[nabs-l] advocacy advice to an grandmother

Sat May 11 02:36:45 UTC 2013

Darian,

This is very well said. Thank you!

Chris

Chris Nusbaum, Co-Chair
Public Relations Committee
Maryland Association of Blind Students
Phone: (443) 547-2409

-----Original Message-----
From: nabs-l [mailto:nabs-l-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Darian Smith
Sent: Thursday, May 09, 2013 11:15 PM
To: National Association of Blind Students mailing list
Subject: Re: [nabs-l] advocacy advice to an grandmother

Hi all,
  So I am  no doubt catching this thread on the tail-end, but I still want
to react  to  the letter.

 Firstly,  I appreciate your sharing   this  with all of us.  The Nabs-L
list is a community, one with many many eyes reading what we write, but a
community all the same.
   No doubt  we all have different views on a particular subject and
certainly different views on blindness and the NFB, as well as the various
organizations  that  feel  that for their part they are  doing great things
to change  lives for the blind.

 Personally, I don't believe any organization is perfect, nor do I think
that any one  organization  is completely negative. 
 I think the best work in any movement is done when the people who are most
effected by the  issues they face are the people making the decisions and
driving the change ("nothing about us, without us"). 
 In the National Federation of the blind, we work with  our sighted peers in
making those changes, which makes sense if we say that  the work we does
being done so that we can compete on a level playing field  with our sighted
peers.
  I think that's important, because sometimes we think  that we are setting
ourselves  in a situation where it is the blind against the sighted, and
that's not very accurate at all. Our parents of blind children are some of
the strongest advocates in our movement, we have sighted members of our
affiliates that are just as loyal  as some of our blind members, and we
don't consider them any less or  any more of a part of what we do. Further,
I would dare say that sighted students can be just as active  members of our
organization, and we should welcome them with open arms.
  There is no denying  that there is not a lot of cross-organization
collaboration, and for my part, I think this is unfortunate.  I think that
it is possible that one day, maybe sooner than we know, we will see some of
those bridges mended, and meaningful relationships grow from that.
 In the meantime, I think it's fine to keep an open mind and connect with
anyone you feel a commonality with in either organization, however that
connection might  take root from.
      I admire anyone who feels strongly enough about a matter to advocate
for it. Some learn it from their parents, some learn it on their own, some
have learned it from theACB or NFB.  
 I personally think I gained  parts of my  philosophy on blindness and
advocacy as I  lived and learned, but a good deal of it came from my
experiences in the  federation. 
  One thing  that I will say in closing is that I believe we all have the
ability to be the change that we wish to see in the world we live in.  Some
of us do it by working with the blind, some of us do it by living our lives
and showing in how we live it how we believe the blind out to be treated.
Obviously, you can  and should  find your own thing to believe in, but so
long as you find that thing you believe in, it tends to make life much more
of an amazing experience.

  respectfully,
  Darian 

On Apr 26, 2013, at 2:01 PM, "Littlefield, Tyler" <tyler at tysdomain.com>
wrote:

> I only have a couple of points.
> First, I really liked the letter you wrote--I'd just remove the random
lol. Maybe I'm alone in thinking this, but older people generally don't care
for what Lol means and it totally kills your flow here.
> Second, you're focusing a lot on NFB and ACB fighting among themselves.
This might be true, but there are amazing people in both camps. I've been
attacked on this list for being part of the ACB, then others don't care
because whatever I am part of, as long as I do something somehow to help it
doesn't matter.
> The organizations themselves don't fight, it's mainly the die-hard fans of
either camp. While it's not always the case, I've never seen all that much
intelligence in the people that attacked me for being part of the ACB to
begin with, so if they feel they need to scream at me, I'd rather them do
that than say, try to promote fairness by doing something that would make us
look worse.
> 
> You also kind of sound like you're screaming into the wind here with your
talk of nothing happening. There is a lot of stuff happening, it's just a
very slow process. Your influence as well as everyone elses helps contribute
to that bigger picture, even if it's not obvious right now.
> 
> Just my two cents.
> On 4/26/2013 2:20 PM, Robert William Kingett wrote:
>> Let me know your thoughts.
>> 
>> Dear xxx.
>> 
>> I hope that I got your name right because I have never ever been good
with names. I guess it runs in the family. LOL.
>> 
>> I want to introduce myself to you. Sam forwarded me your message and it
was really moving that I just had to respond personally.
>> 
>> I want to introduce what Sam and I do and then I will comment on what you
have so truthfully written and I also want to give you my thoughts, based on
observation alone. Sam and are both blindness related advocates here in
Chicago Illinois. I'm a blind journalist here in Chicago Illinois as well as
an advocate for the LGBT community. I'm most known for my journalistic
endeavors and I want to tell you something very personal and profound.
>> 
>> I've been blind ever since birth and I grew up in a very abusive
environment. When you say the word invisible that really struck a chord with
me. Even though I have dealt with the abusive past by turning it into
positive advocacy energy that one word brought back several memories. I was
invisible in both cases, from the blindness side and the domestic violence
side, and, I had to find my own way out of it because the school for the
blind I was in just didn't care to get involved with such matters. The
unusualDCF investigations never went as far as someone from child services
coming to our home to investigate only to deem that everything was fine
because, even though I did not like my mom, I covered up for her. My
troubles at home were invisible to everyone, or so I believed. The truth is
that they weren't invisible and someone had noticed. Naturally, they just
didn't know what to do.
>> 
>> In school I also learned to embrace my blindness because I saw the
treatment that we received at a young age. When I was 11, I asked the
manager at a restaurant why he didn't have any Braille menus, and why he was
breaking the law. He didn't have an answer for me, so I began to ask that
question at every restaurant I came to. It was an easy question for me to
ask. Why? Because I asked my mom why she broke the law all the time. I was,
and still am, a bookworm so I had a lot of questions, based on the stuff I
read critically. In high school I found my own way out of the abusive home
and that's when I truly learned what independence was and so I began to go
around school telling other blind kids what it meant as well. On the
academic side of the circle, the Florida school for the deaf and the blind
was very good, but anything social skills related, advocacy related, that
just flew over their heads. They didn't even tell us what college was going
to be like. I had to experience that for myself. I realized that I had a
gift and that gift was to string words together to make people listen. I was
a writer and I started studying the extent, the power that my gift held. I
began writing proposals for a school newspaper that the school had never had
and I soon started my own school newspaper. Even at a blind school, the
teachers told me that no one would read it. Kids at Saint Augustine high
were crawling to pay for the fourth issue.
>> 
>> I do have a point to this entire story so just hang in there! LOL.
>> 
>> I wasn't invisible anymore but the blindness community was, and I
realized this even more after I got out of high school. I'm sure that you
have heard about the NFB and ACB and AFB and all of the above and many more.
If you haven't they are blindness advocacy groups that do their own parts in
different things. You want to talk about invisible? These groups are
invisible. They are just now being heard about in mainstream media
regularly. Even now, though, the only people who know about them are blind
people. Why? Because there haven't been any loud voices. Okay, correction,
there are loud voices but they are quietly yelling, thinking they will not
do anything worthwhile by speaking up. You're an example of a voice that
everyone should listen to. These blind groups would listen but there's a
huge problem with these groups, and it's a shame to see the ironic twist,
they don't reach out to sighted people for assistance with legal matters, or
any other matter, they'd rather stay in their own tents, if you get my
drift. Some efforts, not all, but some, are after the media to do stories
about them. The NFB and ACB both have a lot to offer but they both don't do
a big enough job on their own separately. They do things on a case-by-case
basis, and their efforts are to educate the public about the blind and then
change comes after the education. Plus, they even fight among one another,
and waste energy doing it. All that yelling could have been done to do
something better. The ACB people will say they are better, the NFB say that
they do the right thing. Never, ever, have they collaborated on anything
solid to make a powerful enough standing for change. Education does little
good if change isn't implemented but they haven't realized this yet. They
want to say that their group is better than the other rather than make
efforts to change the community to better serve the blind.
>> 
>> That being said, there's a lot of people who are making a difference.
>> 
>> For example, I want to point you to Christine.
http://www.christineha.com/
>> 
>> She was a blind MasterChef winner last season.
>> 
>> There's a car that's driverless, allowing blind people to be mobile like
never before... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Google_driverless_car
>> 
>> Also, the ACB have managed to get the communications and accessibility
act signed by Obama, which will allow all electronic devices, even cell
phones to be accessible. http://www.acb.org/adp/tv.html. They are also
taking strides to make all paper currency accessible to the blind and the
visually impaired.
>> 
>> The NFB have done much work on employment. They have done so many things
that I'll just give you their website. https://nfb.org/
>> 
>> And people like us, me, Sam, you, and every other small voice out there
makes a big difference, even if we don't realize it or see it right away.
For instance, I received an email from a woman whose wives, sisters, and
friend I helped out years ago. You know how they say that every action has
an equal and opposite reaction? Even though the action isn't seen and heard
for years, it's an action that will be carried out for sure. For example,
the FSDB kids of today now have a paper they can write for because of my
simple action three years ago. I'm glad that I made that decision.
>> 
>> I do think that we should unite to give the blind a much more stable
ground to walk on but I'm just one person. Bigger and better companies and
blindness organizations have a lot to fight about that are a lot more
important than our wishes and dreams. I'm sorry to say but it's the truth.
These blindness groups have a lot of energy to fight each other but that's
changing too. That being said, I'm still going to continue to do my small
actions of writing and advocacy and standing up for our rights as blind
people because I know that somewhere along the line, even after my death, I
will have made a powerful impact on someone's life and have made them a
better person because I managed to get people talking because an article was
published or because I demanded to see a company officer to straighten out
an accessibility barrier, gave them some guidance. It's hard to stand up for
the right thing because it seems that no one is listening. They are
listening. I do believe, however, that this blindness schism is the worst
that I've ever seen and it's the dumbest thing ever especially since they
both promote inclusion and equality and they can't even include one another.
To combat this, the people, not organizations, not the NFB, not the ACB, not
the AFB, the people need to change what it means to be blind. We're doing
that. You're doing that. You're amazing! We're amazing! Even though we're
making progress it will take time, as with all great things. Big things come
in small packages and voices and efforts.
>> 
>> Your small actions towards your granddaughter will be remembered, and
appreciated, and used very well even though they may seem as though they are
not getting anywhere at the moment they will blossom into something big.
People like us just have to continue to be loud positive vocal people who
will both advocate and educate for the blind and the visually impaired. We
can't rely on just blindness groups because then we will be sitting on our
hands talking, taking no action.
>> 
>> I just want to say hell yes you're a good grandmother. She knows Braille;
she's standing up for herself. You're giving her all she needs, even if it's
not right now. Even a small ripple can make a big wave. We're making a big
wave, even if that wave won't come until years later. Our small actions will
impact the world, and that's why I do what I do. That's why I don't give up
because no matter how much arguing goes on, ignorance is displayed, services
are denied, etc. I know that I have the power to change things. I'm proud to
use my particular power of writing to change the world and to change what it
means to be blind. You are changing your granddaughter's world, and someday,
she will remember how you changed her world and then she will change other
people's lives and that will be all because of you, xxx, you're an amazing
ripple. Continue to make that wave!
>> 
>> 
>> 
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> 
> -- 
> Take care,
> Ty
> http://tds-solutions.net
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> He that will not reason is a bigot; he that cannot reason is a fool; he
that dares not reason is a slave.
> 
> 
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