[nfb-talk] Responce to NFB 2010 Resolutions:
ckrugman at sbcglobal.net
ckrugman at sbcglobal.net
Sun Dec 12 10:46:12 UTC 2010
This sounds like its similar to organizations for the blind instead
organizations of the blind where a few are determining the interests of
everyone else.
Chuck
----- Original Message -----
From: "Kenneth Chrane" <kenneth.chrane at verizon.net>
To: "NFB Talk Mailing List" <nfb-talk at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Saturday, December 04, 2010 2:09 PM
Subject: Re: [nfb-talk] Responce to NFB 2010 Resolutions:
> Go to:
> http://www.republicfortheunitedstates.org,
> Find contacts, then under Illinois, you will find the Name of The
> Ambassador.
> I sent Patty Chang the remarks of the ambassador.
>
> Ken Chrane
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: <ckrugman at sbcglobal.net>
> To: "NFB Talk Mailing List" <nfb-talk at nfbnet.org>
> Sent: Saturday, December 04, 2010 3:08 AM
> Subject: Re: [nfb-talk] Responce to NFB 2010 Resolutions:
>
>
>> Who or what was the responder to this resolution. There appears to be a
>> credibility problem here.
>> Chuck
>> ----- Original Message -----
>> From: "Kenneth Chrane" <kenneth.chrane at verizon.net>
>> To: "NFB Talk Mailing List" <nfb-talk at nfbnet.org>
>> Cc: <officeofthepresident at nfb.org>
>> Sent: Sunday, November 28, 2010 6:40 AM
>> Subject: [nfb-talk] Responce to NFB 2010 Resolutions:
>>
>>
>>> Hi This is Ken Chrane.
>>> This is a Responce to our 2010 NFB Resolutions from an ambassitor of The
>>> Republic of Illinois.
>>> Ken Chrane
>>> In the document below, you are dealing with a dead defacto corporation.
>>> Defacto WILL be a thing of the past very soon. We are dejure, we have
>>> reinhabited our states/Republics original organic Constitution and are
>>> the law of the land now. We are recognized by over 94 nations, and the
>>> Corporation is over. The time will come when the issues below are
>>> addressed. With all due respect, securing our freedom is first, and
>>> done by re-inhabiting dejure grand juries throughout every county in
>>> these United States to handle such issues below. This is the bottom
>>> up. The people determining the outcome of their respective citites,
>>> counties, and state government.
>>>
>>> Have YOU helped establish a dejure grand jury in the county that you
>>> reside? That is where all this begins. Taking care of people in YOUR
>>> area. You can write all the whereas es as you choose, but you need to
>>> narrow this down to reality. Most of the groups you mentioned below
>>> will be history. Dept of motor vehicles...gone, dept of education - a
>>> bloated indoctrination controlling mechanism to dumb down our
>>> children -- gone, individuals mentioned below--in prison likely. The
>>> resolution below is an example of more over-loaded and bloated
>>> bureaucratic nonsense. Government intervention into the lives of every
>>> individual to secure a small minorities demands is a foolish endeavor.
>>> Why would you want the government to come in to monitor every aspect of
>>> every handicapped persons life? Demanding more oversight, thus
>>> hindering procurement of contracts, hindering companies by demanding
>>> they bow and serve needs of one group? This is another example of the
>>> typical entitlement mentality and bullying that has destroyed the fabric
>>> of our nation, and forcing companies out of the country. And with that
>>> statement you need to understand that we do care about all Americans,
>>> including the blind, however, enough is enough. But demanding more
>>> over-bloated bureaucracy will only continue the frustration of groups
>>> such as yours. And I have experience working with EEOC and the Americans
>>> with Disabilities Acts, and I know just how worthless they are and why
>>> real handicapped are not protected. Everything defacto has failed and
>>> it is time to take it to the people.
>>>
>>> As I said, I do respect efforts to protect the blind as well as others
>>> who are "truly" handicapped, but it is NOT going to get done in the
>>> manner below.
>>> Instead of disseminating defacto terminology, get educated. Become a
>>> part of the re-inhabited government in YOUR area, and YOU can help
>>> determine how YOUR county handles such issues. And be advised, you
>>> will NOT determine how ANYTHING in any other state/republic handles such
>>> issues within their respective dejure Republics. Each state is its own
>>> nation, and the Federal dictating to states ends. You worry about YOUR
>>> state, and I will worry about mine. All will be good, but initiating
>>> another resolution full of demands with lots of defacto terminology as
>>> below, is over. Common law rules the land. Study common law then
>>> rewrite the document below according to common law and organic
>>> Constitutional guidelines and the county settlement document within your
>>> County. That is where you must start. Once you have rewritten the
>>> document below, by all means send it to me and I will forward it to the
>>> correct person to bring it forth for discussion to county juries in IL.
>>> Remember, it must be within common law guidelines.
>>>
>>> Contact me if you reside in Illinois. Otherwise you should work within
>>> your own state.
>>> Go to the national site where you may have found my address and download
>>> the onboarding package and go from there.
>>> If you are in IL you are welcome to contact me back to find out how to
>>> become a dejure juror and address the issue of the blind in IL.
>>> Since you have the zeal to help the blind, becoming a dejure grand juror
>>> will be the the best way.
>>> Dejure is the remedy for all lawful issues and protecting all of our
>>> peoples.
>>>
>>> Warm Regards,
>>> Illinois Ambassador
>>>
>>> On 11/23/2010 9:42 PM, Kenneth Chrane wrote:
>>> Resolution 2010-01
>>>
>>> Regarding the Creation of a New Educational Model for Blind Students
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, literacy rates among blind children remain unacceptably low as
>>> demonstrated by statistics showing that only 10 percent of today's blind
>>> students under age twenty-two are being taught to read Braille,
>>> resulting in an unacceptably low (45 percent) high-school graduation
>>> rate for blind students; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, approximately 70 percent of blind people nationwide are not
>>> employed, but of those blind people who are employed, 85 percent or more
>>> use Braille in the workplace, demonstrating a clear relationship among
>>> literacy, confidence, and success; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, the National Federation of the Blind has been the leader in
>>> encouraging legislative reform, but, despite the improvement that gives
>>> Braille a stated priority in the delivery of educational services to a
>>> blind child, school administrators and the lawyers who represent them
>>> continue to find ways to avoid their responsibility to provide
>>> appropriate Braille literacy educational services, and the results of
>>> that legal process more often than not yield ineffective and inadequate
>>> remedies; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, even in those infrequent cases in which a parent or advocate
>>> is successful in obtaining improved services for a blind child, the due
>>> process hearing does not improve educational services generally because
>>> the remedies, however beneficial, are limited to that child; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, too many parents of blind children remain frustrated with the
>>> ineffective remedies provided under the Individuals with Disabilities
>>> Education Act (IDEA) because, even if they file for a due process
>>> hearing, the due process hearing officer, following judicial precedent,
>>> finds that a blind child is receiving a free and appropriate public
>>> education (FAPE), even when "minimal educational benefit" results from
>>> the educational services to the blind child; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, even with the presumption that Braille will be included in a
>>> child's individualized education program (IEP) as required in current
>>> federal and most state laws, if a child is taught Braille, it often
>>> occurs after the child has no remaining vision or at best insufficient
>>> vision to read print, resulting in the child's learning to read in the
>>> upper grades or later when the opportunity to establish real literacy
>>> skills is diminished or altogether past; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, assessments performed by well-meaning but ill-informed
>>> professionals demonstrate that a child has enough vision to read print
>>> but do not take into consideration a diagnosis that inevitably portends
>>> the inability to read print, and reports from around the country
>>> indicate that blind children are still not getting their books on time
>>> despite the clear requirement in federal and state law that books be
>>> provided on time; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, the National Federation of the Blind convened a meeting of
>>> parents of blind children, lawyers, educators and teachers of blind
>>> children, elected leaders of the blind, and other blindness
>>> professionals for the purpose of discussing innovative and effective
>>> ways to improve the delivery of educational services, including the
>>> teaching of Braille; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, the Braille Readers are Leaders initiative, established by the
>>> National Federation of the Blind in July 2008, has a primary goal of
>>> ensuring that the number of blind students able to read Braille will
>>> double by 2015; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, the National Federation of the Blind is the leading force in
>>> the field of blindness, possesses the collective experience of thousands
>>> of blind people (an accumulated body of knowledge about blindness
>>> education). and has an unwavering will to improve educational
>>> opportunities for all blind students: Now, therefore,
>>>
>>> BE IT RESOLVED by the National Federation of the Blind in Convention
>>> assembled this seventh day of July, 2010, in the city of Dallas, Texas,
>>> that this organization pursue innovative and nontraditional models for
>>> teaching literacy and other blindness skills, including the
>>> investigation and establishment of a charter school for blind children
>>> and any other model at the discretion of the president and that the
>>> resources of this organization be used to establish models that will
>>> demonstrate the success achieved by high expectations and the philosophy
>>> of the National Federation of the Blind; and
>>>
>>> BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this organization urge teachers of blind
>>> students, state special education agencies, organizations of and for the
>>> blind, and others responsible for the education of blind children to
>>> take all other steps necessary to join the National Federation of the
>>> Blind in ensuring that the number of blind students who are able to read
>>> and write Braille competently doubles by 2015.
>>>
>>> ------------
>>>
>>> Resolution 2010-02
>>>
>>> Regarding the Motor Vehicle Safety Act of 2010
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, on January 28, 2009, Congressmen Edolphus Towns of New York
>>> and Cliff Stearns of Florida introduced the Pedestrian Safety
>>> Enhancement Act of 2009 (H.R. 734); and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, this legislation directs the secretary of transportation to
>>> issue a motor vehicle safety standard to address the dangers posed to
>>> blind and other pedestrians by silent hybrid and electric vehicles; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, on April 21, 2009, Senators John Kerry of Massachusetts and
>>> Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania introduced companion legislation in the
>>> United States Senate (S. 841); and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, the National Federation of the Blind has worked actively to
>>> gain cosponsor support for this important legislation to preserve the
>>> right to independent travel for blind pedestrians; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, in September 2009 the National Highway Traffic Safety
>>> Administration (NHTSA) released a report stating that hybrid and
>>> electric vehicles are twice as likely to be involved in pedestrian
>>> accidents as traditional internal-combustion-engine vehicles when
>>> operating at low speed; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, the United States Congress has recently introduced the Motor
>>> Vehicle Safety Act of 2010 (H.R. 5381 in the House of Representatives
>>> and S. 3302 in the Senate) to address safety concerns related to
>>> unintended rapid acceleration and sticky pedals in some automobiles; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, the House Committee on Energy and Commerce unanimously agreed
>>> to Congressman Stearns's amendment to include provisions of the
>>> Pedestrian Safety Enhancement Act of 2009 at the committee markup of the
>>> Motor Vehicle Safety Act of 2010 on May 26, 2010; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation
>>> also included a similar amendment offered by Senator Kerry during its
>>> markup of the Motor Vehicle Safety Act of 2010 on June 9, 2010; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, the number of hybrid and electric vehicles on America's
>>> roadways continues to increase; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, passage of the Motor Vehicle Safety Act of 2010 will mandate
>>> that regulations be promulgated by the Department of Transportation to
>>> provide that electric and hybrid vehicles sold in the United States must
>>> be equipped with an alert sound, which is recognizable as a motor
>>> vehicle, in order to allow blind pedestrians to maintain the right to
>>> safe and independent travel: Now, therefore,
>>>
>>> BE IT RESOLVED by the National Federation of the Blind in Convention
>>> assembled this seventh day of July, 2010, in the city of Dallas, Texas,
>>> that this organization urge Congress to pass the Motor Vehicle Safety
>>> Act of 2010 to ensure that regulations will be issued to protect the
>>> right to safe and independent travel for blind pedestrians; and
>>>
>>> BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this organization commend Congressmen Towns
>>> and Stearns and Senators Kerry and Specter for their leadership on this
>>> issue as demonstrated by their work to ensure that provisions of the
>>> Pedestrian Safety Enhancement Act of 2009 were included in the Motor
>>> Vehicle Safety Act of 2010; and
>>>
>>> BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this organization commend the Alliance of
>>> Automobile Manufacturers and the Association of International Automobile
>>> Manufacturers for working with the National Federation of the Blind and
>>> for supporting the inclusion of provisions of the Pedestrian Safety
>>> Enhancement Act of 2009 in the Motor Vehicle Safety Act of 2010.
>>>
>>> ------------
>>>
>>> Resolution 2010-03
>>>
>>> Regarding Inaccessibility of Google Products and Services
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, Google is the leading Internet search engine, used by both
>>> blind and sighted people in the United States and throughout the world;
>>> and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, in addition to its powerful search engine, Google, Inc.,
>>> offers an ever-increasing number of digital and electronic products and
>>> services, including but not limited to Gmail, Google Maps, Google
>>> Calendar, Google Books, Google TV, Google Wave, and the Android
>>> operating system for smart phones; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, while Google's basic search function is accessible to and
>>> usable by the blind and Google has promised accessibility to some of its
>>> other products and services (especially Google Books, pending the
>>> approval of the legal settlement related to that product), many of its
>>> other services are either inaccessible or not fully accessible; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, while Google provides a screen-access solution called Talkback
>>> for phones using the Android operating system, the company provides no
>>> customer support for users of Talkback except YouTube videos posted by
>>> one of its employees, and Talkback does not provide access to all the
>>> functions available in Android; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, blind people find using Google Calendar difficult because
>>> among other things clickable regions of the screen are not always
>>> identified by screen-access software as clickable due to improper
>>> application coding; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, when Google Maps data are embedded on third-party Websites,
>>> Google directs blind users seeking full access to those data to use an
>>> alternative, inferior accessibility interface through which they have
>>> difficulty accessing critical features of Google Maps such as
>>> turn-by-turn driving directions; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, Google continues to roll out and announce the future
>>> availability of new services, but blind people too often find to their
>>> dismay that these services are not accessible; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, apparently Google does not plan to make new services such as
>>> Google Wave and Google TV accessible; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, Google's corporate motto is "Don't be evil," but the company
>>> is certainly failing to do good consistently for its blind users: Now,
>>> therefore,
>>>
>>> BE IT RESOLVED by the National Federation of the Blind in Convention
>>> assembled this seventh day of July, 2010, in the city of Dallas, Texas,
>>> that this organization demand that Google make a serious, identifiable
>>> commitment to accessibility in all of its products and services and
>>> avoid the future release of products and services that are inaccessible
>>> to its blind users.
>>>
>>> ------------
>>>
>>> Resolution 2010-04
>>>
>>> Regarding Access to Mass Transit Information and Services
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, public transportation can be a critical tool in helping blind
>>> people participate fully in the economic, political, and social life of
>>> their communities; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, mass transit systems increasingly use technology to provide
>>> information and services to customers; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, schedules, routing information, and reservations are examples
>>> of information and services available to customers on the Websites of
>>> mass transit systems; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, customers are increasingly required to use electronic fare
>>> cards, but the machines that read them can often not be used
>>> independently by the blind; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, mass transit systems are beginning to provide specific,
>>> up-to-the-minute location information about buses to customers at bus
>>> stops; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, when designing Websites, fare cards, and other information
>>> technology and services, too many mass transit systems either totally
>>> overlook or provide minimal nonvisual access to their technology,
>>> ignoring the access requirements of the Americans with Disabilities Act
>>> and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act: Now, therefore,
>>>
>>> BE IT RESOLVED by the National Federation of the Blind in Convention
>>> assembled this seventh day of July, 2010, in the city of Dallas, Texas,
>>> that this organization insist that the U.S. Department of Transportation
>>> take all necessary steps to ensure compliance with access laws by mass
>>> transit systems; and
>>>
>>> BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this organization urge the Federal Transit
>>> Administration and the American Public Transportation Association to
>>> work with the National Federation of the Blind to develop best practices
>>> that result in enhanced nonvisual access to mass transit system
>>> information technology and services.
>>>
>>> ------------
>>>
>>> RESOLUTION 2010-05
>>>
>>> Regarding Equal and Independent Participation in the Census for the
>>> Blind
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, all Americans are required to provide census data under Title
>>> 13, United States Code, Sections 143 and 191; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, data collected through the census are used for legislative
>>> redistricting as well as the allocation of over $400 billion in
>>> government funding to public projects such as schools, road and
>>> infrastructure construction, hospital and healthcare services,
>>> rehabilitation programs, and disaster preparedness projects, all of
>>> which affect the blind just as they do all other Americans; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, the United States Census Bureau originally permitted 2010
>>> Census participation only through the completion of a paper form that
>>> was mailed to American households, and the Census Bureau had not
>>> developed a strategy for obtaining such data by alternate means; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, after learning that the original strategy for collecting
>>> census data barred meaningful and independent participation by the
>>> nation's blind, the Census Bureau promptly recalibrated its strategy to
>>> permit blind individuals to complete the 2010 census form by calling a
>>> toll-free phone number or by requesting a census worker to conduct an
>>> in-person visit; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, the Census Bureau administers the American Community Survey to
>>> a portion of American households annually by employing the same
>>> data-collection strategies as the decennial census; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, these alternatives still preclude the blind from independently
>>> providing census data: Now, therefore,
>>>
>>> BE IT RESOLVED by the National Federation of the Blind in Convention
>>> assembled this seventh day of July, 2010, in the city of Dallas, Texas,
>>> that this organization strongly urge the United States Bureau of the
>>> Census to develop and implement mechanisms for blind Americans to submit
>>> decennial census data independently and participate in annual Community
>>> Surveys no later than April 2011; and
>>>
>>> BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this organization insist upon being
>>> involved in the development of such mechanisms or policies to ensure
>>> that the blind can comply with federal law and participate meaningfully
>>> and independently in the census.
>>>
>>> ------------
>>>
>>> Resolution 2010-06
>>>
>>> Regarding the Technology Bill of Rights for the Blind
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, rapid advances in digital technology have led to the increased
>>> use of touch screens and interactive visual interfaces, replacing
>>> traditional controls such as knobs, switches, and buttons on consumer
>>> electronics, home appliances, kiosks, and office equipment and
>>> technology; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, this major shift in technology has rendered most consumer
>>> electronics, home appliances, kiosks, and office equipment and
>>> technology inaccessible through nonvisual means, widening the digital
>>> divide between blind consumers and their sighted peers and threatening
>>> the employment, independence, and productivity of blind people; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, methods (such as text-to-speech and sound cues) exist for
>>> manufacturers to make their products accessible; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, accessibility is relatively easy and inexpensive to implement
>>> when it is incorporated into the design of a product from the outset;
>>> and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, Apple, Inc., has demonstrated the feasibility of incorporating
>>> access for blind consumers by incorporating text-to-speech technology in
>>> its entire line of touch-screen consumer electronic products, allowing
>>> blind consumers to use these products without the addition of
>>> third-party applications; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, the ability to access and use all functions of consumer
>>> electronics, home appliances, kiosks, and office equipment and
>>> technology independently is essential to a blind person's independence,
>>> productivity, and employment; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, on January 27, 2010, Congresswoman Janice Schakowsky of
>>> Illinois introduced the Technology Bill of Rights for the Blind (H.R.
>>> 4533) to address the growing trend of inaccessible consumer electronics,
>>> home appliances, kiosks, and office equipment and technology; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, this legislation would establish an office within the
>>> Department of Commerce to conduct a study on how consumer products can
>>> be made accessible to the blind, and then establish minimum nonvisual
>>> access standards for consumer electronics, home appliances, kiosks, and
>>> office equipment and technology: Now, therefore,
>>>
>>> BE IT RESOLVED by the National Federation of the Blind in Convention
>>> assembled this seventh day of July, 2010, in the city of Dallas, Texas,
>>> that this organization urge the United States Congress to pass the
>>> Technology Bill of Rights for the Blind; and
>>>
>>> BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this organization commend Congresswoman
>>> Schakowsky for her introduction and championship of this initiative.
>>>
>>> ------------
>>>
>>> Resolution 2010-07
>>>
>>> Regarding the Failure of the United States Postal Service
>>>
>>> to Comply with the Randolph-Sheppard Act
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, the Randolph-Sheppard Act applies to all federal agencies,
>>> including the United States Postal Service; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, the Postal Service has at best been inconsistent historically
>>> in honoring the Randolph-Sheppard priority, resulting in lost
>>> opportunities for blind entrepreneurs; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, the Postal Service entered into a nationwide contract with a
>>> private entity to provide cafeteria and vending services that are
>>> covered by the Randolph-Sheppard priority without seeking the input of
>>> state licensing agencies (SLAs), the Rehabilitation Services
>>> Administration, or Randolph-Sheppard entrepreneurs; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, the Postal Service has failed to ensure that this private
>>> contractor is following the procedures negotiated with the
>>> Randolph-Sheppard community to ensure that any food service opportunity
>>> is declined in writing by an SLA prior to turning it over to its
>>> contractor; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, the Postal Service has refused to provide SLAs with complete
>>> lists of food service opportunities in each state to facilitate the
>>> independent determination of whether Postmasters and the national
>>> contractor are following the law; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, under this nationwide contract both the Postal Service and the
>>> private contractor have a financial incentive not to comply with the
>>> Randolph-Sheppard Act; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, the contractor has not consistently complied with the
>>> Randolph-Sheppard Act, resulting in the further denial of opportunities
>>> to blind entrepreneurs and imposing an additional obstacle to obtaining
>>> the Postal Service's full compliance with the Randolph-Sheppard Act:
>>> Now, therefore,
>>>
>>> BE IT RESOLVED by the National Federation of the Blind in Convention
>>> assembled this seventh day of July, 2010, in the city of Dallas, Texas,
>>> that this organization condemn and deplore the continued failure of the
>>> United States Postal Service to comply with the Randolph-Sheppard Act
>>> and demand that the Postal Service cancel its nationwide cafeteria and
>>> vending contract so that these opportunities can be provided to blind
>>> entrepreneurs in accordance with the law.
>>>
>>> ------------
>>>
>>> Resolution 2010-08
>>>
>>> Regarding Reading Rights for 2010
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, the ability to read is critical to living a well-informed
>>> personal and professional life; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, blindness and some other disabilities pose challenges to
>>> accessing all available written information fully and efficiently; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, text-to-speech technology has helped to remove these access
>>> barriers for the approximately thirty million blind and otherwise
>>> print-disabled people living in the United States; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, this heretofore untapped community of eager consumers promises
>>> to benefit publishers and authors; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, while a few eReading applications and devices take advantage
>>> of text-to-speech technology to deliver the content of commercially
>>> available eBooks to the blind and others with print disabilities and
>>> other providers of eReading solutions are promising to provide access,
>>> many such devices and applications, such as the Sony Reader and Barnes
>>> and Noble Nook, are still inaccessible to the blind and print-disabled,
>>> and some publishers are still resistant to allowing this population to
>>> access eBooks; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, at least two major publishers, Random House and Simon and
>>> Schuster, are still preventing text-to-speech access to all of their
>>> titles available for the Amazon Kindle eReader; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, despite repeated promises of access by Amazon, the Kindle
>>> eReader device and the Kindle applications for personal computers and
>>> other devices are still inaccessible to blind users, denying them access
>>> to even those eBooks that are available with text-to-speech; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, the solutions employed by some publishers to provide access
>>> such as making their books available through third-party services like
>>> Bookshare.org, are ultimately inadequate because they do not serve all
>>> Americans with print disabilities and rely on the discredited logic of
>>> separate-but-equal access for the blind and print-disabled; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, any attempt by authors or publishers to restrict
>>> text-to-speech access to eBooks that are not available as audiobooks
>>> violates the spirit of a joint statement agreed to by the Reading Rights
>>> Coalition (of which the National Federation of the Blind is a founding
>>> member), the Authors Guild, and the Association of American Publishers,
>>> which states in part:
>>>
>>> The Reading Rights Coalition, the Authors Guild, and the Association of
>>> American Publishers believe that the contents of books should be as
>>> accessible to individuals with print disabilities as they are to
>>> everyone else. To that end these groups agree to work together and
>>> through the communities they represent to ensure that, when the
>>> marketplace offers alternative formats to print books such as audio and
>>> electronic books, print-disabled consumers can access the contents of
>>> these alternative formats to the same extent as all other consumers; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, civil rights laws and policies in the United States oppose and
>>> protect against acts that thwart equal access and equitable treatment of
>>> the blind and other people with print disabilities: Now, therefore,
>>>
>>> BE IT RESOLVED by the National Federation of the Blind in Convention
>>> assembled this seventh day of July, 2010, in the city of Dallas, Texas,
>>> that this organization reaffirm its call for accessible eBooks and urge
>>> all government procurement agencies, schools, institutions of higher
>>> education, and libraries to exercise diligence in complying with
>>> technology-procurement requirements and state and federal disability
>>> nondiscrimination laws and to insist that mobile eBook readers and
>>> eBooks have accessible text-to-speech; and
>>>
>>> BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this organization urge all eBook reader
>>> developers and content providers to allow equal access by the blind and
>>> others with print disabilities to the interfaces of their eReaders and
>>> to the content of eBooks; and
>>>
>>> BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this organization commend those providers
>>> of eBooks and eBook readers that have incorporated accessibility for the
>>> blind and others with print disabilities in their products and services.
>>>
>>> ------------
>>>
>>> RESOLUTION 2010-09
>>>
>>> Regarding a Statute of Limitations on Allegations of Overpayment by the
>>>
>>> Social Security Administration
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, many blind people who receive Social Security Disability
>>> Insurance find that, after receiving benefits for years, they are
>>> notified by letter that a review of their records indicates that they
>>> have been substantially overpaid; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, it is not uncommon for the Social Security Administration to
>>> make a determination of overpayment more than twenty years after the
>>> fact, requiring that the recipient of benefits produce data showing they
>>> were indeed entitled to the benefits they received in order to appeal
>>> the determination; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, the record-keeping requirements that this practice imposes on
>>> beneficiaries exceed even those of the Internal Revenue Service and
>>> often present an impossible challenge to the individual recipient, who
>>> often has limited space for filing records; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, this practice also places an undue demand on former employers
>>> to supply records, a demand that they are often unable to meet: Now,
>>> therefore,
>>>
>>> BE IT RESOLVED by the National Federation of the Blind in Convention
>>> assembled this seventh day of July, 2010, in the city of Dallas, Texas,
>>> that this organization urge the United States Congress to enact a
>>> statute of limitations, not to exceed seven years, in which the Social
>>> Security Administration can attempt to retrieve alleged overpayments;
>>> and
>>>
>>> BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this organization urge the Congress to
>>> require the Social Security Administration to share with the beneficiary
>>> such evidence as it has in arriving at its determination that an
>>> overpayment has been made.
>>>
>>> ------------
>>>
>>> Resolution 2010-10
>>>
>>> Regarding the National Education Technology Plan for 2010
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, on March 5, 2010, the U.S. Department of Education's Office of
>>> Educational Technology released a draft National Educational Technology
>>> Plan (NETP) for 2010 entitled "Transforming American Education: Learning
>>> Powered by Technology"; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, although the NETP embraces principles of universal design, it
>>> addresses the specific issue of accessibility to the blind and others
>>> with disabilities in only a few paragraphs of its more than one hundred
>>> pages; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, at present blind students are consigned to separate and
>>> unequal access to educational materials due to inaccessible technology
>>> or the failure to convert materials into an accessible format in a
>>> timely manner; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, with twenty-first century technology, there is no reason why
>>> all educational materials cannot be made immediately accessible to blind
>>> students; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, mainstream access for the print disabled occurs when it is
>>> demanded by educational institutions or by state or federal authorities,
>>> as evidenced by (1) the latest version of Blackboard's becoming
>>> substantially more accessible after California State University refused
>>> to allow Blackboard to bid on a contract while its course management
>>> software was inaccessible; (2) iTunes U's becoming fully accessible
>>> after the NFB and the Massachusetts Attorney General threatened Apple's
>>> collegiate partners with lawsuits; and (3) Amazon's announcing it would
>>> produce an accessible Kindle after the Department of Justice secured
>>> consent decrees from five colleges using the device in pilot projects to
>>> terminate those projects; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, the United States Department of Education has an unprecedented
>>> opportunity to provide the leadership necessary to ensure that emerging
>>> educational technologies include equal access for the blind and others
>>> with disabilities in their design and that manufacturers view equal
>>> access as the expected standard: Now, therefore,
>>>
>>> BE IT RESOLVED by the National Federation of the Blind in Convention
>>> assembled this seventh day of July, 2010, in the city of Dallas, Texas,
>>> that this organization express our serious concern that the NETP fails
>>> to recognize the need for the United States Department of Education to
>>> provide concentrated leadership, in both policy and practice, in order
>>> to ensure that blind students and other students with disabilities can
>>> take full advantage of the opportunities offered by emerging educational
>>> technologies in America's classrooms; and
>>>
>>> BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this organization strongly urge the
>>> Department of Education to recognize that accessibility of educational
>>> technology to the blind and other students with disabilities must play a
>>> more prominent role within and throughout the NETP; and
>>>
>>> BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this organization call upon the United
>>> States Department of Education to conduct research in collaboration with
>>> the National Federation of the Blind and other blindness and
>>> print-disability organizations to create standards for the development
>>> of accessible educational technologies and then to issue regulations
>>> requiring manufacturers of educational technology to adhere to such
>>> standards when producing new technologies, once such standards are
>>> published, ensuring that the nonvisual experience with technology is as
>>> rich as the visual experience and that there is equal ease of access to
>>> all functions of the technology, whether it is being used visually or
>>> nonvisually.
>>>
>>> ------------
>>>
>>> Resolution 2010-11
>>>
>>> Regarding National Industries for the Blind and the Definition of
>>> "Employment Outcome" in the Vocational Rehabilitation Program
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, blind people are capable of working with the sighted, playing
>>> with the sighted, and living with the sighted on terms of complete
>>> equality; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, the blind seek the day when we no longer need to assert our
>>> civil rights to be given equal opportunities and to be treated on terms
>>> of equality with our sighted peers, but that day will only come if our
>>> lives are fully integrated with those of the sighted; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, in enacting the Rehabilitation Act, Congress found that the
>>> blind have the right to enjoy full inclusion and integration in the
>>> economic, political, social, cultural, and educational mainstream of
>>> American society; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, following congressional intent, in January 2001 the U.S.
>>> Department of Education's Rehabilitation Services Administration (RSA)
>>> issued regulations that redefined the term "employment outcome" as an
>>> outcome in which an individual with a disability enters full or
>>> part-time competitive employment in an integrated setting; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, before redefining what constitutes an employment outcome
>>> recognizable in the vocational rehabilitation program, many state
>>> vocational rehabilitation agencies limited their blind clients'
>>> opportunities to sheltered, nonintegrated settings, relegating them to
>>> working in positions that pay less than their sighted counterparts
>>> receive in the competitive labor market, to poor opportunity for career
>>> advancement, and to work settings with little opportunity to work
>>> alongside their sighted peers; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, National Industries for the Blind (NIB) has recently requested
>>> that RSA issue guidelines stating that an employment outcome
>>> recognizable by the vocational rehabilitation program include placement
>>> of individuals who are blind and are working in NIB's AbilityOne network
>>> of agencies; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, NIB's primary purpose for requesting a change in the
>>> definition of "employment outcome" is to give state vocational
>>> rehabilitation agencies the ability to count placement in NIB programs
>>> as successful employment outcomes for purposes of meeting RSA's
>>> mandatory standards and indicators; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, although at present NIB's policy is that the blind should be
>>> paid at least the minimum wage, several NIB workshops do not adhere to
>>> this policy, and NIB officials maintain that they cannot require the
>>> workshops to do so; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, blind people must be allowed to determine for themselves
>>> whether an NIB program is their desired employment outcome and not be
>>> subjected to a vocational rehabilitation system incentivized to achieve
>>> easy placements: Now, therefore,
>>>
>>> BE IT RESOLVED by the National Federation of the Blind in Convention
>>> assembled this seventh day of July, 2010, in the city of Dallas, Texas,
>>> that this organization condemn and deplore National Industries for the
>>> Blind's campaign to change the definition of an "employment outcome";
>>> and
>>>
>>> BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this organization strongly urge the
>>> Secretary of the U.S. Department of Education and the Commissioner of
>>> the Rehabilitation Services Administration to retain the current
>>> definition of "employment outcome," which will continue to place the
>>> emphasis of rehabilitation on employment in integrated settings rather
>>> than on easy closure of cases or the support of National Industries for
>>> the Blind.
>>>
>>> ------------
>>>
>>> Resolution 2010-12
>>>
>>> Regarding Developer Guidelines and Application Programming Interfaces
>>> (APIs) from Vendors of Screen-Access Software
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, the ability of blind computer users to use fully the functions
>>> available in word processors, email clients, database programs, Web
>>> browsers, and other Windows-based applications requires screen-access
>>> software to have the information it needs to provide meaningful
>>> information in speech, refreshable Braille, or magnification; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, despite a tremendous amount of information published by
>>> Microsoft about developing accessible applications, the accessibility
>>> guidelines and recommendations promulgated by the Worldwide Web
>>> Consortium through its Web Access Initiative, and the standards and
>>> guidelines implementing Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act, not
>>> enough information is available for the well-intentioned Windows
>>> application developer who poses the question to the screen-access
>>> software developer, "What can I do to make my application accessible to
>>> the blind users of your program?"; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, by contrast, developers of applications designed to run on
>>> Apple platforms such as the Macintosh and the iPhone are provided a rich
>>> set of guidelines and application programming interfaces designed to
>>> maximize accessibility to end users of Apple products who rely on access
>>> technology; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, experience has shown that, from the perspective of the blind
>>> computer user of Windows software, the most accessible application is
>>> the one that can pass meaningful information directly to the
>>> screen-access program--either through a well-documented application
>>> programming interface or by painting the screen in a way that is
>>> calculated to generate meaningful output from the screen-access
>>> technology: Now, therefore,
>>>
>>> BE IT RESOLVED by the National Federation of the Blind in Convention
>>> assembled this seventh day of July, 2010, in the city of Dallas, Texas,
>>> that this organization call upon the manufacturers of Windows-based
>>> screen-access technology for the blind to do one or both of the
>>> following to enable application developers to maximize the accessibility
>>> of their software to the blind: (1) develop a well-documented
>>> application programming interface (API) through which application
>>> software can exchange meaningful information with screen-access
>>> technology; and (2) publish clear and definitive guidelines for
>>> application developers that will enable them to make their applications
>>> truly accessible to the blind end user.
>>>
>>> ------------
>>>
>>> Resolution 2010-13
>>>
>>> Regarding Insurance Coverage of Accessible Equipment for Diabetics
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, standard medical treatment for diabetics calls for the patient
>>> to monitor blood glucose levels so that he or she can make adjustments
>>> in the amount of insulin needed; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, certain health insurance plans dictate what brand of diabetic
>>> equipment a member must use to comply with the treatment regimen,
>>> claiming that this strategy controls costs for both the insurer and the
>>> insured; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, most insurance companies contract strictly with one
>>> manufacturer, who typically provides only inaccessible blood glucose
>>> meters and inaccessible insulin injection devices, presenting a serious
>>> obstacle to complying with the testing regimen for tens of thousands of
>>> blind people with diabetes; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, the failure to place accessible blood glucose meters and
>>> accessible insulin injection devices on the insurers' formulary lists
>>> not only is a barrier to independence for blind diabetics, but also
>>> adversely affects their quality of life because of the added
>>> difficulties they must confront in attempting to manage and control
>>> their diabetes; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, the only way blind diabetics can acquire an accessible blood
>>> glucose meter or accessible insulin injection device is through a long
>>> and complicated process of submitting extensive medical documentation,
>>> and approval is not guaranteed; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, blind people have the same right to health care as their
>>> sighted peers; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, insurance companies must no longer be allowed to discriminate
>>> against blind people because of their need for specialized equipment;
>>> and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, the denial of accessible equipment by insurance companies
>>> undermines the emphasis on preventive care set forth in the 2010 federal
>>> healthcare reform legislation: Now, therefore,
>>>
>>> BE IT RESOLVED by the National Federation of the Blind in Convention
>>> assembled this seventh day of July, 2010, in the city of Dallas, Texas,
>>> that this organization strongly urge the secretary of health and human
>>> services to eliminate discrimination against the blind by requiring that
>>> Medicare, Medicaid, and all other medical insurance programs under the
>>> secretary's jurisdiction cover accessible equipment for diabetics; and
>>>
>>> BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this organization strongly urge state
>>> legislatures and regulators to eliminate discrimination against the
>>> blind by requiring private medical insurance companies to cover
>>> accessible equipment for diabetics.
>>>
>>> ------------
>>>
>>> Resolution 2010-14
>>>
>>> Regarding Access by the Blind to Virtual Laboratory Experiences in the
>>> Sciences
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, science classes have presented access barriers to the blind
>>> for decades; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, these barriers have been created by a lack of accessible
>>> equipment and materials and by misconceptions held by science faculty
>>> and teachers of the blind about the capabilities of the blind in these
>>> curricula; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, these misconceptions have contributed to a significantly lower
>>> percentage of blind students pursuing careers in science, technology,
>>> engineering, and mathematics (STEM); and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, increasingly school districts across the United States have
>>> replaced hands-on science learning with online virtual laboratory
>>> experiences; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, many of these virtual laboratory experiences are not
>>> accessible using the access technology employed by blind students,
>>> thereby denying them the experience of scientific exploration and
>>> discovery; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, this lack of educational experience and opportunity will
>>> further decrease the number of blind students seeking to enter STEM
>>> professions; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, the National Federation of the Blind is creating greater
>>> understanding among teachers by offering challenging STEM-related
>>> programs that serve as a demonstration of the techniques that can be
>>> used to integrate the blind into STEM courses: Now, therefore,
>>>
>>> BE IT RESOLVED by the National Federation of the Blind in Convention
>>> assembled this seventh day of July, 2010, in the city of Dallas, Texas,
>>> that this organization urge the United States Department of Education to
>>> mandate that all hands-on and virtual laboratory learning experiences be
>>> accessible to blind students so that they can have the same educational
>>> opportunities as their sighted classmates; and
>>>
>>> BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this organization promote legislation as
>>> part of the reauthorization of the Individuals with Disabilities
>>> Education Act (IDEA) to provide parents and blind students with legal
>>> recourse provisions in the Individualized Education Program (IEP) to
>>> require that a school provide a hands-on science learning experience if
>>> an accessible virtual one cannot be offered; and
>>>
>>> BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this organization urge technology companies
>>> to work with the National Federation of the Blind to eliminate the
>>> accessibility barriers to virtual laboratory learning experiences,
>>> making them more accessible to the blind of this nation.
>>>
>>> ------------
>>>
>>> Resolution 2010-15
>>>
>>> Regarding Discrimination by Airlines Against Blind Passengers
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, in an age in which the Internet increasingly dominates the way
>>> business is conducted, air carriers usually make their lowest fares and
>>> deepest discounts available only to those customers who book travel
>>> through airline Websites; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, while booking air travel online can be convenient, blind
>>> passengers cannot always take advantage of this service because of
>>> accessibility barriers on airline Websites; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, in recognition of this fact the Department of Transportation
>>> issued regulations requiring that, if a passenger with a disability
>>> cannot use an airline Website to book travel because it is inaccessible
>>> and instead calls the airline's customer service number, the airline
>>> must offer the passenger the same air fares and discounts available on
>>> the Website over the telephone and must waive any fee for the use of the
>>> telephone service; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, a recent study conducted by Dr. Jonathan Lazar, director of
>>> the Universal Usability Laboratory (UUL) at Towson University in
>>> Maryland, and some of his students found that Websites operated by four
>>> out of the ten U.S. airlines that were studied--Alaska Airlines, JetBlue
>>> Airlines, United Airlines, and US Airways--contain accessibility
>>> barriers that prevent blind users from booking travel on these Websites;
>>> and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, this study, which will be published in Government Information
>>> Quarterly, further found that, when the call centers of these four
>>> airlines were contacted by study participants who identified themselves
>>> as blind people needing to book travel by telephone because they could
>>> not access the airline's Website, the airlines did not always follow the
>>> Department of Transportation regulations requiring them to offer the
>>> same air fares to blind customers who call their customer service lines
>>> and to waive the fee for using their call center instead of their
>>> Website, even when specifically informed by the caller of these
>>> regulations; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, the most egregious violators of these regulations were United
>>> Airlines and US Airways, which failed to follow one or both of these
>>> regulatory requirements in at least a third and as many as 46 percent of
>>> the calls placed to them; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, the results of this study are a textbook example of why
>>> government agencies and businesses must not rely on a philosophy of
>>> separate-but-equal access for blind customers, since in reality separate
>>> is never equal; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, the only way to ensure truly equal access by the blind and to
>>> prevent discrimination is to require air carriers to maintain accessible
>>> Websites that allow blind customers to perform all of the functions that
>>> sighted customers can perform, particularly the booking of air travel:
>>> Now, therefore,
>>>
>>> BE IT RESOLVED by the National Federation of the Blind in Convention
>>> assembled this seventh day of July, 2010, in the city of Dallas, Texas,
>>> that this organization urge the secretary of transportation to issue
>>> regulations requiring all air carriers to maintain accessible Websites
>>> that allow blind customers to perform all of the functions available to
>>> sighted customers, including the booking of air travel; and
>>>
>>> BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this organization demand that the four
>>> airlines whose Websites were identified as having accessibility barriers
>>> take immediate steps to remove those barriers and allow blind customers
>>> full and equal access to their Websites and specifically to the ability
>>> to book air travel online.
>>>
>>> ------------
>>>
>>> Resolution 2010-16
>>>
>>> Regarding the Randolph-Sheppard Act and the
>>>
>>> Committee for Purchase From People Who Are Blind or Severely Disabled
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, the Randolph-Sheppard Act applies to all federal contracts and
>>> permits for cafeteria and food services on federal property; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, the Randolph-Sheppard Act takes priority over the
>>> Javits-Wagner-O'Day Act in contracts for cafeteria and food services;
>>> and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, notwithstanding the Randolph-Sheppard Act's priority, the
>>> Committee for Purchase From People Who Are Blind or Severely Disabled
>>> routinely seeks to add cafeteria and food services to its procurement
>>> list without notice to the Rehabilitation Services Administration or the
>>> affected state licensing agencies; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, the Committee for Purchase From People Who Are Blind or
>>> Severely Disabled also routinely seeks to add mess-attendant or
>>> dining-facilities-attendant services to the procurement list without
>>> notice to the Rehabilitation Services Administration or the affected
>>> state licensing agencies and without providing information from which it
>>> can be determined whether the services fall under the Randolph-Sheppard
>>> Act; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, the Committee for Purchase From People Who Are Blind or
>>> Severely Disabled has refused to respond to requests for information
>>> about services proposed for addition to the procurement list: Now,
>>> therefore,
>>>
>>> BE IT RESOLVED by the National Federation of the Blind in Convention
>>> assembled this seventh day of July, 2010, in the city of Dallas, Texas,
>>> that this organization condemn and deplore the actions of the Committee
>>> for Purchase >From People Who Are Blind or Severely Disabled in
>>> continuing to place on the procurement list services that fall under the
>>> Randolph-Sheppard Act; and
>>>
>>> BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this organization condemn and deplore the
>>> refusal of the Committee for Purchase From People Who Are Blind or
>>> Severely Disabled to follow appropriate, transparent, and accountable
>>> practices to determine which contracts should be placed on the
>>> procurement list; and
>>>
>>> BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this organization urge the Committee for
>>> Purchase >From People Who Are Blind or Severely Disabled and other
>>> federal agencies to provide full details about the services proposed for
>>> addition to the procurement list so that all interested stakeholders can
>>> be assured that the addition complies with all applicable laws; and
>>>
>>> BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this organization call upon the House
>>> Committee on Oversight and Government Reform and the Senate Committee on
>>> Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions to take such actions as will
>>> require the Committee for Purchase From People Who Are Blind or Severely
>>> Disabled to comply with the law.
>>>
>>> ------------
>>>
>>> Resolution 2010-17
>>>
>>> Regarding Online Testing
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, many school districts throughout the country are now using
>>> online test preparation sites, such as Study Island by CTB/McGraw-Hill,
>>> to aid their students in readying themselves for the assessments used in
>>> their states to determine progress in meeting the goals of the No Child
>>> Left Behind Act and other end-of-course requirements; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, Study Island and other preparation and testing sites have
>>> failed to incorporate adequate accessibility features to allow blind or
>>> visually impaired students to access all of the needed information to
>>> prepare for and take pretests; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, this inaccessibility is evidenced in designs that convey
>>> essential information to the student by using color, strike-throughs,
>>> unlabeled graphics, and split frames, all of which create barriers for
>>> the blind student; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, these barriers result in blind test takers' being evaluated
>>> more on the accessibility of the computer programs used to administer
>>> the pretests than on the content the test is intended to measure; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, cooperation with organizations of and for the blind can result
>>> in software solutions that ensure equality of opportunity to blind
>>> students preparing for these all-important tests: Now, therefore,
>>>
>>> BE IT RESOLVED by the National Federation of the Blind in Convention
>>> assembled this seventh day of July, 2010, in the city of Dallas, Texas,
>>> that this organization call upon the United States Department of
>>> Education to ensure that any test preparation company receiving a
>>> contract to produce statewide or national tests or study materials build
>>> accessibility features into its software and make its Websites
>>> accessible to the blind; and
>>>
>>> BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that until such time as electronically
>>> administered tests and study materials are as usable by the blind as
>>> they are by the sighted, this organization insist that all materials be
>>> made available in hard-copy Braille, large print, and such other
>>> alternative formats as may be necessary to ensure that preparation for
>>> and administration of tests are equally accessible to blind people.
>>>
>>> ------------
>>>
>>> Resolution 2010-18
>>>
>>> Regarding the Blind Persons Return to Work Act of 2010
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, on January 28, 2010, Senators Christopher Dodd of Connecticut
>>> and John McCain of Arizona introduced the Blind Persons Return to Work
>>> Act of 2010 (S. 2962), the Senate companion to the Blind Persons Return
>>> to Work Act of 2009 (H.R. 886), introduced in the House last year by
>>> Congressman John Lewis of Georgia; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, this legislation would encourage blind people to reach their
>>> full employment potential by reforming the Social Security Disability
>>> Insurance (SSDI) program so that blind beneficiaries will lose only one
>>> dollar of benefits for every three dollars earned over the monthly
>>> limit, instead of losing all benefits when they exceed this limit; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, this legislation will also relieve administrative burdens for
>>> both the Social Security Administration and blind beneficiaries by
>>> changing the monthly earnings test to an annual test and by setting a
>>> fixed deduction for impairment-related work expenses; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, the National Federation of the Blind has worked tirelessly for
>>> well over ten years to remove the disincentive to work in the SSDI
>>> program so that blind beneficiaries can transition from SSDI to the
>>> workforce without being penalized for doing so; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, in 1999 Congress recognized this problem and passed Ticket to
>>> Work legislation that was supposed to establish a demonstration project
>>> to test the viability of a two-for-one earnings-to-benefit reduction
>>> program; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, despite over ten years' having elapsed, the demonstration
>>> project has yet to begin because of changes in leadership and
>>> disagreements among actuaries; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, with a 70 percent rate of unemployment and underemployment for
>>> the blind, we cannot wait for the stalled demonstration project to
>>> begin; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, the United States Senate is working on a jobs bill to address
>>> the high unemployment rate across America, which affects people with
>>> disabilities even more than the rest of the population: Now, therefore,
>>>
>>> BE IT RESOLVED by the National Federation of the Blind in Convention
>>> assembled this seventh day of July, 2010, in the city of Dallas, Texas,
>>> that this organization urge the United States Senate to include
>>> provisions of the Blind Persons Return to Work Act of 2010 in the Senate
>>> jobs bill to ensure that blind people can successfully enter the
>>> workforce and reach their full employment potential; and
>>>
>>> BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that this organization urge Congress to pass
>>> this jobs bill, thus passing the Blind Persons Return to Work Act; and
>>>
>>> BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that this organization commend Congressman
>>> Lewis and Senators Dodd and McCain for their longtime championing of the
>>> Blind Persons Return to Work Act and loyalty to our cause.
>>>
>>> ------------
>>>
>>> Resolution 2010-19
>>>
>>> Regarding NLS Restrictions on Foreign-Produced Materials
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, the National Library Service for the Blind and Physically
>>> Handicapped of the Library of Congress (NLS) has a long history of
>>> providing reading materials in Braille and recorded formats to its
>>> patrons; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, NLS is able to produce only approximately 2,000 books per
>>> year, a mere fraction of the number of books published in the U.S. each
>>> year; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, in recognition of the dearth of books available to its
>>> patrons, NLS has in the past offered materials recorded by libraries and
>>> producers outside the United States through interlibrary loan; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, although NLS still permits patrons to borrow Braille materials
>>> from producers outside the U.S., in 2008 following the conversion to
>>> digital audio format and the development of the Braille and Audio
>>> Reading Download program, NLS discontinued interlibrary loan of digital
>>> audio materials from foreign producers; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, one of the principal reasons for this discontinuation is the
>>> incompatibility of file formats with the NLS system, which requires
>>> features not available to international producers; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, the expectation of greater access to materials created by the
>>> digitization of books is now being curtailed because of the new NLS
>>> policy on digital audio books from foreign producers: Now, therefore,
>>>
>>> BE IT RESOLVED by the National Federation of the Blind in Convention
>>> assembled this seventh day of July, 2010, in the City of Dallas, Texas,
>>> that this organization urge NLS immediately to work with foreign
>>> producers of digital audio materials to fulfill the real promise of
>>> access made possible by today's advanced digital technology.
>>>
>>> ------------
>>>
>>> Resolution 2010-20
>>>
>>> Regarding Refreshable Braille Notetaker Devices
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, the advent of refreshable Braille technology has made Braille
>>> more portable; more flexible; and, best of all, more widely available
>>> than ever before; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, refreshable-Braille technology is becoming increasingly
>>> necessary in educating blind children because a rapidly increasing
>>> portion of the reading material is available only in an on-screen
>>> format; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, the failure to provide blind students with a Braille interface
>>> reduces their opportunity to acquire literacy skills because they are
>>> forced to listen to the material using computer speech output; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, personal data assistants with refreshable Braille displays
>>> (more commonly known as electronic notetakers) include the ability for
>>> the user to handle word processing, email, and Web browsing, providing
>>> potential for seamless communication between those who use Braille and
>>> those who use print; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, despite the advertised claims that these devices are
>>> compatible with mainstream word processors, the reality is that none of
>>> them allows a Braille user the security of knowing they can author,
>>> read, or collaborate with sighted peers who use current versions of
>>> today's popular applications, even though the Braille devices cost three
>>> to four times as much as the hardware and software used by the general
>>> public; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, while all of these Braille notetakers advertise access to the
>>> Internet and feature some version of a browser, most do not allow
>>> communication with even the most basic Java scripts used to gain access
>>> at airports and hotels, and they are not compatible with Aria and other
>>> technologies currently being deployed by businesses, Internet providers,
>>> and even social-networking sites; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, many of today's mainstream computers, phones, and PDAs can be
>>> accessed in Braille by connecting them to a type of refreshable Braille
>>> display that is not itself a notetaker, giving the user access to the
>>> power and integration of the mainstream device but sacrificing some of
>>> the convenience of an all-in-one device (as are the notetakers): Now,
>>> therefore,
>>>
>>> BE IT RESOLVED by the National Federation of the Blind in Convention
>>> assembled this seventh day of July, 2010, in the city of Dallas, Texas,
>>> that this organization urge the designers and manufacturers of
>>> notetakers with refreshable Braille displays to give top priority in
>>> their future development to providing better integration with mainstream
>>> devices, applications, and data; and
>>>
>>> BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this organization strongly encourage school
>>> districts and others involved in the purchase of educational access
>>> technology to acquire refreshable Braille technology for blind students
>>> and to consider the need for integration with mainstream devices,
>>> applications, and data when choosing which devices to purchase.
>>>
>>> ------------
>>>
>>> Resolution 2010-21
>>>
>>> Regarding Manufacture of Accessible Medical Devices
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, diabetics must measure the level of glucose in their blood
>>> accurately and draw the correct amount of insulin in order to control
>>> their diabetes and to reduce the risk of diabetic complications; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, tens of thousands of diabetics need nonvisual access to
>>> equipment such as blood glucose meters and insulin-injection and
>>> infusion devices because diabetes is the leading cause of blindness
>>> among adults of working age in the United States with thousands losing
>>> their vision each year; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, the need for nonvisual access is even greater because many
>>> blind and visually impaired senior citizens become diabetic and many
>>> diabetic senior citizens lose vision either temporarily or permanently
>>> from causes other than diabetes; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, nonvisual access means that a blind person can use all
>>> features, functions, and navigation aspects of a given device, and
>>> merely providing speech output does not constitute true accessibility;
>>> and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, some manufacturers of diabetic equipment incorporate true
>>> nonvisual access features in their devices, but more companies must be
>>> encouraged to follow this practice; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, to meet the goal of emphasizing wellness programs in the 2010
>>> healthcare reform legislation, the federal government should encourage
>>> manufacturers to ensure true nonvisual access to their devices; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services is currently
>>> promulgating regulations for health information technology programs, but
>>> the scope of the regulations should be broadened to include medical
>>> devices as well: Now, therefore,
>>>
>>> BE IT RESOLVED by the National Federation of the Blind in Convention
>>> assembled this seventh day of July, 2010, in the city of Dallas, Texas,
>>> that this organization strongly urge the secretary of the U.S.
>>> Department of Health and Human Services to incorporate true nonvisual
>>> access requirements for the manufacture of diabetic devices in its
>>> health information technology regulations; and
>>>
>>> BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this organization insist that the secretary
>>> of health and human services create incentives that will lead to greater
>>> accessibility of current and future diabetic equipment.
>>>
>>> ------------
>>>
>>> Resolution 2010-22
>>>
>>> Regarding Inaccessible Basic Cell Phones and Smartphones
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, more and more manufacturers are introducing basic cell phones
>>> and smartphones with an ever increasing number of capabilities such as
>>> call management, contact management, text messaging, Internet browsing,
>>> and e-mail; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, some of these phones even have the capability to function as
>>> social networking content aggregators for Facebook, MySpace, Twitter,
>>> and Windows Live; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, despite the requirements of Section 255 of the
>>> Telecommunications Act and best industry practices, as demonstrated by
>>> Apple, for making cell phones accessible to the blind out of the box,
>>> too many manufacturers release cell phones without any way for blind
>>> users to access many of their features; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, many companies advertise their commitment to accessibility but
>>> ignore our needs, despite the fact that blind consumers are now, and
>>> have been for many years, purchasers of basic cell phones and
>>> smartphones: Now, therefore,
>>>
>>> BE IT RESOLVED by the National Federation of the Blind in Convention
>>> assembled this seventh day of July, 2010, in the city of Dallas, Texas,
>>> that this organization condemn and deplore the release of these
>>> inaccessible basic cell phones and smartphones by manufacturers in
>>> flagrant disregard of both their legal obligations and their obligation
>>> to provide equal access to their products for all consumers, including
>>> the blind; and
>>>
>>> BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this organization demand that manufacturers
>>> follow the lead of Apple and immediately take steps to provide equal
>>> access for the blind to all current and future basic cell phones and
>>> smartphones.
>>>
>>> ------------
>>>
>>> Resolution 2010-23
>>>
>>> Regarding Sirius XM Radio, Inc.
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, Sirius XM Radio, Inc., is the sole provider in the United
>>> States of radio programming delivered by satellite to paid subscribers
>>> using receivers specifically designed to receive these satellite
>>> transmissions; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, the service provided by Sirius XM offers a wide variety of
>>> audio programming, including most genres of music, live sporting events,
>>> news, talk, comedy, and both classic and contemporary radio drama; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, despite the fact that Sirius XM is a radio service, the units
>>> that subscribers must purchase in order to receive the service have
>>> visual displays to convey information to the listener such as the title
>>> and artist of the current song being played or the score of the sporting
>>> event to which the listener is tuned; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, Sirius XM also transmits some information exclusively to the
>>> visual display such as the latest stock quotes and the current
>>> temperature and weather conditions when a user is tuned to its traffic
>>> and weather channels; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, sighted users of the service can perform a number of tasks
>>> such as viewing the current time, date, signal reception, and battery
>>> status of the receiver; setting the receiver to record a scheduled
>>> program; viewing what is playing across the service without switching
>>> stations; organizing recorded music and programs; creating, organizing,
>>> and navigating a list of favorite channels; and much more, but these
>>> features are not available to blind users because they cannot read the
>>> visual display; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, like many other consumer electronic products, Sirius XM radio
>>> receivers increasingly rely on touch screens and interactive visual
>>> interfaces to accomplish all tasks, rather than traditional buttons,
>>> switches, or knobs, making it difficult for blind users to access even
>>> the basic features of these receivers; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, despite these barriers to full access to the Sirius XM
>>> satellite radio service, many blind Americans have purchased
>>> subscriptions to the service because of its wide variety of quality
>>> radio programming, and it is likely that many more would do so if Sirius
>>> XM were to make its radio receivers accessible; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, the technology to make these receivers accessible already
>>> exists and has been implemented in other personal entertainment devices
>>> such as Apple's iPod and iPhone product lines and the DICE ITR-100-A HD
>>> radio; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, accessible Sirius XM receivers that allow users to access all
>>> functions nonvisually would not only benefit blind consumers, but would
>>> also be ideal for older Americans who are losing vision, for those with
>>> other disabilities that prevent them from reading print, and for the
>>> many subscribers who use the service in their cars, since they would be
>>> able to control their satellite radios with less distraction from
>>> driving: Now, therefore,
>>>
>>> BE IT RESOLVED by the National Federation of the Blind in Convention
>>> assembled this seventh day of July, 2010, in the city of Dallas, Texas,
>>> that this organization urge Sirius XM Radio, Inc., to make its receivers
>>> fully accessible to blind subscribers.
>>>
>>> ------------
>>>
>>> Resolution 2010-24
>>>
>>> Regarding the Worldwide Reading Rights Campaign and the
>>>
>>> Right to Get Accessible Texts from Throughout the World
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, the National Federation of the Blind has led the way in
>>> advancing the rights of the blind to gain access to published works on
>>> the national and international levels; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, the Federation's national efforts resulted in passage of the
>>> Chafee Amendment to U.S. copyright law, which permits authorized
>>> entities to reproduce published works in accessible formats without
>>> permission from the copyright holder; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, the vast majority of the countries of the world do not possess
>>> such laws or possess laws that are much weaker; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, generally speaking, international copyright law does not
>>> currently permit the sharing of accessible texts across international
>>> borders, with the result that blind people in the United States cannot
>>> get access to hundreds of thousands of works in accessible formats
>>> produced in other countries, and blind people throughout the rest of the
>>> world cannot get access to the United States collection, creating a
>>> worldwide book famine, in which less than one percent of all published
>>> works are available to the blind in accessible formats; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, this inability to share accessible books across borders and
>>> the international inconsistency in copyright law lead either to needless
>>> duplication in the conversion of published works into accessible formats
>>> or to no access at all; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, to address this book famine, the National Federation of the
>>> Blind worked with the World Blind Union (WBU) to draft a proposed treaty
>>> that would legalize the cross-border sharing of accessible works and
>>> also harmonize copyright exceptions to create an atmosphere in which
>>> even greater numbers of accessible works can be produced; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, in 2008 the WBU brought this proposed treaty before the World
>>> Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), an entity of the United
>>> Nations, through original sponsorship by Brazil, Ecuador, and Paraguay,
>>> and later by Mexico; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, from June 21 through 24, 2010, WIPO's Standing Committee on
>>> Copyright (SCCR) conducted its twentieth regular session (SCCR 20) in
>>> Geneva, where the WBU-proposed treaty and three other proposals on the
>>> same topic received extensive consideration; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, the National Federation of the Blind received official
>>> standing as an authorized non-governmental organization (NGO) and gave
>>> an intervention in favor of the WBU-proposed treaty and/or some other
>>> binding international legal instrument; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, the SCCR cannot make recommendations unless all nations
>>> present agree; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, after years of negotiation between governments and NGOs, it
>>> appeared that a proposal would go forward at SCCR 20 that would have led
>>> to binding international legal instruments within a definite time; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, at the last minute, despite the Herculean efforts of the WBU
>>> community, the U.S. government delegation, and the Latin American block
>>> of countries, the African Union countries withdrew their support for the
>>> negotiated proposal, stating that one of their issues (gaining copyright
>>> exceptions for educational, research, and archive purposes) must proceed
>>> at the same pace as the issue affecting the blind, even though the
>>> African Union's proposal addresses an entirely different subject and is
>>> not as well developed at this time: Now, therefore,
>>>
>>> BE IT RESOLVED by the National Federation of the Blind in Convention
>>> assembled this seventh day of July, 2010, in the city of Dallas, Texas,
>>> that this organization reaffirm its support for the World Blind Union's
>>> proposed Treaty for the Visually Impaired; and
>>>
>>> BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this organization express its great outrage
>>> and disappointment that the African Union chose to hijack the proposed
>>> WBU treaty and related proposals, an action needlessly delaying relief
>>> from the worldwide book famine for blind people; and
>>>
>>> BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this organization commend the U.S.
>>> government delegation's efforts in Geneva to keep the process moving
>>> forward; and
>>>
>>> BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this organization call upon the U.S.
>>> government to work closely with the National Federation of the Blind,
>>> the WBU, and other governments to find a way forward to the adoption of
>>> binding international norms and legal instruments that permit
>>> cross-border sharing of accessible works and harmonize copyright
>>> exceptions as part of the overall effort to secure the right of blind
>>> people to read published works on the same terms as the rest of the
>>> world population.
>>>
>>> ------------
>>>
>>> Resolution 2010-25
>>>
>>> Regarding Civil Rights Protection of Blind People
>>>
>>> and Their Service Animals in Public Accommodations
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, the purpose of the National Federation of the Blind is "the
>>> removal of the legal, social, and economic barriers faced by the blind"
>>> so that we will achieve "full integration into society on terms of
>>> equality"; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, discrimination by places of public accommodation is one of the
>>> barriers faced by the blind, especially among those who choose to use a
>>> guide dog as their mobility tool; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, state laws vary in the protection from discrimination that
>>> they offer to their blind citizens; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) prohibits
>>> discrimination on the basis of disability in public accommodations and
>>> offers greater protection against discrimination than many state laws;
>>> and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, many states have laws that contain provisions that are
>>> incongruent with the ADA such as requirements that service animals wear
>>> specific gear, provisions for muzzling, requirements for documentation,
>>> language concerning certifications that do not exist, and prohibitions
>>> of service animals in zoos, all of which are considered discriminatory
>>> under the ADA; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, although the ADA has been in existence for twenty years, many
>>> states have not bothered to change their laws to conform to the ADA; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, a large majority of states provide criminal penalties for
>>> discrimination on the basis of disability, allowing law enforcement to
>>> intervene, generally resulting in an immediate resolution of such access
>>> issues while providing appropriate penalties for more serious
>>> infractions; and
>>>
>>> WHEREAS, criminal penalties allow a more expeditious resolution of such
>>> access issues (benefiting the disabled community in general and society
>>> as a whole) by addressing discrimination at the local level, while
>>> relieving individuals from the burden of costly litigation and prolonged
>>> civil processes: Now, therefore,
>>>
>>> BE IT RESOLVED by the National Federation of the Blind in Convention
>>> assembled this seventh day of July, 2010, in the city of Dallas, Texas,
>>> that this organization call upon state legislatures to examine their
>>> statutes for parity with the ADA, removing provisions that are not in
>>> conformity with this federal law; and
>>>
>>> BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this organization call upon the remaining
>>> states that do not provide criminal penalties for discrimination against
>>> blind guide dog users to promote and protect the equal rights of their
>>> blind citizens more effectively by creating criminal penalties for acts
>>> of discrimination; and
>>>
>>> BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this organization urge all states to
>>> protect the civil rights of the blind by vigorous enforcement of the
>>> law.
>>> _______________________________________________
>>> nfb-talk mailing list
>>> nfb-talk at nfbnet.org
>>> http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nfb-talk_nfbnet.org
>>
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