet article series on blindness
Hello all~
I discovered last night a series of articles written and posted
on
eHow
concerning blindness. they are misleading at best, horrifically
bad
perpetuated falsehoods at worst. I had only viewed four of
them
last
night
and had to stop, I was so upset. This morning a friend pointed
out
that
I
was mentioned and partially quoted in another one! I was
completely
unaware,
and found upon reading it, it is in the midst of misleading and
mixed
messages and not an accurate portrayal from the article or from
our
life!,
I believe it was pulled from. The same is true for a friend of
mine
also
"quoted" in the same article! one of the articles is titled
"How
to
set
the
table for a blind person", yes, seriously. "How to care for a
blind
person"...They are Just dripping with condescending dramatic
language
and
ideas! They appear to name the NFB (named National Federation
FOR the
Blind)
as a reference!!!!!!!!
I strongly encourage you to read the articles in the series and
write
complaints both individually and as groups, with reasoned
argument
specific
to false points. There are multiple authors, so letters naming
problems
with
each article are needed.
We must get these off the internet.
Contact for complaint for eHow:
I ENCOURAGE EVERYONE WHO HAS COMPLAINT OR KNOWS ANYTHING
ACCURATE
ABOUT
BLINDNESS TO WRITE A FORMAL COMPLAINT TO EHOW!!!! I will be
doing it
one
for
each ridiculous article!! i believe if they get enough coherent
and
reasonable complaints they will take these down
permanently...as
per
their
policy on misinformation!:
Further Information If you have a complaint, you may contact us
at
eHow,
Inc. Legal Department, 5808 Lake Washington Blvd. Ste. 300,
Kirkland,
WA
98033, U.S.A. If you are a California resident, the Complaint
Assistance
Unit of the Division of Consumer Services of the Dept. of
Consumer
Affairs
may be contacted at 400 R Street, Sacramento, CA 95814 or (800)
952-5210
Best,
Carrie
Sent from my iPad
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Kaiti
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