[Nfbf-l] Blind Couple's Baby Returned Kansas City, MO

Thu Jul 22 23:20:30 UTC 2010

I hate to sound so harsh, but it appears she has a lot to learn. 
Personally, I don't see what's so terrible about the NAACP either, just my 
opinion, but she obviously needs to shut up and listen and maybe learn 
something besides her obviously extremely mean-spirited, prejudiced views.

Mark Tardif
Welcome to my planet
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "RJ Sandefur" <joltingjacksandefur at gmail.com>
To: "NFB of Florida Internet Mailing List" <nfbf-l at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Wednesday, July 21, 2010 10:35 PM
Subject: Re: [Nfbf-l] Blind Couple's Baby Returned Kansas City, MO

>I am not supprised. She tells me I need to face reality, that It is 
>impossible for blind people to have kids, and she hates the NFB, she 
>likened the NFB to the NAACP. You can't tell her anything! She believes If 
>a blind person got a job, it was because some one felt sorry for them! RJ
> ----- Original Message ----- 
> From: "Jim Ellsworth" <jellsworth1 at tampabay.rr.com>
> To: "'NFB of Florida Internet Mailing List'" <nfbf-l at nfbnet.org>
> Sent: Wednesday, July 21, 2010 9:53 PM
> Subject: Re: [Nfbf-l] Blind Couple's Baby Returned Kansas City, MO
>
>
>> RJ,
>>
>> That is a very general statement from your sister with no reasons given 
>> as
>> to why she feels that way.  Can you provide specifics as to why she has 
>> that
>> opinion?
>>
>> There are sighted parents of blind children, blind parents of sighted
>> children and yes, even blind parents raising blind children.  My wife and 
>> I
>> are both blind and raising children and in fact I have two daughters who 
>> are
>> both sighted and are now grown.  They survived quite nicely and would be 
>> the
>> first to tell you that it is very possible for blind people to have and
>> raise children.  They know from first hand experience.  You and your 
>> sister
>> would be surprised just how much blind people can do and do it extremely
>> well.
>>
>> Cheers,
>> Jim Ellsworth
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: nfbf-l-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:nfbf-l-bounces at nfbnet.org] On 
>> Behalf
>> Of RJ Sandefur
>> Sent: Wednesday, July 21, 2010 7:36 PM
>> To: NFB of Florida Internet Mailing List
>> Subject: Re: [Nfbf-l] Blind Couple's Baby Returned Kansas City, MO
>>
>> My sister believes Blind people have no biziness raising children, and 
>> that
>> the state has the responiblity to keep children safe! RJ
>> ----- Original Message ----- 
>> From: "Lenora J. Marten" <bluegolfshoes at aol.com>
>> To: <nfbf-l at nfbnet.org>
>> Cc: <blindkid at nfbnet.org>
>> Sent: Wednesday, July 21, 2010 6:34 PM
>> Subject: [Nfbf-l] Blind Couple's Baby Returned Kansas City, MO
>>
>>
>>>
>>> For those of you who heard about this story in Dallas.... here is an
>>> update.
>>> Lenora
>>>
>>>
>>> Visually Impaired Couple Wins Baby Back From State
>>> Erika Johnson, Blake Sinnett Were Reported To Children's Services
>>>
>>> POSTED: 9:02 pm CDT July 20, 2010
>>> UPDATED: 10:55 am CDT July 21, 2010
>>>
>>> KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- A couple says ignorance about their blindness 
>>> resulted
>>
>>> in their daughter being taken away by the state.
>>> Erika Johnson and Blake Sinnett were reunited with their 2-month-old 
>>> baby,
>>
>>> named Mikaela, on Tuesday. Erika Johnson told KMBC's Peggy Breit it
>>> started just after Mikaela was born, when Erika was breastfeeding the 
>>> baby
>>
>>> and a nurse became concerned.
>>> "Well, at first I was pretty shocked," Johnson said. "She said because I
>>> said, 'Is she OK?' She said, 'No.' She was beginning to turn blue, but,
>>> you know, it's OK, it could happen to anybody."
>>> Johnson and Sinnett kept tending to their child unaware that someone had
>>> called children's services. That night, a social services agent came to
>>> see them.
>>> "Her concern was because we were blind, we weren't going to be able to
>>> adequately care for Mikaela," Johnson said.
>>> The agent first suggested that the couple get 24-7 sighted care to help 
>>> at
>>
>>> home. When they could not make that happen, Mikaela was taken away.
>>> It was through the Federation of the Blind that Johnson and Sinnett 
>>> found
>>> attorney Amy Coopman.
>>> "Any parent out there (blind or not), you have a constitutional right to
>>> that relationship with your child. That has been violated here. They're
>>> not going to get that time back," Coopman said.
>>> Breit reported that the couple's first battle is over -- the state 
>>> dropped
>>
>>> its petition and brought Mikaela home.
>>> "Well, I'm very happy and grateful that she is finally back in our care
>>> again," Sinnett said.
>>> The couple said that they want to make sure that no other visually
>>> impaired Missourian goes through what they have.
>>> "The most challenging thing, I think we're going to have to face, is the
>>> ignorance of other people -- the assumption that because we are blind or
>>> visually impaired that we can't take care of our child," Johnson said.
>>> Centerpoint Medical Center issued the following statement: "Centerpoint
>>> Medical Center is committed to providing the very best patient care for
>>> our expectant mothers and newborn babies. While patient privacy laws
>>> prevent us from commenting on these specific allegations, the health and
>>> safety of all our patients is very important to us."
>>>
>>>
>>> Copyright 2010 by KMBC.com. All rights reserved. This material may not 
>>> be
>>> published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> Lenora
>>> _______________________________________________
>>> Nfbf-l mailing list
>>> Nfbf-l at nfbnet.org
>>> http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nfbf-l_nfbnet.org
>>> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for
>>> Nfbf-l:
>>>
>> http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/options/nfbf-l_nfbnet.org/joltingjacksandefur%
>> 40gmail.com
>>
>>
>> _______________________________________________
>> Nfbf-l mailing list
>> Nfbf-l at nfbnet.org
>> http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nfbf-l_nfbnet.org
>> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for
>> Nfbf-l:
>> http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/options/nfbf-l_nfbnet.org/jellsworth1%40tampab
>> ay.rr.com
>>
>>
>> _______________________________________________
>> Nfbf-l mailing list
>> Nfbf-l at nfbnet.org
>> http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nfbf-l_nfbnet.org
>> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for 
>> Nfbf-l:
>> http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/options/nfbf-l_nfbnet.org/joltingjacksandefur%40gmail.com
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> Nfbf-l mailing list
> Nfbf-l at nfbnet.org
> http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nfbf-l_nfbnet.org
> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for 
> Nfbf-l:
> http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/options/nfbf-l_nfbnet.org/markspark%40bellsouth.net 