[NFBF-L] Greetings from our national president

[Paul Martinez]

Dear Federation Family:
 
With the convention coming up, I am sure all of us are thinking about the policy advancement work of the organized blind movement. It is important for each of us as leaders to be involved in understanding and shaping the programs and services that affect blind people. As an example, about this time two years ago members started raising concerns with national leaders about the marketing practices of AccessiBe. The national board took action and the Convention further took action by passing a number of resolutions.
 
Recently, the Braille Monitor published an apology authored by the CEO of accessiBe. Please refer to “A Heart-felt Apology and a Chance to Start Again” (HTML) (https://nfb.org/images/nfb/publications/bm/bm23/bm2305/bm230503.htm) from the May 2023 issue. We accepted the writing as it was offered by accessiBe and we now want to hear what our members think about the apology. How does the community feel about it? How do we advance digital access and hold companies accountable for their marketing practices? These and other questions need to continue to receive debate and attention in our quest for equality. This is the level of engagement that we need throughout the organization. Sharing 
your thoughts on this and other topics will help to shape where we go.

 
Paul M. Martinez
President, national Federation of the blind Florida

813-390-5720

With love, hope and determination we transform dreams into reality