[NFBofSC] NFB President Riccobono's Notebook - Week of 09/26/2023

Tue Sep 26 21:24:57 UTC 2023

President's Notebook

National Federation of the Blind

Mark A. Riccobono

 <mailto:officeofthepresident at nfb.org> officeofthepresident at nfb.org

410-659-9314

Dear Federation Family,

Martin Luther King, Jr., reminded us that "the arc of the moral universe is
long, but it bends toward justice." This week the White House and some
federal agencies are celebrating the 50th anniversary of the passage of the
Rehabilitation Act. One thing that makes the Federation particularly
effective is not simply that we have been here for all of those fifty years,
but that we engage throughout the whole process, including as laws are
implemented and need to evolve. Whether we are thinking about Social
Security legislation, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act,
pedestrian safety, ratification of the Marrakesh Treaty, or any other
priority we have pursued, we recognize that getting a law is only the first
step. As the nation celebrates this important historical milestone, we
should recognize that the progress has come partly through our hard work.
More importantly, progress will continue because we dedicate ourselves to
following the arc the rest of the way to justice.

As we get geared up for Blind Equality Achievement Month, we need to
dedicate ourselves to creating awareness of how blind people have raised
expectations throughout society. We have more work to do to get our message
and our understanding out into the general public. We also need to challenge
ourselves to find innovative ways to capture the attention of the non-blind
public and draw them into talking about the issues that impact our lives on
a daily basis. October creates that opportunity, and I hope you will share
with all of us the approaches that you find to be most effective in your
community.

I will be on the road for the first part of October, including a visit to
our Florida state convention. I am anticipating the opportunity to be with
our members in Kentucky and Florida as we enter the final quarter of a very
successful year. 

Thank you for your efforts to build our organization.

Critical Actions:

Blind Equality Achievement Month:

October is Blind Equality Achievement Month, and we want to highlight our
successes. We encourage affiliates and divisions to update their social
media with any activities that they are doing, as well as with their
members' success stories. We'll be sure to share some on our platforms.
Please send links to your posts to Cricket Bidleman at
<mailto:cbidleman at nfb.org> cbidleman at nfb.org. 

October Presidential Release LIVE from Kentucky:

The National Federation of the Blind
<https://nfb.org/resources/publications-and-media/presidential-releases>
Presidential Release #531 will be broadcast from Louisville, on October 3,
2023, at 8:00 p.m., eastern. Closed captions and Spanish interpretations
will be available. Presidential Release Zoom ID: 999 6853 1572. Please share
the live event opportunity on your affiliate and chapter social media
channels. 

COVID Tests:

The White House announced recently that COVIDtests.gov is re-opening.
People are now again able to order free, at-home COVID-19 tests. Each
household may place one order; each order will contain twelve tests. Blind
people are able to order, by phone or online, the more accessible tests
manufactured by Ellume. To ensure that the accessible tests go to people
that need them, go to  <http://ACL.gov/AccessibleTests>
ACL.gov/AccessibleTests to order online. To order by phone, call
1-800-232-0233. Select language by pressing 1 for English, 2 for Spanish, 3
for other languages. Then select 8 for the accessible test (rather than 1
for the inaccessible test).

For assistance placing orders or administering the test, call 888-677-1199.
DIAL operators are available Monday-Friday from 9:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.,
eastern. In addition, live chat and ASL services are available through the
<http://dial.acl.gov/> DIAL website.  

News:

National Federation of the Blind Responds to Department of Justice Title II
Website NPRM:

On August 4, 2023, the United States Department of Justice published a
notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) regarding ADA Title II website and
mobile app accessibility regulations in the Federal Register. The proposed
rule was more than two hundred pages long and asked readers to answer over
sixty questions. Since we have been waiting for these regulations for
thirteen years and wanted to ensure a thorough and appropriate response, we
spent many weeks carefully reviewing the proposed rule and crafting our
comments. I am pleased to say that we submitted our comprehensive comments,
answering all relevant questions, on Tuesday, September 19. I encourage you
to read our
<https://nfb.org/programs-services/advocacy/policy-statements/comments-ada-t
itle-ii-website-and-mobile-app-notice> full ADA Title II NPRM response on
the Policy Statements page of our website.

NFBMD President, Ronza Othman, Testified Before Senate Aging Committee:

On Thursday, September 21, Ronza Othman, the president of our Maryland
affiliate and the president of the National Association of Blind Government
Employees, testified before the Senate Special Committee on Aging at a
hearing titled "Unlocking the Virtual Front Door: Ensuring Accessible
Government Technology for People with Disabilities, Older Adults, and
Veterans." Ronza did a terrific job and
<https://nfb.org/programs-services/advocacy/policy-statements/ronza-othmans-
testimony-senate-special-committee-aging> her full testimony can be found on
our policy page. 

SSI Savings Penalty Elimination Act (H.R. 5408/S. 2767):

We are working Capitol Hill to find champions for the Blind Americans Return
to Work Act in the House and Senate and hope to have news for you within the
coming months. In the meantime, a new bill has emerged that will raise the
resource limitations placed upon beneficiaries of Supplemental Security
Income (SSI). The bipartisan SSI Savings Penalty Elimination Act has been
introduced in the House and Senate as H.R. 5408 and S. 2767 respectively.
Please reach out to your senators and representative and urge them to
cosponsor this important legislation. If you would like to know whether your
representative or senators are already cosponsors on the above legislation,
please contact Lindsey Walsh in our Advocacy and Policy Department at
<mailto:lwalsh at nfb.org> lwalsh at nfb.org.

NFB-NEWSLINER: 

We experienced a significant NFB-NEWSLINE outage on Sunday, September 24, at
approximately 10:30 p.m., eastern time. Nearly all of the content has now
been restored except for the local channels and some magazines. We expect
the remaining content to be restored within the next twenty-four hours. If
you have any questions or concerns, please contact Scott White at
<mailto:swhite at nfb.org> swhite at nfb.org. 

National Disability Employment Awareness Month:

October is also National Disability Employment Awareness Month and to
celebrate, the Employment Committee of the National Federation of the Blind
will be hosting multiple events throughout the month to get interested
members "employment ready." Two of the events are described below. 

Where the Blind Work Webinar: 

On Wednesday, October 18, join the Employment Committee of the National
Federation of the Blind as we celebrate the work and accomplishments of
blind people with a panel discussion. This online seminar will take place on
Wednesday October 18, from 8:00-9:15 p.m., eastern. Unemployment and
under-employment persist as among the most stubborn factors affecting blind
people's pursuit of cultural and economic equity in society. Below are our
panel participants:

*       Jennifer Wenzel, Human Resources Specialist, Wisconsin 

*       Kris Colcock, Certified Work Incentive Practitioner, Washington

*       Rachel Kuntz, Community Relations Liaison, Arizona 

Register at
<https://nfb.org/programs-services/employment/where-the-blind-work-webinars-
registration> Where the Blind Work for Zoom details. We look forward to your
participation!

National Federation of the Blind Virtual Career Fair: 

Join the Employment Committee on Thursday, October 26, from 1:00 to 4:00
p.m., eastern, via Zoom for our fall virtual career fair. The National
Federation of the Blind career fairs are events for blind people seeking
jobs to connect with employers and are an opportunity for employers to seek
more talent for their teams. Registration is required by October 16, 2023.

*         <https://nfb.org/form/career-fair-jobseeker-registration> Career
Fair - Job Seeker

*         <https://nfb.org/form/career-fair-employer-registration> Career
Fair - Employer

To prepare job seekers, the Employment Committee will be hosting "Getting
the Most from Your Virtual Fair Experience," an online seminar designed to
provide tips and techniques for creating the most positive experience while
attending the fair. Members will automatically be registered for the online
seminar once they have registered for the career fair. For more information
on the career fair or webinar, please contact Jennifer Wenzel , Employment
Committee chair, at  <mailto:jenwen319 at gmail.com> jenwen319 at gmail.com, or
Rachel Kuntz, employer liaison, at
<https://mail.google.com/mail/u/0/h/1x9qu3194t9sc/?&cs=wh&v=b&to=rkuntz@saav
i.us> rkuntz at saavi.us.

Ride for Literacy Contribution Totals: 

It is not too late to help us make our contribution goal for the Route 66
Ride for Literacy. Please share the link  <https://nfb.org/route66>
https://nfb.org/route66 with your friends and family and on social media. We
are just under our goal of $50,000 in support from the ride. To help reach
the goal, please consider posting something like:

Dan O'Rourke road more than 2,700 miles on his bike for literacy and to
bring awareness to the National Federation of the Blind. You can help
without riding your bike across the country. Please help us achieve our
$50,000 goal. Visit  <https://nfb.org/route66> https://nfb.org/route66. 

Reminders:

Mastodon:

The Federation is now on Mastodon-a decentralized social media platform that
allows us to have our own server dedicated to NFB news, events, and updates.
You can find and follow our server at nfb.social. 

Dates to Keep in Mind:

(all times eastern)

*	October: Blind Equality Achievement Month
*	October 18: Where the Blind Work Webinar, 8:00 p.m.
*	October 26: National Federation of the Blind Virtual Career Fair,
1:00 p.m.
*	November 8: Introduction to the Organized Blind Movement, 8:00 p.m.
*	December 7 and 10: Chapter Presidents Call, 8:00 p.m. (Planning the
Year Ahead)
*	July 3-8, 2024: National Convention; Orlando, Florida

The National Federation of the Blind knows that blindness is not the
characteristic that defines you or your future. Every day we raise the
expectations of blind people, because low expectations create obstacles
between blind people and our dreams. You can live the life you want;
blindness is not what holds you back.

Mark A. Riccobono, President  

200 East Wells Street, Baltimore, MD 21230

410-659-9314 | Officeofthepresident at nfb.org
<mailto:Officeofthepresident at nfb.org> 

Mastodon: @President at nfb.social 

Pronouns: he, him, his

 <https://nfb.org/> 

<http://www.facebook.com/nationalfederationoftheblind>
<https://twitter.com/NFB_Voice>      <https://www.youtube.com/NationsBlind> 

The National Federation of the Blind is a community of members and friends
who believe in the hopes and dreams of the nation's blind. Every day we work
together to help blind people live the lives they want. 

Steve Cook

You are invited to join us on the 1st and 2nd Friday of each month at 8:00
PM Eastern for audio described movies using the below Zoom platform! 

 <https://us02web.zoom.us/j/8032543777?pwd=QTVQd2RzN3l6QnNmZ0FmSnp6NG8vQT09>
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/8032543777?pwd=QTVQd2RzN3l6QnNmZ0FmSnp6NG8vQT09

Meeting ID: 803 254 3777

Passcode: 124578

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