[nabs-l] SHARE WIDELY: National Federation of the Blind Is Seeking to Support DREAMers

[Garrett Kearns]

Is this a PR move? Probably. Is it the right thing to do? Absolutely.
The economy of our country is reliant on illegal immigrants, if you
see an attack against them as a partisan issue, I don't know what to
tell you. Doing away with DACA is part of Trump's white
nationalist/racist agenda. If that isn't obvious to you, then you're
missing the forest for the trees.

On 9/23/17, Joe via NABS-L <nabs-l at nfbnet.org> wrote:
> Dear all,
>
>
>
> This post has been gnawing at me for over a week. Maybe someone can help me
> understand our rationale in getting involved in an issue that is clearly
> partisan.
>
>
>
> My understanding is that the NFB seeks to enable all blind individuals to
> live the life they want, irrespective of immigration status. No argument
> here. I appreciate the work we do to provide equal opportunities for
> everyone--regardless of their legal status, which ought not to be any of
> our
> business anyway, and regardless of their membership in our organization.
>
>
>
> But now we're talking about devoting already limited resources to better
> inform policymakers about the administration's decision to rescind the DACA
> program. I don't understand how this became a priority.
>
>
>
> Why are we suddenly interested in providing assistance to beneficiaries of
> the DACA program? If we are doing our work correctly, then one could argue
> the affected blind beneficiaries are already being served.
>
>
>
> Why would we collect statistical analyses on the unemployment rate of the
> blind before and after the DACA program when we barely have a handle on the
> unemployment rate among the majority of blind Americans? If the general
> statistics are accurate, then the unemployment rate among the blind is
> somewhere in the neighborhood of 75%. I don't understand why our limited
> resources would not be devoted to solving for the employment needs of all
> blind Americans as opposed to the needs of the few. The fact we are largely
> excluded from the vast majority of minimum wage jobs accessible to the rest
> of the population should be of greater concern than the consequences of a
> program that was legally and constitutionally controversial to start.
>
>
>
> The DACA program is not likely to result in mass deportations and other
> grim
> predictions forecasted by one side of the highly polarizing issue. The
> point
> is part of a larger debate on immigration reform. Congress should enact
> legislation the way it should have done when the legislative measure was
> originally proposed under President Bush in 2007, and to be fair, a
> bipartisan effort is underway to provide at least a three-year reprieve to
> the affected community. Given the convoluted and hotly contested nature of
> the overarching dialogue on the matter, why would the NFB spend its limited
> political capital appearing to take sides on this issue?
>
>
>
> Looking through this year's resolutions, I see no mention of devoting
> resources to beneficiaries of the DACA program. How do we go about deciding
> outreach efforts in situations where our mission was not directed by the
> objectives agreed to by our convention?
>
>
>
> To me, the step feels like an opportunistic means of snagging attention on
> an issue that is already steeped in controversy. We are already fighting an
> uphill battle on employment equality for those individuals working in
> sheltered environments. We already face educational and employment
> disparities among highly qualified blind permanent residents and citizens,
> born and naturalized.
>
>
>
> But, perhaps I am missing something. I'm willing to be educated. As a
> naturalized citizen, I understand the benefits of something like DACA to
> get
> ahead in this country. For that, there are other immigration rights
> consumer
> groups. We can trust them to take up the cry for fair treatment. We can
> trust them to help undocumented individuals find and keep a place in our
> society. I would like to think we place our trust in the NFB to make that
> society more accessible.
>
>
>
> Sincerely,
>
>
>
> Joe
>
>
>
> From: NFBNet-Members-List [mailto:nfbnet-members-list-bounces at nfbnet.org]
> On
> Behalf Of President, National Federation of the Blind via
> NFBNet-Members-List
> Sent: Friday, September 15, 2017 9:07 AM
> To: nfbnet-members-list at nfbnet.org
> Subject: [Nfbnet-members-list] SHARE WIDELY: National Federation of the
> Blind Is Seeking to Support DREAMers
> Importance: High
>
>
>
> National Federation of the Blind Is Seeking to Support DREAMers
>
> As the principal vehicle for collective action for the blind in the United
> States, the National Federation of the Blind is committed to enabling all
> blind people, irrespective of immigration status, to live the lives we
> want.
> To better inform our current and future advocacy and policy strategies, the
> National Federation of the Blind is collecting the following information to
> better understand the impact of the administration's recent decision to
> rescind the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program among the
> blind in the United States. The information collected will be used to:
>
> 1.	Identify DREAMers who are blind in order to better understand the
> impact on blind people and help inform the National Federation of the Blind
> regarding ways the organization can best provide assistance.
> 2.	Develop an aggregate summary of the blind people in the United
> States who participate in the DACA program, which can be shared with
> government officials, advocates, and other interested parties.
> 3.	Develop statistical analyses on the unemployment rate among the
> blind before and after the establishment of the DACA program.
> 4.	Highlight general narratives of blind people living the lives they
> want because of the DACA program.
> 5.	Coordinate a community of blind DACA recipients in order to maximize
> the resources available.
>
>
> If you or someone you know is blind and receives DACA benefits, please
> complete the National Federation of the Blind DACA form at the below links
> (available in Spanish and English), or share this information with them. If
> you know of a DREAMer who does not have internet access, we would
> appreciate
> your helping them complete the form.
>
> Spanish NFB DACA form: https://nfb.org/daca-es
> English NFB DACA form: https://nfb.org/daca
>
> Together with love, hope, and determination, the National Federation of the
> Blind transforms dreams into reality. Through this effort we seek to
> support
> the hopes and dreams of blind people seeking to be fully contributing
> members of our nation.
>
>
> Mark A. Riccobono, President
> 200 East Wells Street, Baltimore, MD 21230
> (410) 659-9314 | Officeofthepresident at nfb.org
> Twitter: @Riccobono
>
>
>  <https://nfb.org/> Image removed by sender. National Federation of the
> Blind
>
>
> <http://www.facebook.com/nationalfederationoftheblind> Image removed by
> sender. Facebook     <https://twitter.com/NFB_Voice> Image removed by
> sender. Twitter     <https://www.youtube.com/NationsBlind> Image removed by
> sender. Youtube
>
> The National Federation of the Blind is a community of members and friends
> who believe in the hopes and dreams of the nation's blind. Every day we
> work
> together to help blind people live the lives they want.
>
>
>
>