[nfbmi-talk] {Spam?} Re: Proposed Mailing List Policy
joe harcz Comcast
joeharcz at comcast.net
Sat Feb 1 10:57:59 UTC 2014
Terry,
It was to show that the ADA, and access issues I write about and work on
daily are NFB MI issues.
And as you know I've written briefs, and documented the violations as you
suggest here.
In addition I've supplied you, the board and others this information.
Now each and everyone of these requests for information in accessable form,
and failure to acccomodate are counts. Moroever, as we know these violations
not only go to me but to all blind people in Michigan.
It's time to sue these scofflaw agencies.
----- Original Message -----
From: "Terry D. Eagle" <terrydeagle at yahoo.com>
To: "'NFB of Michigan Internet Mailing List'" <nfbmi-talk at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Saturday, February 01, 2014 1:31 AM
Subject: Re: [nfbmi-talk] {Spam?} Re: Proposed Mailing List Policy
> So Joe, what is the point of this post? Obviously we are well aware of
> the
> ADA and access issues.
>
> Please offer some specific, constructive, practical, positive action steps
> that both the NFB and individuals can immediately undertake to address
> these
> issues informally, politically, administratively, and legally.
>
> Perhaps you can share your specific victories in each of these arenas with
> regard to specific violations. Perhaps you can offer a draft legal
> complaint giving the separate coynts of numerous violations, outlining
> specific factual violations, and provide legal citations, exhibits to
> indicate attempts to remedy the situation personally. Showcase your
> attempts, victories, and failed remedies. In other words, put forth in
> a
> concise, non-conclusory, but factual case to go forward. We really need
> this kind of involvement, and I am so pleased you are stepping up for
> involvement and the challenge.
>
> If you are not willing or able to undertake the priority of involvement in
> fulfillment of the position statement, then I understand it is not your
> priority for NFB, and would respectfully request withholding your
> evaluation
> of the NFB board and members who are highly engaged in and dedicated daily
> to better the lives of blind persons through active involvement and
> positive
> forward action.
>
> Thank you and much appreciation for your decision either way.
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: nfbmi-talk [mailto:nfbmi-talk-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of joe
> harcz Comcast
> Sent: Friday, January 31, 2014 3:57 PM
> To: NFB of Michigan Internet Mailing List
> Subject: [nfbmi-talk] {Spam?} Re: Proposed Mailing List Policy
>
> NFB POLICY STATEMENT ON
>
> ACCESS TO STATE PROGRAMS, SERVICES, AND FACILITIES
>
>
>
> NEGLECT OF FUNDAMENTAL CIVIL RIGHTS OF BLIND PERSONS
>
>
>
> The Americans With Disabilities Act has been in place for over twenty
> years.
>
> Yet Michigan's Governmental actors have chosen to neglect this crucial
> law,
> even though it would be very easy to implement. The Bureau of Services for
> Blind Persons, BSBP, is choosing not to comply with accessibility
> regulations on a consistent basis. All blind citizens, consumers of
> state-provided services, agency staff and vendors, should be able to do
> business with the BSBP in their preferred print alternative format,
> whether
> it be Braille, electronic, or large print. All meetings and buildings
> where
>
> state business is conducted must have Braille and raised character signage
> and accessible materials for program participants in accordance with
> specific provisions of the Americans with Disabilities Act. Yet
> violations
> persist with respect to both the fundamental rights of physical access and
> access to the printed word.
>
>
>
> Patrick Cannon, former director of the Michigan Commission for the Blind
> (MCB) served for eight years as state Americans with Disabilities Act
> (ADA)
> coordinator, a position created and to which Mr. Cannon was appointed by
> Governor Jennifer Granholm under Executive Order 2004-31, signed June 3,
> 2004. As ADA Coordinator, Mr. Cannon served as the state's primary liaison
> with departments and agencies on matters of compliance with state and
> federal disability rights laws.
>
>
>
> "My administration is one of inclusion and engagement,
> dedicated
>
> to capturing the best thinking and ideas of all of our citizens, including
> people with disabilities.", Governor Granholm said, in announcing the
> appointment of Mr. Cannon to the position of state ADA Coordinator.
>
>
>
> In addition, Mr. Cannon served as director of the Michigan Commission on
> Disability Concerns for 10 years, where he was instrumental in gaining
> passage of the 1990 amendments to the Michigan Handicappers' Civil Rights
> Act, now known as the Michigan Persons with Disabilities Civil Rights Act,
> and he advocated for enactment of the Americans with Disabilities Act. Mr.
> Cannon was appointed by President Clinton in 1995 to the U.S. Access
> Board,
> an independent federal regulatory agency whose mission is accessibility
> for
> people with disabilities. He served as chair in 1997 and 1998 and was
> reappointed for a second four-year term in 1999.
>
>
>
> With Mr. Cannon's extensive knowledge of disability rights law, and the
> positions of influence which he enjoyed for nearly two decades, Cannon
> could
>
> have brought disability rights in Michigan to the pinnacle of excellence.
> Shockingly however, persons with disabilities in Michigan have gained
> nothing- because of Cannon's inability to bridge the gap between talk and
> action. Access to print materials remains unavailable, state buildings,
> including the Commission's central office, still lack compliance with
> basic
> accessible signage requirements and most state-wide consumer services
> remain
>
> largely inaccessible to persons who are blind and print disabled.
>
>
>
> Consumers of rehabilitation services cannot obtain accessible computers;
> or
> materials in a print-alternative format. Trainees and licensed blind
> vendors
>
> of the Business Enterprise Program, a joint state and federal business
> employment program, are unable to obtain necessary equipment such as
> talking
>
> cash registers,; or materials in a print alternative format. Thus their
> ability to achieve success and financial independence is thwarted by the
> very agency that is legally mandated and funded to assist them in these
> pursuits.
>
>
>
> The current director of the Bureau Of Services For Blind Persons, is
> Edward
> F. Rodgers, III. Rodgers is visually impaired himself, and formerly
> served
> as chief administrative law hearings officer of the state's administrative
> hearing system. During his tenure there, Rodgers failed to make the
> administrative hearing and consumer service systems accessible to blind
> persons in accordance with federal and state accessibility law and
> regulations, further depriving blind Michiganders of independent
> access
> to public state facilities and consumer services, including the state
> administrative hearing system and courts. Neither has Ed Rodgers made any
> effort to improve access to print materials or physical facilities since
> assuming leadership of the Bureau of Services to Blind Persons. In fact,
> Rodgers has repeatedly denied requests for copies of the Bureau's public
> records in any format- in violation of the Open Meetings Act and other
> laws.
>
>
>
> Conclusion and Action Needed
>
>
>
> The former Commission for the Blind director, and the current Bureau of
> Services for Blind Persons director, have both miserably failed Michigan's
> blind citizens. State owned and leased properties do not contain
> accessible
>
> signage; state agencies are not equipped to provide applications, forms
> and
> other materials in accessible format despite printed claims to the
> contrary;
>
> and consumer service programs and business opportunities are not fully
> accessible, in accordance with state and federal compliance requirements.
>
>
>
> Recommendations for Positive Corrective Compliance Action
>
>
>
> 1. The legislature must hold public hearings, as a function of
> state government oversight, to assess the extent of non-compliance with
> equal access laws and the degree to which equal access to state programs
> and facilities for persons with disabilities is abridged. Further, the
> legislature must provide adequate resources to mitigate such
> non-compliance,
>
> including ongoing monitoring measures to ensure full and equal access to
> state programs, services, and facilities by all persons with disabilities.
>
>
>
> 2. The Department of Technology, Management, and Budget
> (DTMB),
>
> must assume a leadership role, as a steward of state facilities, programs,
> services, and financial resources, to ensure that all state programs,
> services, and facilities, effectively meet legal standards for equal
> access
> by persons with disabilities.
>
>
>
> 3. The Governor, as Chief Executive Officer of the State of
> Michigan, must become personally knowledgeable of the extent to which his
> administration has negatively impacted equal access to programs and
> services
>
> for Michiganders with disabilities. He must assume a leadership role,
> removing incompetent and obstructionist appointees and working to mitigate
> the harm which has been done, by providing necessary resources to ensure
> that all state programs, services, and facilities are compliant with all
> legal standards for equal access by persons with disabilities.
>
>
>
> 4. The Bureau of Services for Blind Persons, in concert with all state
> departments, must take a leadership role by undertaking a comprehensive
> evaluation of all state department programs and facilities. This
> evaluation
>
> must identify issues of non-compliance with equal access provisions of
> federal and state civil rights law; and initiate action to mitigate such
> non-compliance in order to ensure that all state consumer services,
> programs, and facilities are equally accessible to all citizens and state
> employees who are blind or disabled.
>
>
>
>
>
> NFBM - October 20, 2013
>
>
>
> For further information or comment e-mail publicrelations at nfbmi.org.
>
>
>
> Visit the National Federation of the Blind of Michigan website at
> nfbmi.org.
>
>
>
> ABOUT THE NATIONAL FEDERATION OF THE BLIND OF MICHIGAN
>
>
>
> The National Federation of the Blind of Michigan is the oldest and largest
> organization of blind people in Michigan. We are a membership
> organization
> with chapters in most major Michigan cities. We are advocates for the
> rights of blind persons to live and work as first-class citizens side by
> side with our sighted fellow Michigan friends, colleagues and neighbors...
> Among our activities are Michigan Newsline, which provides more than 300
> newspapers and periodicals, job listings and TV schedules free of charge
> to
> persons with reading disabilities, scholarships for blind students,
> advocacy
>
> for blind employees and tenants. The National Federation of the Blind of
> Michigan (www.nfbmi.org) is a non-profit organization under state and
> federal laws and accepts tax-deductible contributions. For general
> questions contact: publicrelations at nfbmi.org.
>
>
>
>
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Matt McCubbin" <mgoalball at gmail.com>
> To: "NFB of Michigan Internet Mailing List" <nfbmi-talk at nfbnet.org>
> Sent: Friday, January 31, 2014 3:27 PM
> Subject: Re: [nfbmi-talk] Proposed Mailing List Policy
>
>
>> Dear Joe,
>> I'm sure J.J. and our delegates from Washington Seminar will report
>> soon or at our next board meeting. Correct me if I am wrong, but it
>> seems whenever this topic of list management is brought up you seem to
>> get personally offended. I believe J.J. and Fred have valid points
>> about list traffic and the lack of discussion brought upon by your
>> numerous messages to this list, and believe discussion at our next
>> board meeting is warranted.
>> This issue is not about stifling your right to free speech, it is
>> simply about common mailing list courtesy and the reputation of our
>> organization.
>> Just my opinion,
>> Matt
>>
>> On 1/31/14, joe harcz Comcast <joeharcz at comcast.net> wrote:
>>> I would like to see a complete report to this list about the Washington
>>> Seminar and your activities J.J.
>>>
>>> Thanks.
>>>
>>> Joe
>>> ----- Original Message -----
>>> From: "J.J. Meddaugh" <jj at bestmidi.com>
>>> To: "NFB of Michigan Internet Mailing List" <nfbmi-talk at nfbnet.org>
>>> Sent: Friday, January 31, 2014 12:41 PM
>>> Subject: [nfbmi-talk] Proposed Mailing List Policy
>>>
>>>
>>>> I'd like to propose a list policy that we do not allow official
>>>> government
>>>>
>>>> business, FOIA requests, etc. to be sent and then copied or forwarded
>>>> to
>>>> this list. In addition to the potential overload of email it creates,
>>>> it
>>>> has the possibility of giving the impression that the NFB of Michigan
>>>> is
>>>>
>>>> a party to the request where it was not. This is potentially damaging
>>>> to
>>>> our reputation and may hinder the progress that we are trying to make.
>>>>
>>>> --
>>>> Best regards,
>>>> J.J.
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> _______________________________________________
>>>> nfbmi-talk mailing list
>>>> nfbmi-talk at nfbnet.org
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>>>> nfbmi-talk:
>>>>
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> et
>>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> _______________________________________________
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> m
>>>
>>
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