[Nfbf-l] picking and choosing NFB policies andconstitutional requirements

[David Andrews]

The solution to this problem is not dual 
membership but both organizations reaching out and embracing others.

You can put your name on both organizations 
roles, but you can't doo good work for both.  A 
person can't be a democrat and a republican at 
the same time.  At least not a good one.

Dave

At 10:24 PM 5/4/2014, you wrote:
>The NFB rule prohibiting dual membership 
>apparently is still controversial from the 
>numerous emails recently discussing  this topic. 
>I believe that this exclusionary membership 
>rule  has an additional  problem, at least with 
>regard to  its impact on the blind community of 
>my small southern city of ‘Tallahassee. 
>Unfortunately, here the chapter membership in 
>the two blind organizations are divided 
>primarily along separate rracial lines. Although 
>I do not believe that either group has any 
>purposeful discriminatory intent in their 
>membership recruitment,and I have no knowledge 
>of the historical roots which caused this 
>result, from the viewpoint of a newcomer to 
>these two beneficial and well intentioned 
>associations, I was surprised to encounter such 
>apparent racial segregation still in existence. 
>I was involved in civil rights litigation in 
>North Florida 30 years ago when purposeful 
>racial discrimination was more prevalent. 
>Although the conservate Supreme Court has 
>recently eroded some of the legal principals of 
>discrimination, I believe that this NFB rule of 
>exclusion may have a discriminatory effect and 
>impact,  possibly in violation of Title 7, of 
>the Civil Rights Act of 1964.  Further, this 
>exclusionary rule  creates an unnecessary 
>barrier for these two admirable Quasi-public 
>blind organizations progressing towards more 
>eventual intergration of their social/politcal 
>goals, purposes, and activities. The 
>exclusionary rule disallowing dual membership 
>will perpetuate existing de facto segregation of 
>the Tallahassee blind community, and does not 
>promote any rational purpose. I hope that the 
>NFB will re-evaluate its rule in light of this 
>obviously racially discriminatory impact which 
>penalizes blind persons choosing to socially 
>interact with both of these diverse groups for a 
>common harmonious purpose. In fact, there might 
>be substantial benefits if dual membership was 
>encouraged. Obviously, many countries easily 
>manage legitimate dual citizenship without much 
>problem, and I am certain the NFB can similarly 
>reasonably accomodate dual membership without 
>jeopardy. The NFB and the FCB should promote 
>sharing, caring, and diversity as well as 
>independence,, equality, and freedom, and 
>eliminate rules which inhibit achievement of