[NFBofSC] June Presidential Transcript Release

[Steve Cook]

Presidential Release #561, June 2026 (Chapter Transcript)


Announcer:

Live life you want. Nobody can stop you. Shoot for the sun and break on
through.

The following message is brought to you by Mark Riccobono, President
National Federation of the Blind.

Live the life you want. Yes, we know the truth..

Mark Riccobono:

Greetings fellow Federationists. Today is Tuesday, May 27th, 2026 and this
is Presidential Release 561 and we are just in the final weeks before our
2026 National Convention. So a lot of the activity here at the national
office is taken up with convention matters even though we are of course
pursuing much of the advocacy and membership building work that we do on a
daily basis.

I thought for the month of June I would talk on this release about the
convention because we sometimes talk about it a lot and we take for granted
maybe that everybody fully understands the weight importance significance of
the convention even if they have not been there. So I thought I'd talk about
it on this release and have it be a topic that really should be discussed at
our chapter meetings on a regular basis, especially as we lead up to the
convention.

Why do we spend so much time talking about the National Convention? Well,
the easiest way to come back to why it's important is to look at the
Constitution of the National Federation of the Blind and this is codified in
Article five of the Constitution, which is titled Powers and Duties of the
Convention, the Board of Directors and the President.

Section A of our Constitution, I'm just going to read it to you in its
entirety because it articulates all of the important points. So Section A
reads as follows: "Powers and duties of the convention. The convention is
the Supreme Authority of the Federation. It is the legislature of the
Federation.

As such, it has final authority with respect to all issues of policy. Its
decisions shall be made after opportunity has been afforded for full and
fair discussion. Delegates and members in attendance may participate in all
convention discussions as a matter of right.

Any member of the Federation may make or second motions propose nominations
serve on committees and is eligible for election to office except that only
blind members may be elected to the national board. Voting and making
motions by proxy are prohibited. Consistent with the Democratic character of
the Federation, convention meetings shall be so conducted as to prevent
parliamentary maneuvers which would have the effect of interfering with the
expression of the will of the majority on any question or with the rights of
the minority to full and fair presentation of their views.

The convention is not merely a gathering of representatives of separate
state organizations. It is a meeting of the Federation at the national level
in its character as a national organization. Committees of the Federation
are committees of the national organization. The nominating committee shall
consist of one member from each state affiliate represented at the
convention and each state affiliate shall appoint its member to the
committee.

>From among the members of the committee the president shall appoint a
chairperson". Now, this is what the constitution tells us about the
convention and in one sense that's a very technical explanation, but it sets
the stage for what we know of the National Convention today in 2026. The
convention is the most concentrated time when we have blind leaders together
committed to working together to further opportunities for the blind.

That doesn't mean we always agree. We get together, we debate things, we
consider issues, we share information, and we try to formulate priorities
for the overall movement based on what the majority of our members believe
and feel would be appropriate for the benefit of all blind people.

But it's bringing this group of leaders together that helps us make these
very strong decisions and set these priorities. And it's really important
that the Constitution states that it's not merely a gathering of
representatives from separate state organizations.

We come together as a national movement and we bring the diversity of blind
people together from all different parts of the country with all different
backgrounds in order to come to agreement about where we should go and how
we should use our limited resources.

The convention gives us insight as members and leaders that we would not
otherwise have because when we get together, we sometimes grapple with very
difficult nuanced situations and we have to decide how to tackle those. Now
we can look at those decisions later and question them and say, "We should
have done this or that differently," but we come together to have those hard
conversations.

As noted, the Constitution is very specific that proxy voting is prohibited
in the Constitution. It's prohibited everywhere in the Federation. So this
is important because we need to show up to have the conversations with each
other and sometimes members say, "Well, I can't come to the convention and I
feel a little left out because I'm not represented there," but that's not in
fact the case.

Every state affiliate has a delegate at the convention and this delegate is
often the president. So every member at the local level, whether they're at
the convention or not, is represented by someone who has been designated,
often elected to represent them at the convention. And if you don't know who
the delegate is for your state affiliate, I would encourage you to discuss
that at the chapter meeting, make sure every member knows who's going to
represent your state affiliate at this year's convention.

Again, most often it's the president because the president is our chief
executive, you might say, and in the affiliate. And so we want to be
represented by our chief leader in the affiliate at the convention. The
convention is a critical time for us to demonstrate the power base that we
have as a movement to others.

And a good example is we invite government officials often to our convention
and don't tell them, but they're not always the most interesting
presentations that we get, but it's really important that they observe from
being at our convention that we are a significant base of influence and
power and that we have real passionate members who are serious about making
things happen for blind people.

This is the same impression we get when people come to our national
headquarters for the first time. They think, "Oh, I'm going to go to a
little office suite somewhere to meet with this organization." And when they
get to our headquarters facility, they know that they're dealing with an
organization that is more significant and more impressive than they thought
and they take blind people more seriously.

This happens at our convention as well. So we have the convention also as a
vehicle for helping the public officials, the companies know that we are a
significant force to be considered, dealt with and to be listened to. The
convention is also a prime place to test new ideas. Of course, a lot of
companies come with products that they're hoping we'll think are great
ideas.

Sometimes we do. Some of us buy a lot of the products. Sometimes people get
the hard news that the product they have is not something that blind people
are looking for, but we also test new ideas as blind people.

Oftentimes we share thoughts and ideas about how things can be different. We
innovate what needs to happen in our community. We provide feedback on
research projects that are really based on the fact that blind people
deserve dignity, respect, and that we can think and act for ourselves. So
the convention is really one of the most powerful feedback opportunities
that we have as a community anywhere in the world at any time during the
year.

And of course, it is an important time for us to plan for how we're going to
continue to build the organization. And we get a lot of benefit out of
bringing blind people together so that we can share what's working in local
communities. A lot of people don't think of it this way, but the convention
also is one of the most important training experiences that exists in the
country for blind people.

First of all, it's the one time in the year that blind people are definitely
in the majority for the week, but this is an important opportunity for
example, for newly blind individuals because they can benefit from being in
this environment of high expectations, but also being surrounded by blind
people who are ready and willing to share their experience, their knowledge
and the techniques they use in this, what I'm going to call very safe
environment, right?

It's a hotel, but you're surrounded by people that are willing to help you
strike out and find things. I often tell the story about being at a national
convention and having to rush off somewhere and there was a blind person who
had never been on an escalator before and I had the opportunity to stop and
work with them on riding the escalator, which for them was a big deal.

No one had expected them to ride the escalator. This was a young man in his
twenties at the time. Blind students get to come to our convention and are
surrounded by mentors and role models and their families get to benefit from
not just knowing one or two blind people, but they get to talk to 10 and 20
and 100 blind people during the week, which helps give them a perspective on
what's possible for their child, really significant and something you can't
get in this concentrated fashion anywhere else at any time during the year.

And let's be real, we also get a very energizing effect by being together
and getting that shot in the arm to remember what's possible for us in
society because so much of the rest of the year we're fighting low
expectations, we're dealing with inaccessibility and it can get sometimes a
little depressing, a little discouraging and this is our opportunity to
remember that we control our own destiny and we control what can happen for
blind people going forward.

All of that's great, but one important thing to emphasize also is that the
convention helps us forge bonds with blind people, not just in our local
community or our state, but all over the country and often around the world.
And this benefits us in so, so many ways. The convention creates an
opportunity, a space that's very unique where we get to know each other and
that means we can call on each other when we need expertise that blind
people outside of our community have.

For all these reasons, and I'm sure probably a hundred others that those who
have been to the convention can think of the convention is really central to
our program as a civil rights membership organization. Now, if you're
sitting in the chapter meeting and you're thinking, "Yeah, but I just can't
come to the convention this year, what about me? " Well, first of all,
remember that you are represented at the convention.

I don't want you to forget that. You should let your delegate know if you
have particular feelings about issues that are going on or concerns, let it
be known. Let your delegate know that. Secondly, there may be things that
your chapter is dealing with that you're looking for information and
expertise about. Encourage your delegate or someone from your chapter,
empower them to bring that information back to seek it out at the
convention.

A good example is in Baltimore for some time we've been dealing with the
persistent issue of on-demand scooters and where they get placed in our
communities, usually on curb cuts and in the middle of sidewalks and how to
deal with that. Not a unique issue to Baltimore, but these scooters have
come to other communities before they came here and they've come here before
they're going elsewhere.

So if that's an issue for you or if there are other issues, find leaders
chapters who are dealing with issues that are just now coming to your
community and find out what's worked, what hasn't, what approaches have been
effective so you can copy them and build on them for that matter.

So many other issues and areas that we have of commonality, but also where
we can learn from each other. Every state has battles with the
rehabilitation system in the state and different affiliates have taken
different approaches. Some have been more effective than others.

You can urge your delegate or folks from your chapter to seek out folks that
have been dealing with those issues and bring back information to the
chapter so we can devise strategies locally. But it's not just empowering
your delegate or members of your chapter who are going. You can be actively
involved in the convention.

You can participate in our virtual convention experience, which will give
you access to the general sessions, some additional sessions, and you'll be
able to stay plugged into the discussions at the convention. Of course, it's
not like being there in person, but at least helps you stay up to date on
some of the primary things that are being discussed.

Also, we publish the agenda, especially the virtual convention experience.
Put it on your calendar. You'll have access to things like the resolutions
before they get discussed. They're made available online. Read them,
consider them. If you have thoughts and opinions, share them with your
delegate, but also be informed even though you are at home so you can help
to set the priorities locally, as well as influencing the national
discussion.

These are all things you can do and you can also after convention, write
articles about the issues discussed. You can write articles to the Braille
Monitor. If you think the convention maybe should have considered an issue
or if there was a perspective that hasn't been shared about technology or
some other aspect, use your virtual convention experience to inform the
conversation throughout the Federation and use what you've learned to impact
your chapter, but also what happens at the state convention.

Everybody virtual or in person can complete our convention survey to give
feedback on what worked, what didn't work, what would you like to have
experienced, what was particularly meaningful to you. The convention is like
so many things in the Federation, an opportunity to build the connections
within our organization and you can do that even if you're not coming to the
convention.

Your chapter can organize listening parties. You can have discussions
leading up to convention about the issues that are circulating in our
community. You can host banquet parties to celebrate the accomplishments of
the week but also enjoy some fellowship. One of the amazing things about the
convention is it brings the great diversity of experience, background,
perspectives together in one place and it allows each and every one of us
through our affiliates to gain the benefit of coming together.

I hope that your chapter will take advantage of all that the convention
offers both in person and virtually and that you'll use it as an opportunity
to strengthen the role of your chapter in the National Federation of the
Blind.

Now I should say that there are other things you can do and I would be
remiss if I didn't remind you that we have our Give 25 spring fundraising
campaign going on and in addition to asking members to donate, which we do
encourage, what we're really looking for is for members to reach out and get
others to donate to our Give 25 campaign, what we're calling our connectors.

We're encouraging each and every member to get four other people to give 25
to the National Federation of the Blind during the month of June so that we
can significantly increase our reach to new donors and pull down matching
funds that have been generously donated by the AIRA Corporation. You can get
involved with our Give 25 efforts and become a connector. Go to
nfb.org/give25 to get all the details and now truly is the time to promote
that.

You'll only have up through a couple of days in July to get that done.
Finally, related to convention, I want to say that as I have said many times
on this release, nfb.org/convention is your source for all of the
information about the convention, the virtual convention experience, which
you should register for if you haven't already, if you're not going to the
convention, nfb.org/convention.

The convention is more than a meeting we're obligated to have. It is a truly
meaningful experience for those who have been able to participate. I know
that there are dozens of members who can't make it this year and I'm really
glad that we can put together the virtual experience so that you can at
least have some participation in the convention.

I am definitely anticipating being with many of you in Austin, Texas in
about six weeks. It's coming very fast. I have a lot of work to do to get
ready for the convention and I do want to encourage you if you're going to
be at the convention, please come by the presidential suite.

Melissa and I would love to get a moment to visit with you, say hello and
definitely greet you along with the rest of our great hosts in Texas. For
those of you who are not coming to the convention, I hope that you will be
engaged in our convention activities and that you'll share your thoughts and
experience via social media and otherwise I do finally want to wish all
Federation members a great summer coming up.

This will be the last release before the convention and before August.
August will be our next release. So we will not have a release in July, but
we will have a lot of work to do this summer and a lot of things to discuss
and I'm looking forward to advancing our movement and forging stronger bonds
across our membership in Austin, Texas this summer.

Now, before we close this release, I thought we should have some customary
endings and I thought it would be appropriate to offer you some in honor of
Norma Crosby's article, Welcoming Us to Texas that was in the May Braille
Monitor.

So here we go.

What did the rehab counselor say to the bat who came to her for advice?

Just hang in there.

What do you call the admirers of a famous bat?

His Fang Club.

And finally, what is the only thing smarter than a talking bat?

Well, that would be a spelling B.

Let's go build the National Federation of the Blind.

Announcer:

The preceding message was brought to you by Mark Riccobono, President,
National Federation of the Blind, 410-659-9314. Officeofthepresident at nfb.org
<mailto:Officeofthepresident at nfb.org> . Follow President Riccobono on
Mastodon. Just search for @president at NFB.Social. Let's go build the National
Federation of the Blind.

 <https://nfb.org/> 

*	 <https://nfb.org/donate> Donate

 

*    <https://nfb.org/get-involved/join-us> Join Us

National Federation of the Blind
200 East Wells Street at Jernigan Place
Baltimore, Maryland 21230

Phone  <tel:+14106599314> 410-659-9314
Email  <mailto:nfb at nfb.org> nfb at nfb.org 

 

-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://nfbnet.org/pipermail/nfbofsc_nfbnet.org/attachments/20260610/d6a70e0b/attachment.htm>
-------------- next part --------------
A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
Name: image001.png
Type: image/png
Size: 19899 bytes
Desc: not available
URL: <http://nfbnet.org/pipermail/nfbofsc_nfbnet.org/attachments/20260610/d6a70e0b/attachment.png>