[NFB_of_Georgia] From the National President

Tue Jul 28 22:14:29 UTC 2020

*Critical Actions:* *NFB20 Survey--Please Provide Feedback This Week:*

Thank you for your participation, engagement, and support during this
year’s national convention. Please complete this short survey by Friday,
July 31, to provide feedback on your convention experience. Take the survey
now <https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/nfb20>.

*News:* *NFB20 Continued--Additional Reports Now Available:*

A couple of presentations originally scheduled for the Saturday agenda of
the NFB 2020 National Convention had to rescheduled for after convention.
They are available now on our YouTube channel. Additionally, find other
NFB20 content there as it becomes available. Now available:

·         Protecting and Expanding the Right of the Blind to Live in the
World: A Report from the Advocacy and Policy Department

·         Connecting with the Heartbeat of the Federation: A Report from
the Jernigan Institute

·         Leveraging the Power of the Americans with Disability Act

·         NFB20 Virtual Choir

And more coming *soon*!

Check out the NFB20 YouTube Playlist
<https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLW144PTYGib0LmONUtu33ZWl_EI3dpXEi>!
Please note that all highlights will be posted soon to nfb.org/convention.
  *NFB BELL® In Home Edition:*

We have nearly 140 participants registered for our final session of NFB
BELL In Home Edition. Thank you all for the work you have done to mentor
these students and their families and introduce them to our Federation.
This session did start out with some technical difficulties, and the Zoom
links that were originally sent have been updated. Students have been split
into five classes, each taught by a different experienced NFB BELL Academy
teacher. The new Zoom connection information has been sent to all of the
families. We are also working to get information for each student out to
the BELL coordinators in each state. If you or any families in your
affiliate have questions, feel free to reach out to our NFB BELL Academy
team atbell at nfb.org or at extension 2418.
 *Advocacy and Policy Update:*

Riding the wave of excitement from our national convention, we have made
significant progress on two of our key legislative priorities in recent
weeks.

The Access Technology Affordability Act (H.R. 2086/S. 815) has gained
eleven new cosponsors in the House since the beginning of July. They are:

Rep. Bill Posey, Florida

Rep. Don Young, Alaska

Rep. Dean Phillips, Minnesota

Rep. John Katko, New York

Rep. Michael T. McCaul, Texas

Rep. Glenn Grothman, Wisconsin

Rep. Guy Reschenthaler, Pennsylvania

Rep. John R. Curtis, Utah

Rep. Jaime Herrera Beutler, Washington

Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman, New Jersey

Rep. Michael Guest, Mississippi

There are now 120 total cosponsors for the ATAA in the House of
Representatives. This support is phenomenal and gives us more leverage to
argue for the inclusion of this critical legislation in the COVID-19 relief
package currently being debated in Congress.

Another example of our successful advocacy is with Sami’s Law (H.R. 4686).
We have been working very closely with the office of Representative Chris
Smith (New Jersey) to make certain that this bill will ensure the safety
and security of blind rideshare passengers. The bill will include the
following definition of “nonvisual”:

(1) the terms ‘‘non-visual’’ and ‘‘non-visually accessible’’, with regards
to the system required under sections 2(a)(1)(D) and 3(1)(B) mean digital
content that—

(A) meets the success criteria of the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines
(WCAG) 2.0, Level AA, and any successor to or revision of such guidelines
that has been incorporated into the Section 508 standards issued by the
United States Access Board, including, to the extent applicable, the Web
Accessibility Initiative - Accessible Rich Internet Applications
(WAI–ARIA); or

(B) allows a blind or visually impaired passenger to access the same
information, and utilize the same system offered to other passengers as
required under Sections 2(a)(1)(D) and 3(1)(B) in a way that provides a
comparable level of privacy, independence and substantially equivalent ease
of use to the passenger.

This version of Sami’s Law is expected to be put to a vote on the House
floor tomorrow afternoon.
 *New Blog Post--Thirty Years after Covering the Signing of the ADA:*

“Blend in. Stand out. Those were the two seemingly dichotomous goals
driving me on July 26, 1990. Always, as a blind person, I wanted to find
some level of obscurity, to be just one of the herd. And, always, as a
writer, I wanted my work to stand out, stand up, be stellar and noteworthy
as topnotch writing.” Read more about Deborah Kendrick
<https://www.nfb.org/blog/thirty-years-after-covering-signing-ada> and her
story of covering the signing of the ADA.
 *Walmart:*

As a part of NFB’s lawsuit against Walmart
<https://www.nfb.org/about-us/press-room/walmart-sued-blind-maryland-residents-over-self-service-checkout-kiosks>,
we need to hear from members who live in states other than Maryland and who
shop at Walmart and would like for Walmart’s self-checkout kiosks to be
accessible. Please contact Valerie Yingling at vyingling at nfb.org if this
applies to you.

*Affiliate Contributions to NFB BELL:*

We have received additional affiliate contributions to NFB BELL. I am proud
to see our affiliates come together to support our nationwide programming.
Recognition and appreciation go out to the following affiliates:

NFB of Alabama

NFB of Arizona

NFB of California

NFB of Connecticut

NFB of Florida

NFB of Georgia

NFB of Hawaii

NFB of Illinois

NFB of Kentucky

NFB of Louisiana

NFB of Minnesota

NFB of Missouri

NFB of New Jersey

NFB of Ohio

NFB of Pennsylvania

NFB of Texas

NFB of Utah

NFB of Virginia

If we have missed any affiliate, please reach out to Patti Chang at
pchang at nfb.org. We want to update our records if we have missed any
contributions. This is how we build the Federation!

*Dates to Keep in Mind:*

   - July 27-August 7: NFB BELL® In Home Edition
   - February 8, 2021: Washington Seminar Great Gathering-In

The National Federation of the Blind knows that blindness is not the
characteristic that defines you or your future. Every day we raise the
expectations of blind people, because low expectations create obstacles
between blind people and our dreams. You can live the life you want;
blindness is not what holds you back.

Mark A. Riccobono, President

200 East Wells Street, Baltimore, MD 21230

(410) 659-9314 | officeofthepresident at nfb.org

[image: National Federation of the Blind] <https://nfb.org/>

-- 
Dorothy Griffin - President
National Federation of the Blind of Georgia
dgriffin at nfbga.org
770-374-4832

The National Federation of the Blind knows that blindness is not the
characteristic that defines you or your future. Every day we raise the
expectations of blind people, because low expectations create obstacles
between blind people and our dreams. You can live the life you want;
blindness is not what holds you back.