[nagdu] understanding vs. respect

[Lyn Gwizdak]

Yeah, Buddy, I hear you!  It seems like we constantly have to educate and 
alot of the time it is like educating a brick wall!

WE are getting what other marginalized groups get - one person in that group 
is an idiot, therefore wwe ALL are idiots just because we belong to that 
same group regardless of our differences as individual people.

Guess, it's good that I happen to conduct myself as a decent, mature human 
being while out in public as an obviously blind and LGBT person!  And guide 
dogs even fall into the "marginalized" catagory.  If one guide dog creates a 
public problem then ALL guide dogs are judged by that one dog.  Yes, a very 
tall order, indeed!

I don't really think of being an "ambassordor" but glad that my and my dog's 
public behavior is fine to the general public.  Julie, I wrote you more 
offlist on this topic.

Lyn and Landon
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Buddy Brannan" <buddy at brannan.name>
To: "NAGDU Mailing List,the National Association of Guide Dog Users" 
<nagdu at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Saturday, July 07, 2012 8:33 AM
Subject: Re: [nagdu] understanding vs. respect


> Julie,
>
> Right on, right on, right on! I'm sure some of my fellow blind folk will 
> take issue with this, but I'm so over educating the public. Look what good 
> it's done for us, your conference coordinator being a shining example. 
> Darn it all, we don't need education. While ignorance is curable, there's 
> plenty of education to be had, should people care to have it, and it 
> doesn't have to come from me. It's time that we quit with this belief that 
> our lot in life is to be the ambassador for every stink in blind person 
> out there and by god just live our lives and do our things. But it's also 
> time that we demand the respect due us as human beings.
> --
> Buddy Brannan, KB5ELV - Erie, PA
> Phone: (814) 860-3194 or 888-75-BUDDY
>
>
>
> On Jul 7, 2012, at 8:08 AM, "Julie J." <julielj at neb.rr.com> wrote:
>
>> I wrote a bit about this a couple of weeks ago, but I've been thinking 
>> more on the topic ...I know scary!  LOL  Anyway I attended this diversity 
>> training seminar last spring.  It was a part of a larger training event 
>> on drug/alcohol prevention and not something I would have attended 
>> separately.  anyway the presenter talked about education and 
>> understanding different cultures and whatnot.  There was a lot of 
>> emphasis on what she called cultural competency, which I took to mean 
>> being educated about various cultures.
>>
>> the whole time I'm sitting there listening to this presentation I'm 
>> thinking about the conversation we had about my hotel reservations.  This 
>> particular presenter was the coordinator for the conference.  She made 
>> the hotel reservations for many of the attendees because the sponsoring 
>> agency was covering the hotel.  It's much easier to do the paperwork that 
>> way.  Anyway she knows I'm blind and that I have Monty.  she also knows I 
>> can walk up and down stairs and whatnot.  Still she informed the hotel 
>> that I needed a first floor room and that I'd be accompanied by a guide 
>> dog.  she also assured the hotel that I'd be no problem that I was quite 
>> independent.  I have no words to express my feelings about this 
>> statement.  Unimpressed is about the nicest thing I can say.
>>
>> So back to diversity training...she's talking about understanding and 
>> education and how important it is to know all about other people of 
>> various cultures, races, disabilities etc.  Immediately after this 
>> lecture we have a break where no less than three people come up to me to 
>> ask inappropriate questions or to pet Monty without asking.  Honestly I'm 
>> not opposed to answering questions, but when I'm engaged in a different 
>> conversation and you interrupt to ask how much I can see, well it's just 
>> rude.  It was at that moment that I realized that I don't give a crap 
>> about education or understanding or cultural competency or whatever you 
>> want to call it.  Sure if people understood, I mean really got it, about 
>> blindness that would be grand.  I don't need that though.  What I really, 
>> really want is respect.
>>
>> What do you all think?
>> Julie
>>
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>
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