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<DIV dir=ltr class=OutlookMessageHeader align=left><FONT size=2
face=Tahoma>-----Original Message-----<BR><B>From:</B> Freeh, Jessica
[mailto:JFreeh@nfb.org]<BR><B>Sent:</B> Tuesday, March 15, 2011 12:14
PM<BR><B>To:</B> Alpidio Rolon; Amy Buresh; Art Schreiber; Beth Rival; Bill
Packee; Bob Kresmer; Carl Jacobsen; Cassandra McNabb; Cathy Jackson; Charlene
Smyth; Christine G. Hall; Dan Hicks; Daniel Burke; Don Galloway; Donna Wood;
Elsie Dickerson; Frank Lee; Franklin Shiner; Fred Schroeder; Garrick Scott; Gary
Ray; Gary Wunder; Grace Pires; J.W. Smith; James Antonacci; Jennelle Bichler;
Jennifer Dunnam; Joe Ruffalo; John Batron; John Fritz; Joy Harris; Joyce
Scanlan; Ken Rollman; Kim Williams; Kimberly Flores; Larry Posont; Lynn
Majewski; Mary Willows; Melissa Riccobono; Michael Barber; Michael Freeman; Mika
Pyyhkala; Nani Fife; Pam Allen; Parnell Diggs; Patti Chang; Rena Smith; Ron
Brown; Gardner, Ron; Sam Gleese; Scott LaBarre; Selena Sundling-Crawford; Terry
Sheeler<BR><B>Subject:</B> Adoption of Google Apps Program Discriminates Against
the Blind <BR><BR></FONT></DIV>
<DIV>
<H1 style="MARGIN: 12pt 0in 3pt"><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt"><FONT
face=Arial>FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE<o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN></H1>
<H1 style="MARGIN: 12pt 0in 3pt"><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt"><FONT
face=Arial>CONTACT:<o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN></H1>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><st1:PersonName w:st="on"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial">Chris Danielsen</SPAN></st1:PersonName><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial"><o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial">Director of Public Relations<o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial">National Federation of the
Blind<o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial">(410) 659-9314, extension 2330<o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial">(410) 262-1281 (Cell)<o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial">cdanielsen@nfb.org<o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></P>
<H1 style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 12pt 0in 3pt" align=center><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt"><FONT face=Arial><FONT size=4>Adoption of Google Apps
Program Discriminates Against the Blind <o:p></o:p></FONT></FONT></SPAN></H1>
<H1 style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 12pt 0in 3pt" align=center><I
style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal"><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt"><FONT
face=Arial>National Federation of the Blind Asks <BR>Department of Justice to
Investigate Schools Across the Country<BR
style="mso-special-character: line-break"><BR
style="mso-special-character: line-break"><o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN></I></H1>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><B
style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial">Baltimore,
Maryland (March 15, 2011):</SPAN></B><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial"> The <A
href="http://www.nfb.org/">National Federation of the Blind</A> (NFB), the
oldest and largest nationwide organization of blind people in the United States,
today requested that the United States Department of Justice, Civil Rights
Division, investigate civil rights violations committed by New York University
(NYU) and Northwestern University against blind faculty and students. <SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>The NFB made the request because the
schools have adopted technology that is not accessible to the blind.<SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>Both universities have recently adopted
Google Apps for Education as a means of providing e-mail and collaboration tools
to students and faculty.<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>Google
Apps for Education is a free suite of hosted communication and collaboration
applications that includes Gmail, Google Calendar, Google Talk, Google Docs, and
Google Sites.<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>Each of these
applications contains significant accessibility barriers for blind people
utilizing screen access technology, which converts what is on the computer
screen into synthesized speech or Braille.<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes">
</SPAN>A similar request for investigation has been filed against four
<st1:place w:st="on"><st1:State w:st="on">Oregon</st1:State></st1:place> public
school districts that are using Google Apps. <SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>The complaints allege violations of the
Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and the Rehabilitation Act of 1973.<SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>For further illustration of this matter,
please <A href="http://www.nfb.org/nfb/googleaccessibilityvideos.asp"><FONT
color=#800080>view a demonstration of screen access technology</FONT></A> used
by the blind and the accessibility barriers that a blind person experiences
using Google Apps.<o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial">Dr. Marc Maurer, President of the National Federation
of the Blind, said: “Given the many accessible options available, there is no
good reason that these universities should choose a suite of applications,
including critical e-mail services, that is inaccessible to blind students.<SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>Worse yet, according to recent data more
than half of the American higher education institutions that are outsourcing
e-mail to third-party vendors plan to deploy this suite, even though they know
that it cannot be used by blind students.<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes">
</SPAN>Nor can these universities claim ignorance of their legal obligations,
since the United States Department of Justice and the United States Department
of Education have specifically <A
href="http://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/letters/colleague-20100629.html">warned
all university presidents</A> against the adoption of inaccessible
technology.<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>The National Federation
of the Blind will not tolerate this unconscionable discrimination against blind
students and faculty and callous indifference to the right of blind students to
receive an equal education.<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>We urge
these higher education institutions to suspend their adoption of Google Apps for
Education until it is accessible to all students and faculty, not just the
sighted, or to reject Google Apps entirely.”<o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; TEXT-INDENT: 0in; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"
class=MsoBodyText><SPAN style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"><FONT face=Arial>The
National Federation of the Blind is represented in this matter by Daniel F.
Goldstein of the <st1:City w:st="on"><st1:place
w:st="on">Baltimore</st1:place></st1:City> firm Brown, Goldstein, and
Levy.<o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal
align=center><B style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial">###<o:p></o:p></SPAN></B></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><B
style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></B></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></P>
<P><B style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial">About the National Federation of the
Blind<o:p></o:p></SPAN></B></P>
<P
style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 45.8pt 91.6pt 137.4pt 183.2pt 229.0pt 274.8pt 320.6pt 366.4pt 412.2pt 458.0pt 503.8pt 549.6pt 595.4pt 641.2pt 687.0pt 732.8pt"
class=MsoNormal><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial">With more than 50,000 members,
the National Federation of the Blind is the largest and most influential
membership organization of blind people in the <st1:place
w:st="on"><st1:country-region w:st="on">United
States</st1:country-region></st1:place>. The NFB improves blind people’s
lives through advocacy, education, research, technology, and programs
encouraging independence and self-confidence. It is the leading force in
the blindness field today and the voice of the nation's blind. In January
2004 the NFB opened the National Federation of the Blind Jernigan Institute, the
first research and training center in the <st1:place
w:st="on"><st1:country-region w:st="on">United
States</st1:country-region></st1:place> for the blind led by the
blind. <o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></P>
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style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial; FONT-SIZE: 10pt"><o:p><FONT size=3
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