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</o:shapelayout></xml><![endif]--></head><body bgcolor="#FDFDFD" lang=EN-US link="#1A1A1A" vlink="#1A1A1A" style='word-wrap:break-word'><div class=WordSection1><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><div><div style='border:none;border-top:solid #E1E1E1 1.0pt;padding:3.0pt 0in 0in 0in'><p class=MsoNormal><b>From:</b> brl-monitor-bounces@nfbcal.org <brl-monitor-bounces@nfbcal.org> <b>On Behalf Of </b>Brian Buhrow<br><b>Sent:</b> Thursday, June 1, 2023 3:12 PM<br><b>To:</b> brl-monitor@nfbcal.org<br><b>Subject:</b> [Brl-monitor] The Braille Monitor, June 2023<o:p></o:p></p></div></div><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><div id=header><h1><span style='font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>The Braille Monitor, June 2023<o:p></o:p></span></h1></div><h1 id=braille-monitor><span style='font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>BRAILLE MONITOR<o:p></o:p></span></h1><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Vol. 66, No. 6 June 2023<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><em><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Gary Wunder, Editor</span></em><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'><o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Distributed by email, in inkprint, in Braille, and on USB flash drive, by the<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>NATIONAL FEDERATION OF THE BLIND<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Mark Riccobono, President<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>telephone: 410-659-9314<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>email address: <a href="mailto:nfb@nfb.org">nfb@nfb.org</a><o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>website address: <a href="http://www.nfb.org">http://www.nfb.org</a><o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>NFBnet.org: <a href="http://www.nfbnet.org">http://www.nfbnet.org</a><o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>NFB-NEWSLINE® information: 866-504-7300<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Like us on Facebook: Facebook.com/nationalfederationoftheblind<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Follow us on Twitter: @NFB_Voice<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Watch and share our videos: YouTube.com/NationsBlind<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Letters to the President, address changes, subscription requests, and orders for NFB literature should be sent to the national office. Articles for the <em><span style='font-family:"Georgia",serif'>Monitor</span></em> and letters to the editor may also be sent to the national office or may be emailed to <a href="mailto:gwunder@nfb.org">gwunder@nfb.org</a>.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><em><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Monitor</span></em><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'> subscriptions cost the Federation about forty dollars per year. Members are invited, and nonmembers are requested, to cover the subscription cost. Donations should be made payable to <strong><span style='font-family:"Georgia",serif'>National Federation of the Blind</span></strong> and sent to:<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>National Federation of the Blind<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>200 East Wells Street <em><span style='font-family:"Georgia",serif'>at Jernigan Place</span></em><br>Baltimore, Maryland 21230-4998<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><strong><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>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. THE NATIONAL FEDERATION OF THE BLIND IS NOT AN ORGANIZATION SPEAKING FOR THE BLIND—IT IS THE BLIND SPEAKING FOR OURSELVES.</span></strong><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'><o:p></o:p></span></p><p><em><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>ISSN 0006-8829</span></em><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'><o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>© 2023 by the National Federation of the Blind<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Each issue is recorded on a thumb drive (also called a memory stick or USB flash drive). You can read this audio edition using a computer or a National Library Service digital player. The NLS machine has two slots—the familiar book-cartridge slot just above the retractable carrying handle and a second slot located on the right side near the headphone jack. This smaller slot is used to play thumb drives. Remove the protective rubber pad covering this slot and insert the thumb drive. It will insert only in one position. If you encounter resistance, flip the drive over and try again. (Note: If the cartridge slot is not empty when you insert the thumb drive, the digital player will ignore the thumb drive.) Once the thumb drive is inserted, the player buttons will function as usual for reading digital materials. If you remove the thumb drive to use the player for cartridges, when you insert it again, reading should resume at the point you stopped.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>You can transfer the recording of each issue from the thumb drive to your computer or preserve it on the thumb drive. However, because thumb drives can be used hundreds of times, we would appreciate their return in order to stretch our funding. Please use the return envelope enclosed with the drive when you return the device.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>[PHOTO CAPTION: Hilton Americas-Houston Convention Center Hotel]<o:p></o:p></span></p><h2 id=convention-bulletin-2023><span style='font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Convention Bulletin 2023<o:p></o:p></span></h2><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>There are plenty of reasons one might travel to Houston, Texas, the fourth most populous city in the United States. One might visit for the nearly three-week-long Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo. The city’s vibrant arts scene boasts the largest concentration of theater seats outside of New York City. And no Houston resident would let a visitor forget that the city is home to the 2022 World Series Champion Houston Astros. There is little question that Houston has a great deal going for it. The city’s real draw, however, is that it will play host to the National Federation of the Blind’s 2023 National Convention.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>It has now been more than fifty years since the largest gathering of the organized blind last convened in Houston, Texas, and our return in 2023 will be an event not to be missed. The Hilton Americas-Houston hotel (1600 Lamar Street, Houston, TX 77010) will serve as our convention headquarters hotel. Situated in the heart of downtown Houston across the street from the beautiful twelve-acre Discovery Green Park, the Hilton Americas is an ideal location for our annual event. Ballrooms, breakout space, and sleeping rooms are all stacked in the same tower housed on a single city block, simplifying navigation and minimizing travel distances. In-room internet is complimentary to all attendees as is access to the health club and swimming pool on the 22nd floor. There are several dining options on the hotel’s lobby level (including a Starbucks for those of you requiring a caffeine fix) and many more choices within easy walking distance from the Hilton’s front door.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>The nightly rate at the Hilton Americas-Houston is $119 for singles, doubles, triples, and quads. In addition, the sales tax rate is 8.25 percent, and the hotel occupancy tax rate is 17 percent. To book your room for the 2023 convention, call 1-800-236-2905 after January 1 and ask for the “NFB Convention” block. For each room, the hotel will take a deposit of the first night’s room rate and taxes and will require a credit card or a personal check. If you use a credit card, the deposit will be charged against your card immediately. If a reservation is cancelled before Thursday, June 1, 2023, half of the deposit will be returned. Otherwise refunds will not be made.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>We have also secured overflow space at the wonderful Marriott Marquis Houston. The Marriott is only a three-block walk directly across Discovery Green, or attendees can walk entirely indoors through the George R. Brown convention center, connecting both hotels on the second level. You will find many of the same amenities at the Marriott as well as a Texas-shaped lazy river pool. The room rate at the Marriott Marquis is an to $125 per night for singles, doubles, triples, and quads. To book a room, call 1-877-622-3056 after January 1. Again, ask for the “NFB Convention” block. Similarly, the same deposit and cancellation policies apply.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>The 2023 convention of the National Federation of the Blind will be a truly exciting and memorable event, with an unparalleled program and rededication to the goals and work of our movement. A wide range of seminars for parents of blind children, technology enthusiasts, job seekers, and other groups will kick the week off on Saturday, July 1. Convention registration and registration packet pick-up will also open on Saturday. Breakout sessions continue on Sunday along with committee meetings. Monday, July 3, will kick off with the annual meeting, open to all, of the Board of Directors of the National Federation of the Blind. National division meetings will follow the board meeting that afternoon and evening. General convention sessions will begin on Tuesday, July 4, and continue through the afternoon of Thursday, July 6. Convention ends on a high note with the banquet Thursday evening so be sure to pack your fancy clothes. The fall of the gavel at the close of banquet will signal convention’s adjournment.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Remember that as usual we need door prizes from state affiliates, local chapters, and individuals. Once again prizes should be small in size but large in value. Cash, of course, is always appropriate and welcome. As a rule, we ask that prizes of all kinds have a value of at least $25 and not include alcohol. Drawings will occur steadily throughout the convention sessions, and you can anticipate a Texas-sized grand prize to be drawn at the banquet. You may bring door prizes with you to convention or send them in advance to the National Federation of the Blind of Texas at 1600 E Highway 6, Suite 215, Alvin, TX 77511.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>The best collection of exhibits featuring new technology; meetings of our special interest groups, committees, and divisions; the most stimulating and provocative program items of any meeting of the blind in the world; the chance to renew friendships in our Federation family; and the unparalleled opportunity to be where the real action is and where decisions are being made—all of these mean you will not want to miss being a part of the 2023 National Convention. To assure yourself a room in the headquarters hotel at convention rates, make your reservations early. We plan to see you in Houston in July.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Vol. 66, No. 6 June 2023<o:p></o:p></span></p><h2 id=contents><span style='font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Contents<o:p></o:p></span></h2><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Illustration: Money Doesn’t Grow on Trees<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Convention Bulletin 2023<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Jacob’s Ladder: Hosting Sports Fans in a Rising Career<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>by Jamal Mazrui<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Transformation in Employment: Smart Partnership to Build the Future Together<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>by Regina Kline<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Blindness: Handicap or Characteristic<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>by Kenneth Jernigan<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Blindness: Physical Handicap, Characteristic, Identity, or Something Else<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>by Gary Wunder<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Gratitude<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>by Curtis Willoughby<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Creativity Is More Accessible Than Meets the Eye<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>by Rishika Kartik<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>National Federation of the Blind Applauds the Introduction of the Access Technology Affordability Act in the Senate<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Can We Change the World?<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>by Jo Elizabeth Pinto<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>The Blind Do Lead the Blind<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>by Dr. Jacob Freid<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Four Leading Brands and The National Federation of the Blind Join Be My Eyes’ Virtual Volunteer Corporate Beta Test<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Accessible Remote Access with RIM<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>by Karl Belanger and Matt Hackert<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Lift Up with Lyft Round Up<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>by Patti Chang<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Summer Tips for Parents of Blind Students<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>by LaShawna Fant<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>[PHOTO CAPTION: President Riccobono and Len Olijar examine the raised tactile features on the next generation $10 bill.]<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>[PHOTO CAPTION: Left to Right: Kyle Walls, John Paré, President Mark Riccobono, and Director of the Bureau of Engraving and Printing Len Olijar.]<o:p></o:p></span></p><h2 id=money-doesnt-grow-on-trees><span style='font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Money Doesn’t Grow on Trees<o:p></o:p></span></h2><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>It is manufactured by the Bureau of Engraving and Printing (BEP). On Thursday, April 13, President Riccobono met with the director of the Bureau of Engraving and Printing, Len Olijar, to discuss the next generation of paper currency in the United States. The meeting was productive. President Riccobono and John Paré were able to preview the upcoming redesign of the ten-dollar bill, scheduled to be released in 2026. We say preview. They were only able to touch the raised tactile feature. Nothing else. It was highly secretive. It was wrapped in other paper and Len Olijar walked through the very thoughtful process they've been going through to add this to the paper currency of the United States.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>This is based a lot on work that they did with us over the last decade. Some of you probably participated in activities at the national convention, and we have urged them to be at our national convention again this year. They will. We don't know what they'll be able to show at this year's convention because the release of the first bill with a raised tactile feature is still a couple years away. But we do believe they will be at the convention. As mentioned in the May <em><span style='font-family:"Georgia",serif'>Presidential Release,</span></em> President Riccobono did offer that the Federation would be happy to run a free samples program for the new $10 bill. They didn't take him up on it, but we're still negotiating. So really great progress on that project.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>[PHOTO CAPTION: Jamal Mazrui]<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>[PHOTO CAPTION: Jacob Struiksma]<o:p></o:p></span></p><h2 id=jacobs-ladder-hosting-sports-fans-in-a-rising-career><span style='font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Jacob’s Ladder: Hosting Sports Fans in a Rising Career<o:p></o:p></span></h2><p><strong><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>by Jamal Mazrui</span></strong><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'><o:p></o:p></span></p><p><strong><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>From the Editor: Thanks to Jamal, we are given an opportunity to see into the life of a blind person who is doing things most of us have never seriously considered. We train for white collar jobs, but we know that not every person wants to do those for a living.</span></strong><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'><o:p></o:p></span></p><p><strong><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Thanks to Jamal for giving some of his busy time writing this. He is married to Susan and together they have two daughters. He works for Amazon teaching people how to use this megastore on the web. Enjoy the fruits of his interview and the fine man this article is about:</span></strong><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'><o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Last year, my supervisor at Amazon mentioned that she recently attended a Seattle Mariners baseball game where one of the staff at the stadium was blind. “He helped us find our seats,” she said, “and it seemed like he was the most knowledgeable person around who could answer questions and give directions.” I smiled and replied that “I’m pretty sure that the person you mention is someone I know from the Greater Seattle Chapter of the National Federation of the Blind.”<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>The fellow chapter member and friend of mine is Jacob Struiksma. I first met him at an NFB meeting in 2016, after my family moved from the Washington DC area to Seattle.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>I soon learned why Jacob has the reputation of being a transportation guru. It seems that you can give him almost any two addresses in King County, and he will tell you what options are available for traveling between them, whether this involves buses, trains, or walking. Over the years, he has earned nicknames like “Transit Dude” and “Metro Man.”<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Born in Everett, Washington, in 1979 and now age forty-three, Jacob comes from a dairy farming family in the state of Washington. He has three younger brothers. The family is close, and his parents still live in the area.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Jacob joined the Federation in 1999 and attended his first national convention in Philadelphia in 2001. He became a lifetime member of the Seattle Chapter in 2021 and has served as vice president, among other roles. His example convinced me, as well as my wife Susan, to also become lifetime members in 2022.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Jacob is a tall man, about six foot three inches. He travels with probably the tallest cane in Seattle, sixty-nine inches. His cane tap is distinctive in sound, leading folks to joke that “You hear Jacob coming and then encounter his cane well before he appears in person!”<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Applying aptitudes for understanding layouts and explaining directions, Jacob launched a career in hosting services at major sports arenas in Seattle. His ability to quickly learn the layout of an environment and to helpfully answer questions with precise information have been valuable to such public venues (although persistent job applications and demonstrations were needed to remove all doubt).<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Over the course of a year, Jacob helps many fans find seats, refreshments, and memorabilia at various sports, music, or other entertainment events. He also processes tickets when they first arrive.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>His hosting career began in February of 2018 when Jacob joined guest services at the Seattle Mariners baseball stadium. He eventually became a seasonal employee with three companies that deliver support services for large events in the city, year round. Jacob now works regularly for Seattle Mariners baseball at T-Mobile Park, Seattle Seahawks football at Lumen Field, and Seattle Kraken hockey at Climate Pledge Arena. At Lumen Field, he also supports Seattle OL Reign soccer and Seattle Sounders soccer. At Climate Pledge Arena, he supports Seattle Storm basketball as well.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>All three arenas host music concerts in addition. These have included famous talents like Taylor Swift, Pearl Jam, Green Bay, The Who, and the Dave Matthews Band. Comedy shows have featured Chris Rock and Dave Chappelle, among others. During the holiday season, a variety show for families includes fancy lights, a scavenger hunt, Santa Claus, and Christmas music.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>When Jacob works an event, he is typically on his feet from six to eight hours nonstop, except for a couple of short breaks. He finds most aspects of the work environment to be nonvisually accessible. Some online systems for employees, e.g., an electronic time sheet, have been unnecessarily problematic, as is still too common across industry, unfortunately. As a reasonable accommodation, a supervisor or coworker assists in such cases.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Jacob is liked and respected among support staff at Seattle’s biggest events. Based on his positive experience, he is helping to recruit other blind people to this line of work.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>In an occupation that has generally not employed blind people, Jacob shows that a blind person can perform successfully in its integrated, competitive environment. This is someone who is living the life he wants, and he is changing what it means to be blind. Go Jacob!<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>----------<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>[PHOTO CAPTION: Regina Kline]<o:p></o:p></span></p><h2 id=transformation-in-employment-smart-partnership-to-build-the-future-together><span style='font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Transformation in Employment: Smart Partnership to Build the Future Together<o:p></o:p></span></h2><p><strong><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>by Regina Kline</span></strong><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'><o:p></o:p></span></p><p><strong><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>From the Editor: We are constantly bombarded by messages that suggest that if we don’t want to work for someone else, the answer is to be an entrepreneur. If we don’t want to face the discrimination that comes from employers not believing we can do a job, the answer is to become an entrepreneur. In this address, a woman who has worked as our legal counsel and has long been an advocate for entrepreneurism talks about how we who are blind can become entrepreneurs and the way all of us in the Federation can support programs to make this easier. Here is what she says:</span></strong><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'><o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Thank you, Mr. President! Hello and good afternoon, members of the Federation! What a privilege it is to come back here today after being gone and apart for a couple of years. This has a lot of significance to me personally, and I know it has to you. This convention is so much a homecoming and a homecoming this year during such challenging times that we all have been through.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>But it does reflect a critical moment to celebrate community and to celebrate the energy that's created by this community in particular. There's potent power in this room! There are ideas and actions in this room that will lift up those that are here and those that are not, and it will do this for the rest of the year and for years to come.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Well, I was introduced just now by the President in my role as founder of EnAble Ventures and SmartJob, both companies aimed to close the disability wealth gap and grow an entrepreneurial system throughout the blind community, as I will mention. But, as was said in my introduction, I first entered this work as a lawyer. I was honored to work as senior counsel in the United States Department of Justice under the Obama administration, where I fought on matters that the NFB has always led on—and that is to advance the interests of workers with disabilities, to achieve competitive employment. That means avoiding unnecessary, unjustified segregation. It means being able to leave sub-minimum wage work when you can and want to work for competitive wages. As you well know, NFB has always been on the cutting edge of civil rights for workers in the organized blind movement, to work in employment in a range of jobs, to advance the highest expectations of people who are blind, and for the full inclusion of the organized blind in work and the economy. I look out today, and I see some of my great friends—Eve Hill, I worked with her back at DOJ. She's one of the great lawyers in the United States advancing the ADA. Anne Raish, still at the DOJ advancing civil rights. But this was back in the DOJ when we were pushing to apply the case law of Olmstead to cover places where people with disabilities worked. Now we know that people with disabilities can thrive in the job market with a range of opportunities and that there is a recognized right in the United States for people with disabilities to receive the services and supports they need to work in the community.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Later in my career, I went on and worked with Eve Hill and Dan Goldstein, who is in the audience, and other lawyers here from Brown, Goldstein & Levy—oh, yeah, let's hear it for Brown, Goldstein & Levy! [Applause]—a law firm truly with singularity that has worked hand-in-glove with the NFB to advance the rights of people with disabilities and people in this community for decades.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>We worked on matters across the United States with the NFB, advancing the rights of blind workers to avoid unlawful, unnecessary segregation, to be treated equally on the job, to access ladders of opportunity, and that is work that is still carrying on today with the NFB and with these lawyers that have dedicated so much of their lives to making sure that people with disabilities have equal rights.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>It was just around the start of 2020, however, that my work took me in a very interesting and very different place. I began to assess the sum of these experiences, and I was assessing what it meant that I had worked with some of the most talented people I've ever met in this community, in this room, and rooms like this around the country. And I began to realize that there were two different realities at play. First, thirty years after the ADA, it remained the case that two-thirds of working-age adults with disabilities are in fact not employed. Second, and this is really important, there is an abundance of raw innovation, invention, and ingenuity throughout the blind community. [Applause] It's everywhere! Talent is lying everywhere! And it's in this convention hall today. This sparks the question in all of us, which is how can we harness that talent to access more than just the right to be free from discrimination? What additional tools can we use to allow talented people with disabilities to achieve a freedom that works hand-in-glove with equality that is economic justice? In the movement for disability rights, how do we build on the equality already achieved and the battles yet to be fought, while leveling up to the word that is "equity"?—that which gives people economic opportunities, employment, and greater access to wealth. I turned to entrepreneurship to address these questions.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Now, ask me what entrepreneurship is. To me, it's a prayer to the kind of world you want to live in in the future. It's a prayer that through consistent and dedicated folks, you will into the world. Through the power of a single idea, you will it into reality. Even despite the odds—yes, even despite the odds that it might not succeed.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>The history of successful entrepreneurs is replete with examples of people who have succeeded in spite of the odds, in spite of great barriers. They've been excluded from traditional avenues of employment. As the founder of LinkedIn, Reed Hoffman, wrote in a 2013 op-ed about the subject of immigration: Immigration is pure entrepreneurship. You see, you leave behind everything familiar to start somewhere new. To succeed, you develop alliances. You must acquire skills. You will have to improvise on occasion. That's a bold proposition, he said.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Well, like the experience of immigration, so many of the entrepreneurs with disabilities that I meet every day are fantastically situated for the experience of entrepreneurship. Each day they battle and bust through barriers in a world that was not written with them in mind. Each day, they see opportunities they don’t have, not because of their merit but because of the biases of the world. They seek new paths with new additional skills. Their lives are ones of inventing work-arounds, hacks, and better ways. And they are uncompromising in their belief that they can and will live in a world where the experience of disability is equated with problem-solving, innovation, and a better way. [Cheering and applause].<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>I founded SmartJob in 2020, and this year in 2022 partnered with Jim Sorensen, a world-renowned impact investor of the Sorensen Impact Platform, to create EnAble Ventures, a market-rate venture firm. Our job is to find the most talented entrepreneurs with disabilities in the world who are leveraging the disability experience as an asset. In their businesses, they are creating inclusively designed products and services. And they're launching startups that will increase the employment of people with disabilities. We connect these entrepreneurs with funding to allow their companies and enterprises to grow, to scale, to be sustainable.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>These entrepreneurs and companies are bringing new products to the market that will improve the lives of themselves, others, and the lives of people with disabilities. In our estimation, by backing and supporting these innovators and entrepreneurs, we are working, and we need you to help us. We are working on building smarter jobs. We don't need to build any smart people. We've got them here; we've got them everywhere! [Cheering and applause]. We don't need to get more talent. We have talent here! We have talent everywhere!<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>What we need to do is change the way we design work. There is a rising class of entrepreneurs with disabilities around the world who will do that, will reimagine work for everyone.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>My friend Tracy over there gives me a hard time in NFB—let's hear it for Tracy Soforenko from NFB of Virginia. [Laughter]<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>He says, Gina, you're too much Wall Street, not enough Main Street. You're too Harvard, not enough rock and roll. [Laughter]<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Okay, Tracy, here's some regular language about what we do. We're providing our support to entrepreneurs and early-stage companies that are inventing new wayfinding solutions, next generation Braille displays, digital training and hiring platforms designed to screen in, not screen out. You heard Anne from the US DOJ. They're worried about technologies coming along that are AI driven that screens workers out. We're looking for technologies that intend and are designed to screen workers IN. [Cheering and applause]. We're backing entrepreneurs with disabilities with powerful ideas who are seeking funding, in order to grow and scale the kind of companies that will hire other people with disabilities, that will promote accessibility in their supply chains that will be designed with the community in mind from the beginning. [Applause]<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>It means that SmartJob is finding and supporting a global community of disability tech accelerators, small business incubators, and entrepreneurship programs that provide entrepreneurs with those critical skills—the critical skills, support, and information they need to be successful on their entrepreneurial journeys. You know, some of the fastest-growing jobs in our economy today are in the technology sector. That's an industry where people with disabilities, including people who are blind, are absolutely underrepresented. It is estimated that hundreds of thousands of jobs that exist today will be gone by 2030 because of the lightning speed of innovation, automation, and because of this increasing digital divide. People who have unequal access to technology will be the hardest hit with these labor force trends. And as you know, here we are in 2022, and the internet remains so often inaccessible to blind people thirty-two years after the enactment of the ADA.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>To solve for these problems—in addition to the good work, the profound work of the NFB in its crusade for civil rights with so many talented lawyers—to solve for this problem, SmartJob is building relationships. And we're building a lot of them. We're building relationships with coding, digital accessibility, and other technology training boot camps. We're trying to connect workers with new inroads into that tech industry. We're working to pave alternative and accessible learning and training paths right into the technology sector to drive inclusion into the heart of tech by making it easier for tech to meet our talented workforce: the members of the National Federation of the Blind and people across the disability community who can and want to work in tech and can bring their talents to bear on the next generation of technology.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>So, I've got to tell you since 2020 I've met with hundreds of entrepreneurs with disabilities from around the world. We're talking about inventors and dreamers and founders and makers. They're leveraging the experience of disability as an asset to business and as an asset to the world. They're expanding the disability market and the general market (the general consumer market, as they're doing it).<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>If you’re not an entrepreneur today, you might ask yourself why you should care about this. Again, why should you care about this? What does it have to do with your life?<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Today, entrepreneurs throughout the world are working on solutions. They're working on solutions that you'll buy at the store. They're working—and many of them are blind—working on solutions to remove barriers from people with disabilities' lives. That's true. But the right solutions need funding to scale; in order to be sustainable, to reach you, they need funding in order to get off the ground, to hit a wider distribution, to have a lower price point, to make it. To make the sustainability of those products, they need sustained funding. They need a magic ingredient, which we in investing call product market feed. They need feedback like the relationship we've formed under President Riccobono with the National Federation of the Blind to know: what is the user experience? What do blind people think about this product? What does the community need to be built? Who in the community wants to build it?<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>So we are working on all these issues together. As we are looking to support and grow companies, we're also looking to support and grow the interests of consumers as to what they need. You know what you need, and you know what you'd like to see on the shelf in the future.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>When entrepreneurs with disabilities and those co-designing with them have more funding, when they have more support, when they have more guidance, consumers do have a wider array of choices in their lives, and that levels the playing field. On this journey, as I mentioned—and I really want to underscore this—the NFB has been an indispensable partner. This should be of little surprise, as the NFB has been at the forefront of not only, as we mentioned, advancing employment for much of its eighty-plus-year history. But NFB has been at the edge, the cutting edge, of advancing innovation for all of its history. Certainly, blind innovation since the very beginning has very directly influenced the history of innovation at large in the world. You can draw a straight line from the invention of the typewriter to text to voice to audio books. Many of the component features of your iPhone in your pocket—that started in the organized blind community. That started with blind innovators! That started here! [Cheering and applause] That started in the community. Those innovations changed the world. They changed the world.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>I know that your president knows that. NFB knows that. And looking out into the future, they know that there are innovators and inventors in the audience here today—all across this country—who will create the next generation of solutions in the next fifty years.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>We are very excited by this partnership, and the ability to announce two special opportunities that are coming online right now in this partnership between SmartJob and the NFB. We have supported and brought to the community Synergies Works—it's a small microbusiness incubator. This is Tracy again: “What does incubator mean, Gina?” It's a place where entrepreneurs can get end-to-end support on their ideas, mentorship, the opportunity to meet with coaches about their ideas, the opportunity to receive support in accounting and marketing, understanding how to reach consumers and test products, and the opportunity to learn how to make a business plan.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>We're bringing this online, and the opportunity is currently open to members of the National Federation of the Blind! [Cheering and applause]<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>The other thing we have to tell you is that we're bringing online, thanks to the folks at Include, LLC, a "How to Raise Venture Capital" course, how to get funding from angel investors and venture capitalists for great business ideas here in the NFB community. That course is opening right now as well. We've got lots of opportunities, and we hope that we'll see many of you participating in these as we move forward.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Thank you very much!<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>----------<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>[PHOTO CAPTION: Kenneth Jernigan]<o:p></o:p></span></p><h2 id=blindness-handicap-or-characteristic><span style='font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Blindness: Handicap or Characteristic <o:p></o:p></span></h2><p><strong><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>by Kenneth Jernigan</span></strong><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'><o:p></o:p></span></p><p><strong><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>From the Editor: The speech that follows was first delivered at the banquet of the National Federation of the Blind convention in 1963. It has sparked a great deal of discussion, but many of us who are Federationists tend to regard blindness primarily as a characteristic and take as one of our major responsibilities providing the training and opportunity that will keep it from being more in the lives of the blind.</span></strong><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'><o:p></o:p></span></p><p><strong><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>As you read this speech, keep in mind that some of the phraseology might be different from what we would use today. If we cannot read words written a half-century ago without objecting to the fact that they are not the words we might use today, we have to close the door on much of history, what it has to teach, and the times in which it was written. People tell me that we should rewrite some of our literature to modernize it. I have no quibble with the concept, but I do make two observations: one is that the newer pieces do not need to replace what was pioneering at the time it was written. My second observation is that sadly, many who have suggested we need newer literature have not set themselves to the task of writing it even when promised every opportunity to work with a willing editor to bring a new piece of Federation material into being. I hope people who have not read this before will enjoy it and that those of us who have will appreciate the opportunity to stroll down memory lane. In whichever group you fall, please read the article that follows and add your voice to the dialogue.</span></strong><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'><o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>It has been wisely observed that philosophy bakes no bread. It has, with equal wisdom, been observed that without a philosophy no bread is baked. Let me talk to you, then, of philosophy—my philosophy concerning blindness—and, in a broader sense, my philosophy concerning handicaps in general.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>One prominent authority recently said, “loss of sight is a dying. When, in the full current of his sighted life, blindness comes on a man, it is the end, the death, of that sighted life... It is superficial, if not naive, to think of blindness as a blow to the eyes only, to sight only. It is a destructive blow to the self-image of a man ... a blow almost to his being itself.”<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>This is one view, a view held by a substantial number of people in the world today. But it is not the only view. In my opinion it is not the correct view. What is blindness? Is it a "dying"?<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>No one is likely to disagree with me if I say that blindness, first of all, is a characteristic. But a great many people will disagree when I go on to say that blindness is only a characteristic. It is nothing more or less than that. It is nothing more special, or more peculiar, or more terrible than that suggests. When we understand the nature of blindness as a characteristic—a normal characteristic like hundreds of others with which each of us must live—we shall better understand the real need to be met by services to the blind, as well as the false needs which should not be met.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>By definition a characteristic—any characteristic—is a limitation. A white house, for example, is a limited house; it cannot be green or blue or red; it is limited to being white. Likewise, every characteristic—those we regard as strengths as well as those we regard as weaknesses—is a limitation. Each one freezes us to some extent into a mold; each restricts to some degree the range of possibility, of flexibility, and very often of opportunity as well.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Blindness is such a limitation. Are blind people more limited than others?<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Let us make a simple comparison. Take a sighted person with an average mind (something not too hard to locate); take a blind person with a superior mind (something not impossible to locate)—and then make all the other characteristics of these two persons equal (something which certainly is impossible). Now, which of the two is more limited? It depends, of course, entirely on what you wish them to do. If you are choosing up sides for baseball, then the blind man is more limited—that is, he is "handicapped." If you are seeking someone to teach history or science or to figure out your income tax, then the sighted person is more limited or "handicapped."<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Many human characteristics are obvious limitations; others are not so obvious. Poverty (the lack of material means) is one of the most obvious. Ignorance (the lack of knowledge or education) is another. Old age (the lack of youth and vigor) is yet another. Blindness (the lack of eyesight) is still another. In all these cases the limitations are apparent, or seem to be. But let us look at some other common characteristics which do not seem limiting. Take the very opposite of old age—youth. Is age a limitation in the case of a youth of twenty? Indeed it is, for a person who is twenty will not be considered for most responsible positions, especially supervisory and leadership positions. He may be entirely mature, fully capable, in every way the best qualified applicant for the job. Even so, his age will bar him from employment; he will be classified as too green and immature to handle the responsibility. And even if he were to land the position, others on the job would almost certainly resent being supervised by one so young. The characteristic of being twenty is definitely a limitation.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>The same holds true for any other age. Take age fifty, which many regard as the prime of life. The man of fifty does not have the physical vigor he possessed at twenty; and, indeed, most companies will not start a new employee at that age. The Bell Telephone System, for example, has a general prohibition against hiring anyone over the age of thirty-five. But it is interesting to note that the United States Constitution has a prohibition against having anyone under thirty-five running for President. The moral is plain: any age carries its built-in limitations.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Let us take another unlikely handicap—not that of ignorance, but its exact opposite. Can it be said that education is ever a handicap? The answer is definitely yes. In the agency which I head I would not hire Albert Einstein under any circumstances if he were today alive and available. His fame (other people would continually flock to the agency and prevent us from doing our work) and his intelligence (he would be bored to madness by the routine of most of our jobs) would both be too severe as limitations.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Here is an actual case in point. Some time ago a vacancy occurred on the library staff at the Iowa Commission for the Blind. Someone was needed to perform certain clerical duties and take charge of shelving and checking talking book records. After all applicants had been screened, the final choice came down to two. Applicant A had a college degree, was seemingly alert, and clearly of more than average intelligence. Applicant B had a high school diploma (no college), was of average intelligence, and possessed only moderate initiative. I hired applicant B. Why? Because I suspected that applicant A would regard the work as beneath him, would soon become bored with its undemanding assignments, and would leave as soon as something better came along. I would then have to find and train another employee. On the other hand, I felt that applicant B would consider the work interesting and even challenging, that he was thoroughly capable of handling the job, and that he would be not only an excellent but a permanent employee. In fact, he has worked out extremely well.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>In other words, in that situation the characteristic of education—the possession of a college degree—was a limitation and a handicap. Even above average intelligence was a limitation; and so was a high level of initiative. There is a familiar bureaucratic label for this unusual disadvantage: it is the term "overqualified." Even the overqualified, it appears, can be underprivileged.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>This should be enough to make the point—which is that if blindness is a limitation (and, indeed, it is), it is so in quite the same way as innumerable other characteristics which human flesh is heir to. I believe that blindness has no more importance than any of a hundred other characteristics and that the average blind person is able to perform the average job in the average career or calling, provided (and it is a large proviso) he is given training and opportunity.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Often when I have advanced this proposition, I have been met with the response, "But you can't look at it that way. Just consider what you might have done if you had been sighted and still had all the other capacities you now possess."<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>"Not so," I reply. "We do not compete against what we might have been, but only against other people as they are, with their combinations of strengths and weaknesses, handicaps and limitations." If we are going down that track, why not ask me what I might have done if I had been born with Rockefeller's money, the brains of Einstein, the physique of the young Joe Louis, and the persuasive abilities of Franklin Roosevelt? (And do I need to remind anyone, in passing, that FDR was severely handicapped physically?) I wonder if anyone ever said to him:<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>"Mr. President, just consider what you might have done if you had not had polio!"<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Others have said to me, "But I formerly had my sight, so I know what I am missing."<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>To which one might reply, "And I was formerly twenty, so I know what I am missing." Our characteristics are constantly changing, and we are forever acquiring new experiences, limitations, and assets. We do not compete against what we formerly were but against other people as they now are.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>In a recent issue of a well-known professional journal in the field of work with the blind, a blinded veteran who is now a college professor, puts forward a notion of blindness radically different from this. He sets the limitations of blindness apart from all others and makes them unique. Having done this, he can say that all other human characteristics, strengths, and weaknesses, belong in one category—and that with regard to them the blind and the sighted individual are just about equal. But the blind person also has the additional and unique limitation of his blindness. Therefore, there is really nothing he can do quite as well as the sighted person, and he can continue to hold his job only because there are charity and goodness in the world.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>What this blind professor does not observe is that the same distinction he has made regarding blindness could be made with equal plausibility with respect to any of a dozen—perhaps a hundred—other characteristics. For example, suppose we distinguish intelligence from all other traits as uniquely different. Then the man with above one hundred twenty-five IQ is just about the same as the man with below one hundred-twenty-five IQ—except for intelligence. Therefore, the college professor with less than one hundred twenty-five IQ cannot really do anything as well as the man with more than one hundred twenty-five IQ—and can continue to hold his job only because there are charity and goodness in the world.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>"Are we going to assume," says this blind professor, "that all blind people are so wonderful in all other areas that they easily make up for any limitations imposed by loss of sight? I think not." But why, one asks, single out the particular characteristic of blindness? We might just as well specify some other. For instance, are we going to assume that all people with less than one hundred twenty-five IQ are so wonderful in all other areas that they easily make up for any limitations imposed by lack of intelligence? I think not.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>This consideration brings us to the problem of terminology and semantics—and therewith to the heart of the matter of blindness as a handicap. The assumption that the limitation of blindness is so much more severe than others that it warrants being singled out for special definition is built into the very warp and woof of our language and psychology. Blindness conjures up a condition of unrelieved disaster—something much more terrible and dramatic than other limitations. Moreover, blindness is a conspicuously visible limitation; and there are not so many blind people around that there is any danger of becoming accustomed to it or taking it for granted. If all of those in our midst who possess an IQ under one hundred twenty-five exhibited, say, green stripes on their faces, I suspect that they would begin to be regarded as inferior to the non-striped—and that there would be immediate and tremendous discrimination.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>When someone says to a blind person, "You do things so well that I forget you are blind—I simply think of you as being like anybody else," is that really a compliment? Suppose one of us went to France, and someone said:<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>"You do things so well that I forget you are an American and simply think of you as being like anyone else"—would it be a compliment? Of course, the blind person must not wear a chip on his shoulder or allow himself to become angry or emotionally upset. He should be courteous, and he should accept the statement as the compliment it is meant to be. But he should understand that it is really not complimentary. In reality it says:<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>"It is normal for blind people to be inferior and limited, different and much less able than the rest of us. Of course, you are still a blind person and still much more limited than I, but you have compensated for it so well that I almost forget that you are inferior to me."<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>The social attitudes about blindness are all pervasive. Not only do they affect the sighted but also the blind as well. This is one of the most troublesome problems which we have to face. Public attitudes about the blind too often become the attitudes of the blind. The blind tend to see themselves as others see them. They too often accept the public view of their limitations and thereby do much to make those limitations a reality.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Several years ago, Dr. Jacob Freid, at that time a young teacher of sociology and now head of the Jewish Braille Institute of America, performed an interesting experiment. He gave a test in photograph identification to Negro and white students at the university where he was teaching. There was one photograph of a Negro woman in a living room of a home of culture—well furnished with paintings, sculpture, books, and flowers. Asked to identify the person in the photograph, the students said she was a "cleaning woman," "housekeeper," "cook," "laundress," "servant," "domestic," and "mammy." The revealing insight is that the Negro students made the same identifications as the white students. The woman was Mary McLeod Bethune, the most famous Negro woman of her time, founder and president of Bethune-Cookman College, who held a top post during Franklin D. Roosevelt's administration, and a person of brilliance and prestige in the world of higher education. What this incident tells us is that education, like nature, abhors a vacuum, and that when members of a minority group do not have correct and complete information about themselves, they accept the stereotypes of the majority group even when they are false and unjust. Even today, in the midst of the great civil rights debate and protest, one wonders how many Negroes would make the traditional and stereotyped identification of the photograph.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Similarly with the blind the public image is everywhere dominant. This is the explanation for the attitude of those blind persons who are ashamed to carry a white cane or who try to bluff sight which they do not possess. Although great progress is now being made, there are still many people (sighted as well as blind) who believe that blindness is not altogether respectable.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>The blind person must devise alternative techniques to do many things which he would do with sight if he had normal vision. It will be observed that I say alternative not substitute techniques, for the word substitute connotes inferiority, and the alternative techniques employed by the blind person need not be inferior to visual techniques. In fact, some are superior. Of course, some are inferior, and some are equal.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>In this connection it is interesting to consider the matter of flying. In comparison with the birds, man begins at a disadvantage. He cannot fly. He has no wings. He is "handicapped." But he sees the birds flying, and he longs to do likewise. He cannot use the "normal" bird-like method, so he begins to devise alternative techniques. In his jet airplanes he now flies higher, farther, and faster than any bird which has ever existed. If he had possessed wings, the airplane would probably never have been devised, and the inferior wing-flapping method would still be in general use.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>This matter of our irrational images and stereotypes with regard to blindness was brought sharply home to me some time ago during the course of a rehabilitation conference in Little Rock, Arkansas. I found myself engaged in a discussion with a well-known leader in the field of work with the blind who holds quite different views from those I have been advancing. The error in my argument about blindness as a characteristic, he advised me, was that blindness is not in the range of "normal" characteristics; and, therefore, its limitations are radically different from those of other characteristics falling within the normal range. If a normal characteristic is simply one possessed by the majority in a group, then it is not normal to have a black skin in America or, for that matter, a white skin in the world at large.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>It is not normal to have red hair or be over six feet tall. If, on the other hand, a normal characteristic is simply what this authority or someone else defines as being normal, then we have a circular argument—one that gets us nowhere.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>In this same discussion I put forward the theory that a man who was sighted and of average means and who had all other characteristics in common with a blind man of considerable wealth would be less mobile than the blind man. I had been arguing that there were alternative techniques (not substitute) for doing those things which one would do with sight if he had normal vision. The authority I have already mentioned, as well as several others, had been contending that there was no real, adequate substitute for sight in traveling about. I told the story of a wealthy blind man I know who goes to Hawaii or some other place every year and who hires sighted attendants and is much more mobile than any sighted person I know of ordinary means. After all of the discussion and the fact that I thought I had conveyed some understanding of what I was saying, a participant in the conference said—as if he thought he was really making a telling point, "Wouldn't you admit that the wealthy man in question would be even more mobile if he had his sight?"<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Which brings us to the subject of services to the blind and more exactly of their proper scope and direction. There are, as I see it, four basic types of services now being provided for blind persons by public and private agencies and volunteer groups in this country today. They are:<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>1. Services based on the theory that blindness is uniquely different from other characteristics and that it carries with it permanent inferiority and severe limitations upon activity.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>2. Services aimed at teaching the blind person a new and constructive set of attitudes about blindness—based on the premise that the prevailing social attitudes, assimilated involuntarily by the blind person, are mistaken in content and destructive in effect.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>3. Services aimed at teaching alternative techniques and skills related to blindness.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>4. Services not specifically related to blindness but to other characteristics (such as old age and lack of education), which are nevertheless labeled as "services to the blind" and included under the generous umbrella of the service program.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>An illustration of the assumptions underlying the first of these four types of services is the statement quoted earlier which begins, "Loss of sight is a dying." At the Little Rock conference already mentioned the man who made this statement elaborated on the tragic metaphor by pointing out that "the eye is a sexual symbol" and that, accordingly, the man who has not eyes is not a "whole man." He cited the play <em><span style='font-family:"Georgia",serif'>Oedipus Rex</span></em> as proof of his contention that the eye is a sexual symbol. I believe that this misses the whole point of the classic tragedy. Like many moderns, the Greeks considered the severest possible punishment to be the loss of sight. Oedipus committed a mortal sin (unknowingly he had killed his father and married his mother); therefore, his punishment must be correspondingly great. But that is just what his self-imposed blindness was—a punishment, not a sex symbol.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>But this view not only misses the point of <em><span style='font-family:"Georgia",serif'>Oedipus Rex</span></em>—it misses the point of blindness. And in so doing it misses the point of services intended to aid the blind. For according to this view what the blind person needs most desperately is the help of a psychiatrist—of the kind so prominently in evidence at several of the orientation and adjustment centers for the blind throughout the country. According to this view, what the blind person needs most is not travel training but therapy. He will be taught to accept his limitations as insurmountable and his difference from others as unbridgeable. He will be encouraged to adjust to his painful station as a second-class citizen—and discouraged from any thought of breaking and entering the first-class compartment. Moreover, all of this will be done in the name of teaching him "independence" and a "realistic" approach to his blindness.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>The two competing types of services for the blind—categories one and two on my list of four types—with their underlying conflict of philosophy may perhaps be clarified by a rather fanciful analogy. All of us recall the case of the Jews in Nazi Germany. Suddenly, in the 1930s, the German Jew was told by his society that he was a "handicapped" person—that he was inferior to other Germans simply by virtue of being a Jew. Given this social fact, what sort of adjustment services might we have offered to the victim of Jewishness? I suggest that there are two alternatives—matching categories one and two of my list of services.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>First, since he has been a "normal" individual until quite recently, it is, of course, quite a shock (or "trauma," as modern lingo has it) for him to learn that he is permanently and constitutionally inferior to others and can engage only in a limited range of activities. He will, therefore, require a psychiatrist to give him counseling and therapy and to reconcile him to his lot. He must "adjust" to his handicap and "learn to live" with the fact that he is not a "whole man." If he is realistic, he may even manage to be happy. He can be taken to an adjustment center or put into a workshop, where he may learn a variety of simple crafts and curious occupations suitable to Jews. Again, it should be noted that all of this will be done in the name of teaching him how to live "independently" as a Jew. That is one form of adjustment training: category one of the four types of services outlined earlier.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>On the other hand, if there are those around who reject the premise that Jewishness equals inferiority, another sort of "adjustment" service may be undertaken. We might begin by firing the psychiatrist. His services will be available in his own private office, for Jews as for other members of the public, whenever they develop emotional or mental troubles. We will not want the psychiatrist because the Nazi psychiatrist likely has the same misconceptions about Jews as the rest of his society. We might continue then by scrapping the "Jew trades"—the menial routines which offer no competition to the normal world outside. We will take the emphasis off of resignation or of fun and games. We will not work to make the Jew happy in his isolation and servitude, but rather to make him discontent with them. We will make of him not a conformist but a rebel.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>And so it is with the blind. There are vast differences in the services offered by various agencies and volunteer groups doing work with the blind throughout the country today. At the Little Rock conference this came up repeatedly. When a blind person comes to a training center, what kind of tests do you give him, and why? In Iowa and some other centers the contention is that he is a responsible individual and that the emphasis should be on his knowing what he can do. Some of the centers represented at the Little Rock conference contended that he needed psychiatric help and counseling (regardless of the circumstances and merely by virtue of his blindness) and that the emphasis should be on the center personnel's knowing what he can do. I asked them whether they thought services in a center were more like those given by a hospital or like those given by a law school. In a hospital the person is a "patient." (This is, by the way, a term coming to be used more and more in rehabilitation today.) The doctors decide whether the patient needs an operation and what medication he should have. In reality the "patient" makes few of his own decisions. Will the doctor "let" him do this or that? In a law school, on the other hand, the "student" assumes responsibility for getting to his own classes and organizing his own work. He plans his own career, seeking advice to the extent that he feels the need for it. If he plans unwisely, he pays the price for it, but it is his life. This does not mean that he does not need the services of the law school. He probably will become friends with the professors and will discuss legal matters with them and socialize with them. From some he will seek counsel and advice concerning personal matters. More and more he will come to be treated as a colleague. Not so the "patient." What does he know of drugs and medications? Some of the centers represented at the Little Rock conference were shocked that we at the Iowa Commission for the Blind "socialize" with our students and have them to our homes. They believed that this threatened what they took to be the "professional relationship."<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Our society has so steeped itself in false notions concerning blindness that it is most difficult for people to understand the concept of blindness as a characteristic and for them to understand the services needed by the blind. As a matter of fact, in one way or another, the whole point of all I have been saying is just this: blindness is neither a dying nor a psychological crippling—it need not cause a disintegration of personality—and the stereotype which underlies this view is no less destructive when it presents itself in the garb of modern science than it was when it appeared in the ancient raiment of superstition and witchcraft.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Throughout the world, but especially in this country, we are today in the midst of a vast transition with respect to our attitudes about blindness and the whole concept of what handicaps are. We are reassessing and reshaping our ideas. In this process the professionals in the field cannot play a lone hand. It is a cardinal principle of our free society that the citizen public will hold the balance of decision. In my opinion, it is fortunate that this is so, for professionals can become limited in their thinking and committed to outworn programs and ideas. The general public must be the balance staff, the ultimate weigher of values and setter of standards. In order that the public may perform this function with reason and wisdom, it is the duty of each of us to see that the new ideas receive the broadest possible dissemination. But even more important, we must examine ourselves to see that our own minds are free from prejudices and preconception.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>----------<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>[PHOTO CAPTION: Gary Wunder]<o:p></o:p></span></p><h2 id=blindness-physical-handicap-characteristic-identity-or-something-else><span style='font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Blindness: Physical Handicap, Characteristic, Identity, or Something Else<o:p></o:p></span></h2><p><strong><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>by Gary Wunder</span></strong><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'><o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Almost fifty years ago Dr. Kenneth Jernigan wrote an essay entitled “Blindness: Handicap or Characteristic.” His assertion seemed revolutionary at the time, his argument being that blindness was more a characteristic than a handicap, more a nuisance and an inconvenience than the tragic condition it was so often portrayed to be. I first saw the article when a blind professor for whom I was working asked me to read and comment about it because he found it intriguing but wasn’t quite certain how he felt about the proposition.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Being a relatively new member of the National Federation of the Blind at that time, I knew that I admired Kenneth Jernigan, but my father had always called me visually handicapped, and I wasn’t quite certain about whether I could get behind rejecting that label. Certainly what President Jernigan wrote was moving and articulate, but even as a young college student, I knew that this wasn’t the test as to whether or not the proposition was true.<o:p></o:p></span></p><h3 id=is-the-answer-truly-binary><span style='font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Is the Answer Truly Binary?<o:p></o:p></span></h3><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>As I experienced more of life and read Federation literature, I became much more comfortable with the idea that blindness was indeed a characteristic. I found that I did not have to reject the assertion that sometimes it was also a handicap, though either/or is very often the kind of proposition we present in trying to figure out how to put major pieces of the puzzle of life together. Believing that the world is made up only of round pegs and square pegs and deciding where to put the pieces is often a cause of unnecessary conflict, and in my life this has too often resulted in my trying to impose my perceptions as making up the reality of the world.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Although we clearly refer to blindness as one of many characteristics and not the characteristic that defines us, this doesn’t really address the issue of what part it plays in identity. Its role in my life and the lives of others was next brought top of mind when I attended a conference on bioethics at the invitation of Dr. Adrienne Asch. She was a renowned bioethicist, a scholar, and a prominent figure in advancing civil rights for people with disabilities and particularly those of us who are blind. One of the topics discussed was whether one would choose to reverse or eliminate their disability if such were possible. I had never seriously put much mental energy into the question because I had long since come to regard my blindness, as they say in the law, permanent and irreversible. It seems to me that those two words are the same, but I’ve read them so often that they just seem to go together. The proposition being advanced by some at the conference was that to wish for or to embrace a cure was to admit that one was not happy with themselves and willing to throw away a foundational part of their identity. While I certainly believed then and believe now that blindness has played a major part in shaping my identity, I had never really considered the possibility of regaining sight as suggesting that I was unhappy as a blind person and that blindness was something I did not like about myself. One question that occurred to me during the conference was whether any disability I might encounter would immediately become a part of my identity. I have to believe that most people would consider me crazy if I broke my leg but refused to have it fixed on the assumption that it would be to reject a new me.<o:p></o:p></span></p><h3 id=admitting-what-i-have-gotten-by-being-blind><span style='font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Admitting What I Have Gotten by Being Blind<o:p></o:p></span></h3><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>I admit that blindness has shaped me in some positive ways such as getting me a free college education, helping me to become a problem-solver by thinking out of the box, exposing me to people I likely would never have met had I not moved from my small town and the homogenous group of people who lived there. Had it not been for blindness, I doubt I would have met every member of the Missouri Congressional Delegation. It is likely, like my father and my siblings, I might continue to be one of the alienated who think of themselves as the powerless little guy.<o:p></o:p></span></p><h3 id=be-careful-what-you-wish-for><span style='font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Be Careful What You Wish For<o:p></o:p></span></h3><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>A friend of mine was told by his surgeon that a cornea transplant would restore most or all of his vision. He had been blind since birth but at an earlier point in his life had had significantly more vision. He believed his doctor was offering a wonderful opportunity, took it, and was pleasantly surprised to realize that his vision was so improved that he could read the newspaper. After a bit of celebrating, he took a much lower profile because, apparently for the first time, he thought through what it would mean to no longer be blind. He was a part of the Randolph-Sheppard vending program, a reasonably successful manager who liked the work and desperately needed the income. He was also a recipient of Missouri’s blind pension and of the monthly check provided through his Social Security Disability Insurance benefit. Like most of us, his household budget had him spending about as much as he took in, and the realization that he would lose all of this income was bone chilling for him. So this temporarily sighted man decided to no longer share with the world this newfound blessing, and for years he sweated about the possibility that he might be found out and wrestled with his concept of being a truth-telling man and the consequences that truth would mean for a person who was no longer young enough to reasonably start out on a new career path. We, his friends, who would’ve been quick to expose fraud if we saw a person who had always had vision trying to take advantage of blindness programs, were silent. We too were holding our breath—knowing he was breaking the law, but wondering what we would do if placed in the same circumstance.<o:p></o:p></span></p><h3 id=would-i-gamble-on-sight><span style='font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Would I Gamble on Sight?<o:p></o:p></span></h3><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Let us dismiss for a moment all of the practical issues involved in whether or not I could ever really see and for this purpose let us talk about philosophy, self-concept, and identity. Some of you may have read the book <em><span style='font-family:"Georgia",serif'>Crashing Through</span></em> by Mike May. If you haven’t, spoiler alert: he could see until about the age of three, went through his life amassing many accomplishments as a blind person, felt good about himself, was offered the opportunity to regain vision, and had to wrestle with the idea of whether or not to do it. After all of the soul-searching, his decision came down to this: I’m happy as a blind guy; I’ve done most everything I want to do, but the things that have brought me the most joy in life have involved adventure and new activities. What could be more of an adventure than figuring out what it is like to see?<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>If I have accurately summarized what Mike said and felt, there isn’t much more I have to say. I do not believe I would be selling out myself or other blind people. I do not believe I would be running from a life that has frustrated me with failure after failure. I do not believe I would be turning my back on friends I consider family. Gaining truly usable vision is a highly questionable proposition given what we now know about the plasticity of the brain and needing to learn to see at a fairly early age, but I think that in my soon to be retirement I might just be a chauffeur for blind people. It wouldn’t hurt me at all to see the money flowing the other way, and I would be assured of writers who were interesting, informative, and able to think outside the box. For those of you who remember my little essay on controlling the car, this rideshare driver would give full control of the electric windows and the car radio to his passengers.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Would I like to see a sunrise, a sunset, the stars at night, the flames coming out of a rocket as it heads toward space? You bet I would. Would I like to learn what is special about the smile of the Mona Lisa? Why not? Would I like to learn the magic of converting a two-dimensional drawing into something that looks like a horse running across the prairie? Yes, not just for the beauty of the horse and the prairie but for the whole idea that it can be displayed two dimensionally and be meaningful. I grant that there are other mysteries in life that are probably more important, and I grant that they are also beyond my ability to comprehend, let alone solve. But the fact that I do not have most of the things I’ve put on this list doesn’t mean that I have to be defensive and say that I don’t care anything about them. Neither do I have to give them so much bandwidth that they get in the way of my enjoying the beautiful life I have in the wonderful opportunities I’ve been blessed to enjoy and that are arguably more important.<o:p></o:p></span></p><h3 id=why-this-article><span style='font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Why This Article?<o:p></o:p></span></h3><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>One of the things I most hope for when we publish an issue of the <em><span style='font-family:"Georgia",serif'>Braille Monitor</span></em> is that it will get response. It is fun to write my thoughts, but for me the real challenge in life isn’t just getting to say what I think; it is prompting others to say what they think and then engaging in a genuine attempt to understand. Please write in response to this article and the one that comes above it. I believe that Rishika Kartik would appreciate responses to the moving speech she gave in a TED Talk that also appears in this issue. This magazine belongs to you; please take ownership of it and let your voice be heard!<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>----------<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>[PHOTO CAPTION: Cutis Willoughby]<o:p></o:p></span></p><h2 id=gratitude><span style='font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Gratitude<o:p></o:p></span></h2><p><strong><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>by Curtis Willoughby</span></strong><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'><o:p></o:p></span></p><p><strong><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>From the Editor: Curtis Willoughby has been a real pioneer, being the first blind electrical engineer I know. Throughout his career, he has remained a steadfast Federationist, even given the tremendous work his jobs have required. Now he wishes to say thank you for one of the things we have done for him. When one becomes eligible for Social Security Disability benefits, regardless if he draws them, it should make a difference in the calculation of his retirement benefits, but never does this happen without appeals.</span></strong><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'><o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Back in about 2001, I retired from my employment and remembered that I should be eligible for a special Social Security benefit that was created in the 1960s or 1970s. I contacted Jim Gashel in the NFB national office and determined that it would be worth a lot of money if I followed up on it. With Jim's help, I requested an administrative review, and then an appeal, which are required. These always resulted in denials. This is because the Social Security Administration carefully left out of the manual the existence of this rule, though it was in the regulations.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Jim then got me in touch with a couple of lawyers in Virginia who had worked on some other cases for us. These folks took my case through the next steps in the internal Social Security review process. After that, it was necessary to take the case to the federal district court. This is where Scott LaBarre comes in. Scott took my case to the Federal District Court, which ruled in my favor. I will always be indebted to Scott, who did such a good job on my case.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>The Social Security payment office tried anew to get the Social Security Appeals Council to take the case, but they sat on it long enough that I won because they sat on it so long. It took until about 2009, but my Social Security income has been much higher, retroactive to 2001.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Thank You, Scott, Jim and the NFB for your help!<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>----------<o:p></o:p></span></p><h2 id=we-need-your-help><span style='font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>We Need Your Help<o:p></o:p></span></h2><p><em><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Very soon after I went blind, I went to my first convention of the National Federation of the Blind. Though as a six-year-old I was not scared about my future as a blind person, learning about the NFB and going to conventions showed me tons of independent blind people who I could look up to. Real life superheroes that I could aspire to be like.</span></em><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'> —Abigail<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Blind children, students, and adults are making powerful strides in education and leadership every day across the United States, but we need to continue helping kids like Abigail. For more than eighty years, the National Federation of the Blind has worked to transform the dreams of hundreds of thousands of blind people into reality. With support from individuals like you, we can continue to provide powerful programs and critical resources now and for decades to come. We hope you will plan to be a part of our enduring movement by including the National Federation of the Blind in your charitable giving and in your estate planning. It is easier than you think.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'> <o:p></o:p></span></p><h3 id=with-your-help-the-nfb-will-continue-to><span style='font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>With your help, the NFB will continue to:<o:p></o:p></span></h3><ul style='margin-top:0in' type=disc><li style='color:#1A1A1A;mso-list:l1 level1 lfo1'><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif'>Give blind children the gift of literacy through Braille.<o:p></o:p></span></li><li style='color:#1A1A1A;mso-list:l1 level1 lfo1'><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif'>Mentor young people like Abigail.<o:p></o:p></span></li><li style='color:#1A1A1A;mso-list:l1 level1 lfo1'><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif'>Promote independent travel by providing free, long white canes to blind people in need.<o:p></o:p></span></li><li style='color:#1A1A1A;mso-list:l1 level1 lfo1'><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif'>Develop dynamic educational projects and programs to show blind youth that science and math careers are within their reach.<o:p></o:p></span></li><li style='color:#1A1A1A;mso-list:l1 level1 lfo1'><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif'>Deliver hundreds of accessible newspapers and magazines to provide blind people the essential information necessary to be actively involved in their communities.<o:p></o:p></span></li><li style='color:#1A1A1A;mso-list:l1 level1 lfo1'><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif'>Offer aids and appliances that help seniors losing vision maintain their independence.<o:p></o:p></span></li></ul><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Below are just a few of the many tax-deductible ways you can show your support of the National Federation of the Blind.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><strong><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>LYFT Round Up</span></strong><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'><o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>By visiting the menu, choosing donate, and selecting the National Federation of the Blind, you commit to giving to the National Federation of the Blind with each ride.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><strong><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Vehicle Donation Program</span></strong><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'><o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>We accept donated vehicles, including cars, trucks, boats, motorcycles, or recreational vehicles. Just call 855-659-9314 toll-free, and a representative can make arrangements to pick up your donation. We can also answer any questions you have.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><strong><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>General Donation</span></strong><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'><o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>General donations help support the ongoing programs of the NFB and the work to help blind people live the lives they want. You can call 410-659-9314, extension 2430, to give by phone. Give online with a credit card or through the mail with check or money order. Visit our Ways to Give Page at: <a href="https://nfb.org/give">https://nfb.org/give</a>.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><strong><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Pre-Authorized Contributions</span></strong><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'><o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Through the Pre-Authorized Contribution (PAC) program, supporters sustain the efforts of the National Federation of the Blind by making recurring monthly donations by direct withdrawal of funds from a checking account or a charge to a credit card. To enroll, call 877-NFB-2PAC, or fill out our PAC Donation Form <a href="https://www.nfb.org/pac">https://www.nfb.org/pac</a>.<o:p></o:p></span></p><h3 id=plan-to-leave-a-legacy><span style='font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Plan to Leave a Legacy<o:p></o:p></span></h3><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>The National Federation of the Blind legacy society, our Dream Makers Circle, honors and recognizes the generosity and imagination of members and special friends who have chosen to leave a legacy through a will or other planned giving option. You can join the Dream Makers Circle in a myriad of ways.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><strong><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Percentage or Fixed Sum of Assets</span></strong><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'><o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>You can specify that a percentage or a fixed sum of your assets or property goes to the National Federation of the Blind in your will, trust, pension, IRA, life insurance policy, brokerage account, or other accounts.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><strong><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Payable on Death (POD) Account</span></strong><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'><o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>You can name the National Federation of the Blind as the beneficiary on a Payable on Death (POD) account through your bank. You can turn any checking or savings account into a POD account. This is one of the simplest ways to leave a legacy. The account is totally in your control during your lifetime, and you can change the beneficiary or percentage at any time with ease.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><strong><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Will or Trust</span></strong><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'><o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>If you do decide to create or revise your will, consider the National Federation of the Blind as a partial beneficiary.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Visit our Planned Giving webpage (<a href="https://www.nfb.org/get-involved/ways-give/planned-giving">https://www.nfb.org/get-involved/ways-give/planned-giving</a>) or call 410-659-9314, extension 2422, for more information.<o:p></o:p></span></p><h3 id=in-2022-our-supporters-helped-the-nfb><span style='font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>In 2022 our supporters helped the NFB:<o:p></o:p></span></h3><ul style='margin-top:0in' type=disc><li style='color:#1A1A1A;mso-list:l0 level1 lfo2'><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif'>Send 371 Braille Santa and Winter Celebration letters to blind children, encouraging excitement for Braille literacy.<o:p></o:p></span></li><li style='color:#1A1A1A;mso-list:l0 level1 lfo2'><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif'>Distribute over three thousand canes to blind people across the United States, empowering them to travel safely and independently throughout their communities.<o:p></o:p></span></li><li style='color:#1A1A1A;mso-list:l0 level1 lfo2'><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif'>Deliver more than five hundred newspapers and magazines to more than 100,000 subscribers with print disabilities free of charge.<o:p></o:p></span></li><li style='color:#1A1A1A;mso-list:l0 level1 lfo2'><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif'>Give over seven hundred Braille-writing slates and styluses free of charge to blind users.<o:p></o:p></span></li><li style='color:#1A1A1A;mso-list:l0 level1 lfo2'><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif'>Mentor 207 blind youth during our Braille Enrichment for Literacy and Learning® Academy.<o:p></o:p></span></li><li style='color:#1A1A1A;mso-list:l0 level1 lfo2'><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif'>Award thirty scholarships each in the amount of $8,000 to blind students.<o:p></o:p></span></li></ul><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Just imagine what we will do this year, and, with your help, what can be accomplished for years to come. Together with love, hope, determination, and your support, we will continue to transform dreams into reality.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>----------<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>[PHOTO CAPTION: Rishika Kartik]<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>[PHOTO CAPTION: A couple walks arm in arm down a street under an umbrella and a canopy of trees, with old light posts visible on their right.]<o:p></o:p></span></p><h2 id=creativity-is-more-accessible-than-meets-the-eye><span style='font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Creativity Is More Accessible Than Meets the Eye<o:p></o:p></span></h2><p><strong><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>by Rishika Kartik</span></strong><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'><o:p></o:p></span></p><p><strong><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>From the Editor: I’m not sure I’ve ever heard a bad TED talk, but what I do know is that I’ve never heard one better than this. Rishika, following in her father’s footsteps, volunteered for and learned from the Colorado Center for the Blind, and as with most bright, motivated, and giving students, she is now amplifying and giving back. Here is her talk, which you can also find in a link at the end of this article:</span></strong><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'><o:p></o:p></span></p><p><em><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Don't</span></em><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'> <em><span style='font-family:"Georgia",serif'>Touch</span></em> <em><span style='font-family:"Georgia",serif'>the Art.</span></em> Heard this before? Perhaps in a museum or a gallery?<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>"Don't Touch the Art."<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>It's four simple words, and yet, it disproportionately impacts over 253 million blind or visually impaired people worldwide.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Art prides itself on pushing boundaries, yet we still view creativity two dimensionally, literally—pencil portraits, Instagram posts, sculptures we must stay ten feet from at all times—the kind of art you can look at, but cannot fully experience.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>It is precisely this view that is stopping us from a more inclusive, innovative future. Making creative outlets accessible isn't just "nice to have"; it's <em><span style='font-family:"Georgia",serif'>essential.</span></em><o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>According to a global CEOs study at IBM, creativity is the most crucial factor for future success. Yet, a study by Adobe revealed that 75 percent of people surveyed do not feel they are living up to their creative potential.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>What if I told you that there's a way for almost everyone, including you, to unlock your creativity and experience the world in a way you've <em><span style='font-family:"Georgia",serif'>never</span></em> experienced it before? It's easy, and it starts with viewing accessibility as an opportunity for creativity.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Now, I know what you're thinking. I'm a sighted seventeen-year-old. This talk is about accessibility, creativity, and blindness. That's like a dolphin giving a keynote about open heart surgery. It's true. I'm not blind, and I'm not a professional artist.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Funny enough, for the longest time I was convinced that I was uncreative. A creative person was a cool, elusive Edge Lord, holed up in a dim room with brilliant ideas and black coffee. I was a loud, awkward nerd with regrettable fashion sense and a caffeine intolerance.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>However, four years ago I discovered that creativity is significantly more accessible than most of us believe. I was volunteering at a center for blind students. And you know what I noticed most? I noticed that there, when a student is struggling, it's viewed as an opportunity. The teacher has to creatively find a solution that works for the student. The emphasis wasn’t about helping students fit the mold, as I was used to. It's about changing the mold.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>One evening, one of my friends from the center, Sarah, showed me a painting I’ll never forget. And I’m going to show it to you. But, before I do, close your eyes, take a moment, let me describe it first.<o:p></o:p></span></p><blockquote style='border:none;border-left:solid #E6E6E6 1.5pt;padding:0in 0in 0in 12.0pt;margin-left:20.4pt;margin-top:12.0pt;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:12.0pt'><p><em><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#606060'>Twinkling streetlights and trees with crisp fall foliage line the path for a couple in love. Colorful fractals dance on a rainy floor beneath their peaceful silhouette.</span></em><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#606060'><o:p></o:p></span></p></blockquote><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Can you picture that? My guess is that if I asked each of you to create a version of this painting for yourself, you would each come up with a vastly different interpretation.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Okay, keep the image of your version in your mind. Now, here is what the painting actually looks like.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>It turns out that the artist, John Bramblitt, lost his vision due to complications with seizures and epilepsy. When I found out, I felt terrible. My heart went out to him. But then Sarah showed me a quote from Bramblitt himself. He said: "My world is a more colorful place than ever before." She explained that, while disability is challenging, it gives people like herself and Bramblitt an opportunity to view the world differently.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>John Bramblitt once aspired to be a creative writing teacher. Believe it or not he did not start painting seriously until after vision loss. So let me ask you: if he hadn't lost his vision, <em><span style='font-family:"Georgia",serif'>would he have become</span></em> a world-renowned artist? His blindness was what allowed him to innovate in his field, using unique color combinations to convey emotion and textures to bring the scene alive. He created work that could not only be aesthetically admired, but touched and intimately experienced.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Just like each of you imagined a different painting based on my description, artists who are blind can imagine different worlds of possibility. Creativity is not bound to visual definitions. Creativity should include everyone.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>So why doesn't it? The medical model of disability. This way of thinking views blindness as a physical limitation that must be cured in order to help people live “normal” lives. The medical model comes from a compassionate place. But when we talk about needing to cure blindness without actually listening to blind people, we walk a tightrope between empathy and pity. Instead, I learned to embrace the theory of complex embodiment. Complex embodiment views disability as a unique personal experience, much like race or sexuality. Some view their disability physically; others view their disability as a <em><span style='font-family:"Georgia",serif'>cultural identity.</span></em> Some people don’t want to be defined by their condition. Others view blindness as a central part of who they are.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>So if you want to learn more about blindness, ask people who are blind. You’ll be surprised at how diverse individual experiences can be.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Everyone, including nondisabled people like me, benefits from inclusion. Did you know that typewriters were created to help blind people send letters? Voice control technology we use every day like Siri was created to help blind people navigate technology.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Disability should never be mistaken for inability. Just ask John Bramblitt. He’s the recipient of three Presidential Service Awards, and his art has been sold in over one hundred and twenty countries. Traditional narratives on blindness would have painted his story as a tragedy and then told him, "Don’t touch the art."<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Bramblitt's work gave me a new perspective and an interest in tactile art. This interest would lead me to flour-caked hands, clay-stained tables, and cinnamon scented paints. I joined tactile art classes. Eventually, I got to teach tactile art classes. I even got to meet John Bramblitt in real life.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>I went from thinking I was fundamentally uncreative to finding a passion for the arts. Because I wasn't uncreative; our idea of creativity is just <em><span style='font-family:"Georgia",serif'>wrong.</span></em> In the words of Sir Ken Robinson, an international advisor on education in the arts, "If you're not prepared to be wrong, you'll never come up with anything original.”<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Creativity is not an elusive trait reserved only for the 1 percent of artists and geniuses. In fact, creativity does not require inherent intelligence at all. Creativity requires courage.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, I was daunted by taking my hands-on teaching style online. My first virtual tactile art workshop was a clay pottery class, and our clay substitute—flour and water—refused to mold into a traditional form. I worried that my blind students would be discouraged by such a messy experience.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Yet while I grappled with executing a pre-planned project, my students continued to create with delight. While I could only think of clay as pottery, they transformed clay into textured paint, silly putty, and papier-mâché paste. They reminded me that art doesn’t play by the rules. Sometimes, the best work happens when we stop planning and start improvising. That’s what makes these students artists.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Most people are terrified of improvising when it comes to creation. We are comfortable with a well-planned strategy, and when a project veers from that strategy, we fear we might be ridiculed, judged, or shamed. When we allow this fear to take over, more often than not, we stop generating ideas. We simply do not pursue creativity at all.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>The way to overcome this fear is to dismantle ableism. Current approaches to disability inclusion send one message: "conform." We’re afraid of disability because it deviates from what we consider to be normal.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>There was a nationwide poll published in the ophthalmology journal of the American Medical Association. Researchers asked people, “What is one of the worst possible health outcomes that could happen to you?” Nearly half of respondents said losing vision. Where does this fear come from? It’s because we see no other way to live than visually. We wrongly equate the "right way" of doing things with the "sighted way" of doing things. By reinforcing what we think of as normality, we are killing our creativity.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Accessibility is currently an afterthought; we design products, art pieces, buildings, and school systems assuming everyone is nondisabled and <em><span style='font-family:"Georgia",serif'>then</span></em> create separate spaces for those who don’t fit this mold. If this separationist mentality continues, every one of us will be affected by it.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>According to the CDC, one in four have a disability. This means it's likely that you have one, will develop one, or will be close to someone with one.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>So, what can you do? First, prioritize disability inclusion from the beginning. Post alt-text descriptions on social media. Offer project-based, 3D learning opportunities in schools. Build architecture intended for every person to enter.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Next, collaborate with people with disabilities and learn from them. You literally cannot do something if you don't know it exists. So learn about how you can bring accessibility to your school, workplace, and community, and spread your knowledge to others.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Finally, reject the sighted savior mentality. Embrace complex embodiment and celebrate unique perspectives. Imagine a world where everyone could express themselves and belong; a school system or museum where students could read a textbook, touch a sculpture, listen to music; a world where everyone feels called to innovate.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>In the words of John Bramblitt, "Everyone has an artist somewhere in them; sometimes they just need a little help letting it out."<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>To build a more creative world, we must radically redefine the way we view disability. There is no "right way" to be creative. When we explore the unconventional, we develop new modes of problem-solving, learning, and connecting. Accessibility IS an opportunity for creativity.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>So smell the art. Hear the art. Feel the art. And yes, please, touch the art.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>TEDx Talk YouTube Link - <u><a href="https://youtu.be/0jiTWP0lCls">https://youtu.be/0jiTWP0lCls</a>.</u><br>----------<o:p></o:p></span></p><h2 id="national-federation-of-the-blind-applauds-the-introduction-of-the-access-technology-affordability-act-in-the-senate"><span style='font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>National Federation of the Blind Applauds the Introduction of the Access Technology Affordability Act in the Senate<o:p></o:p></span></h2><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Baltimore, Maryland (May 8, 2023): The National Federation of the Blind, the transformative advocacy organization of blind Americans, applauds the introduction of the Access Technology Affordability Act of 2023 (S. 1467) in the United States Senate by Senator Ben Cardin (D-MD). Senators John Boozman (R-AR), Ron Wyden (D-Or), and Todd Young (R-IN) are original co-sponsors of the bill. This legislation removes an education and employment barrier commonly experienced by blind Americans who cannot afford the high cost of access technology by creating a refundable tax credit in the amount of $2,000 to be used over a three-year period to offset the cost of these technologies.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Mark A. Riccobono, President of the National Federation of the Blind, said: “My wife, my two daughters, and I are all blind, and the children’s technology needs will increase as they complete their education and start their careers. My family is not unique; blind people across the nation face this challenge, and this legislation will provide critical assistance. We thank and commend Senators Cardin, Boozman, Wyden, and Young for being champions of this act, which will help give blind people the technology they need to live the lives they want.”<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>----------<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>[PHOTO CAPTION: Jo Elizabeth Pinto]<o:p></o:p></span></p><h2 id=can-we-change-the-world><span style='font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Can We Change the World?<o:p></o:p></span></h2><p><strong><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>by Jo Elizabeth Pinto</span></strong><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'><o:p></o:p></span></p><p><strong><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>From the Editor: This article is taken from the April issue of the </span></strong><em><b><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Blind Coloradan</span></b></em><strong><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>, the publication of the National Federation of the Blind of Colorado. How realistic is it for us to want to change the world? Here is our author’s take. Here is the way the article was introduced by Kevan Worley:</span></strong><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'><o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>From the aggregator: Readers of this blog are probably familiar with author Jo Elizabeth Pinto. She is a frequent contributor. We have also enjoyed her poetry at NFBCO state convention banquets. Here is what she offers up for this <em><span style='font-family:"Georgia",serif'>Blind Coloradan</span></em>.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Sometimes I get frustrated because the world isn’t changing fast enough. It angers and saddens me when prejudice and ignorance happen, especially in front of impressionable young people.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>I need to get blood drawn regularly because of my autoimmune issues. During one of my visits to the local hospital, the woman who checked me into the lab was nearly young enough to be my daughter. During her long list of routine questions, she inquired about my insurance. I told her I have Medicare.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>She saw the guide dog sitting placidly beside me and asked, "You're disabled, right?"<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>I affirmed that I'm blind.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>She said, "So you don't work."<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Irritated, I started to ask her what my disability had to do with not working. But before I got my mouth open, my teenage daughter spoke up. "My mom edits books."<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>The woman turned to my kid and asked, "She edits books? But she does it for free, doesn't she?"<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>"Why would my mom work for free?" My daughter laughed in that condescending way only a teenager can. "No one does that."<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>"Oh ... um ... she's disabled, and she works for money?" the woman stammered.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>"Sure she does. Lots of disabled people work for money," my daughter replied as if the woman had just sprouted an extra head.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>"I'm self-employed," I broke in. "I draw Social Security Disability and freelance as a Braille proofreader. Let's move on with the relevant questions, please."<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>This is the New Millennium, people. Our kids understand equality as naturally as breathing when they grow up with it, but we're still explaining the basics to professionals.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Thirty years ago, I thought we could change the world in sweeping waves. These days, I'm older and wiser, and I’ve learned that change comes one hard-won inch at a time. When I speak up for myself at the hospital, or when my daughter laughs because an uninformed lab tech suggests I must work for free because I’m blind, that’s an inch. When members of the NFB gather at the Capitol to speak to their elected officials or demand textured pavers on the Sixteenth Street Mall, that’s an inch.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>The answer is yes. We can change the world, inch by precious inch!<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>----------<o:p></o:p></span></p><h2 id=the-blind-do-lead-the-blind><span style='font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>The Blind Do Lead the Blind<o:p></o:p></span></h2><p><strong><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>by Dr. Jacob Freid</span></strong><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'><o:p></o:p></span></p><p><strong><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Delivered before the NFB annual convention, Los Angeles, July 1976</span></strong><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'><o:p></o:p></span></p><p><strong><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>From the Editor: We often recognize in these pages the Blind Who Lead the Blind. Sometimes we run the rather lengthy article recognizing each member of the board and its officers. At other times we run biographies of those newly elected. But mostly what we read is about who the blind are who lead the blind, not what they must strive to be for all of us. So here is a definition of the characteristics we want in the blind who lead the blind, written by Dr. Jacob Freid and delivered at the 1976 Convention of the National Federation of the Blind in Los Angeles. Anyone wanting to know more about Dr. Freid should do a bit of research; it will be well worth your while. Here is his presentation</span></strong><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>:<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Before this National Federation of the Blind came into being, the dictum from the Gospel according to St. Matthew prevailed: that "if the blind lead the blind, both shall fall into the ditch." This was literally taken to be the "Gospel truth." Several of Kenneth Jernigan's inspired addresses revealed the influence of this canard in the crucial areas of literature and history which have so prejudicially influenced attitudes to the blind into harmful, discriminatory, and bigoted stereotypes through the ages.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>But that was B.C.—"Before Chick"—and now A.J.—"After Jernigan"—the miracle of change for the better is taking place in erasing this libel. Certainly in the quarter century since this speaker began to march to the beat of this historic movement, he has witnessed a virtual miracle occur in the betterment of the cause of the blind.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Our leaders and you, our Convention delegates from all fifty states, are the living proof that the blind do lead the blind. We know that each of us has to realize his own potentialities and cope with the special circumstances of our own life. In a more fundamental sense the blind who lead the blind stress the goal each of us is striving to achieve together—that the good of each, the good human life requires liberty, equality, opportunity, and security to engage in what Jefferson wished for each of us—the successful pursuit of happiness.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>The blind who lead the blind understand that the happy or good life is essentially the same for all human beings. What is really good for any human being is really good for all other human beings; so if happiness consists in a life enriched by all the things that are really good for a man, happiness is the same for all men and women.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>We here are the living testimony to the NFB-achieved miracle that the blind do lead the blind—that we don't need or want an American Foundation for the Blind to lead the blind; that we don't need or want a National Accreditation Council for the Blind to lead the blind; that we do have a National Federation <em><span style='font-family:"Georgia",serif'>of</span></em> the Blind and <em><span style='font-family:"Georgia",serif'>by</span></em> the blind to lead the blind.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>This is where we are in Los Angeles on July 6, 1976, in the day when the blind lead the blind. As Mayor Bradley told us this morning, David Hartman became the first blind person in 104 years to graduate from an American medical school when he received his medical degree from Temple University this June 2. Hartman, who is twenty-six, was blinded by glaucoma when he was eight. He will practice psychiatry and rehabilitative medicine. After compiling straight A records in high school and college, Hartman was rejected by nine medical schools. But the tenth took him, and now he is the first blind person to receive a medical degree.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>This is indicative of the new era that is dawning under the able leadership of the blind who lead the blind.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Charles Darwin, Sigmund Freud, and Albert Einstein were men whose probings into new frontiers changed the attitudes and beliefs of mankind toward the past from which he came, toward himself and toward the space and time in which he and the globe on which he dwelled existed in relation to the vast orbital, nebular universe.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Darwin attacked man's need for <em><span style='font-family:"Georgia",serif'>ego afflatus</span></em> out of which he had created God in man's image. Man was not the creation painted in Michelangelo's Sistine Chapel masterpiece as coming to life out of the inert clay at the touch of the Almighty's fingertip. Instead, blasphemed Darwin the heretic, he had evoluted through the eons from the primeval slime to an arboreal habitat as a primate—an ape from whom man had descended to earth, learned to stand erect, to walk, and to become humanoid.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Freud stormed the bastions of man's rationality and facade to reveal the hidden terra incognita of the disguised and repressed inner being of his libido, id, and ego which, like the iceberg, was nine-tenths concealed beneath his surface in the subconscious, with its fears and passions and schizoid irrationalities and nightmares.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Einstein shattered the Ptolemaic universe already battered by Copernicus, with his theory establishing the interrelation of mass and energy. He completely revised existing concepts of fundamental universal laws and paved the way for the atomic age. Against skeptics, the Orthodox Church, and entrenched beliefs this trinity of explorers into the uncharted seas of knowledge prevailed with the truth of their brilliant insights put forward with unflagging and courageous perseverance against the storms and diatribes of the outraged defenders of the establishment.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Since these men, our individual sense of frontier has been drawing inward until today the greatest voyages are not the astronauts rocketing to the moon, but those of self-discovery for enlightenment, personal growth, self-understanding, and self-appreciation of the potential regardless of our degree of sight to fulfill one's self through proper training and education and to realize one's hopes and aspirations.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Like these three, our own immortals, Jacobus tenBroek and Kenneth Jernigan were brilliant and iconoclastic searchers for truth whose new insights and revolutionary views concerning the blind person and his world brought counterattacks and ostracism from the paternalistic, patronizing establishment lords of things-as-they-are. Out of their knowledge and keen-honed intellects they preached a doctrine of self-understanding, self-help, self-organization, and self-fulfillment that was a scathing indictment of the benevolent despotism and feudalism that maintained the blind as indentured servants and wards whose obeisance to the status quo was their necessary passport for service. It is no wonder that these blind men who led the blind and who challenged as frauds those who proclaimed themselves the monopolists of the only Sinaitic Revelation, and their NFB movement were an anathema to be exorcised and excommunicated, by the AFB-NAC establishment and their sycophant, the Judas lackey, the American Council of the Blind.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>The first of this famous Chick-Ken duo who hatched the NFB movement of the blind who lead the blind, Chick tenBroek, became the prophet of a new revelation of the blind as normal individuals who cannot see, but with the right to fulfillment of their talents, aspirations, and personalities. Chick pointed the way to self-discovery, and fought for equality of education, training, and employment opportunity to achieve the potential of which the normal blind man was capable. He realized that only through the instrument of a democratic movement in which the blind led the blind could they storm the imprisoning fortresses that girded the country of the blind so that they could leave the captivity of their feudal serfdoms, and cross the frontier to freedom and the chance to share the American dream of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Chick is gone but his spirit marches on with us here today. His Joshua is Kenneth Jernigan, and today the struggle still persists on new battlefields. We still have to put on our warpaint and go out to do battle: for a White Cane Law here, for proper vending stand and sheltered workshop conditions there, for the right to teach somewhere else against all attempts to homogenize us, to set standards for us rather than with us and et cetera, et cetera and et cetera, as the King of Siam said to Anna.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Today we are embattled on this field of who justifiably and democratically accredits whom. With the knowledge of how far we have progressed from what we were, with the promise that we can scale the heights though the climb be hard and wearisome and beset by obstacles to be overcome, we shall be alchemists of the present under our peerless blind leader of the blind. Dr. Jernigan, the fighter who has taken the torch from Chick tenBroek's hands, knowing that we are part of the process that is turning the base metal of the pejorative "blind" to the golden image of a man who like all normal men can be a citizen who is master of his soul and his life, and a contributing member to a better life for himself, his community, his nation, and all mankind.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Here and now the blind who lead the blind pledge that the American tricentennial shall see freedom, equality, security, and opportunity for the blind as a goal attained. Here today as we begin this third century of our Nation's existence, the blind who lead the blind declare that a blind person can be an equal citizen in society provided we overcome the critical problem facing the blind in our time—the attitude of the sighted majority who control the passways to equality of training, opportunity, employment, and first-class citizenship in our society. So long as this battle is not won the blind will remain among the most disadvantaged, discriminated-against minority group in our society.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Last year I was privileged to read Dr. Jernigan's keynote address to the first World Conference of the Jewish Blind in Jerusalem, Israel. We also showed our NFB film at that historic meeting. Golda Meir was so impressed by this conference that she asked to see me. I told her that "unlike the Abu Rudeis oil fields, the blind of Israel are a rich natural resource which you don't have to give back to the Arabs."<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>The blind who lead the blind have made a commitment to a comprehensive program of positive and creative life for the properly educated and trained blind in a democratic society. They know that this great movement offers us an opportunity to serve the blind in a fiduciary capacity to the best of our talents, knowledge, professional training, and experience.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>We meet together in a time of ferment, innovation, and experiment on the frontiers of social action, civil rights, public education, and intercommunity relations between the blind and the sighted world in general and personnel directors and business and industrial leaders who command the gateways to employment in particular. Obviously we will experience frustrations, disagreements, and setbacks. But we know from the achievements of the blind under the leadership of the blind that we will continue to make significant contributions to equality, security, and employment opportunities for the blind.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>The fact is that it is the blind who lead the blind who developed a program of legislation, social action, and public education. The blind who lead the blind proved through the actions of the NFB that legislation and litigation are sharp tools in the battle against discrimination. Legal action, however, has only an indirect bearing upon the reduction of personal prejudice. It cannot influence thoughts or instill subjective tolerance. The law is intended only to control the overt expression of intolerance in the denial of proper employment, education, public accommodations, and housing opportunities. But outward action as our psychological and sociological findings determine has an eventual effect upon inner habits of thought and feeling: for this reason legislative action has been one of the major moves in reducing, not only public discrimination, but private prejudice as well.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>We have made our most progress in this area of legislation which has opened up primarily civil service and teaching opportunities for the properly educated and trained blind.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>The other major area on which we are just making inroads is public education. This is necessary to create a positive aura to overcome the latent subconscious prejudice of the majority culture. Proper public education provides a positive framework against which personnel directors and employers are willing to open opportunities. It is in this area which the blind who lead the blind feel is among the most important positive paths for us to follow. A survey made by a committee on public education showed that the incidence of employment for the blind was in direct correlation to the success of the public education programs in these communities. That is why it has become a cliche that if you are blind it is best to be blind in Iowa.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>The blind who lead the blind demand equal acceptance and participation in society. They declare that blindness is not essentially a severe handicap; that blind people are normal human beings; that blindness in itself is only a physical lack which can be met and mastered, not an impairment of mental powers or psychological stability. Therefore, all arbitrary barriers and discriminations—legal, economic, and social—based on the false assumption that the blind are somehow different from those with sight must be abolished in favor of equality of opportunity for all who are blind.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>In summation we ask what is it that the blind essentially want from society and those in the seats of power. We declare that the blind want the recognition that we have the ability and the right to be equals and partners in determining the agency and government policies that concern us because they control our destiny and the quality and shape of our lives and position in society.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Therefore, the blind who lead the blind want the sighted world to have a respect for life, and the lives of the blind; to have a sense of the rights of the blind; to operate as partners with the blind in all decisions without secrecy and with decency and integrity; to join as equals with the blind and with an equal concern in formulating together the best program and standards possible for the blind.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>We declare that we cannot, we will not accept anything less.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Under the blind leaders who do lead the blind the day will come when, following our Joshua, Dr. Jernigan, we will blow our trumpets until the walls of Jericho built against us will crumble into dust. This will be done, and so for the battles won and for those ahead that we will win, I salute you Dr. Kenneth Jernigan and you the delegates of this great assemblage who are the blind who lead the blind as front-line soldiers in the victory ahead in the liberation war for humanity.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>----------<o:p></o:p></span></p><h2 id="four-leading-brands-and-the-national-federation-of-the-blind-join-be-my-eyes-virtual-volunteer-corporate-beta-test"><span style='font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Four Leading Brands and The National Federation of the Blind Join Be My Eyes’ Virtual Volunteer Corporate Beta Test<o:p></o:p></span></h2><p><strong><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>From the Editor: The National Federation of the Blind has had a long-standing relationship with Be My Eyes and was so inspired by the project that we presented the Bolotin Award in the amount of $25,000 to the company in 2018. Having all the volunteers we could ever want is a significant accomplishment; adding a virtual assistant is a tremendous milestone. Here is the announcement about the ongoing beta testing:</span></strong><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'><o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>We’re excited to announce that Hilton, Microsoft, P&G, Sony, and The National Federation of the Blind (NFB) have joined our Virtual Volunteer™ beta test. Virtual Volunteer is the first-ever digital visual assistant powered by OpenAI’s new GPT-4 language model. Users can send images via our app to an AI-powered Virtual Volunteer, which will answer any question about that image and provide instantaneous visual assistance for a wide variety of tasks. Our goal is to continue building this technology with and for the global community of people who are blind or have low vision to pursue our mission.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>“Working with these amazing brands and the National Federation of the Blind is about two things: first, it’s to ensure the consumer experience is not only excellent, but also solves real world use cases and needs. Second, it’s about continuing to build this technology by working directly with the blind and low vision community,” said Mike Buckley, Be My Eyes CEO. “I want to publicly thank Hilton, Microsoft, P&G, Sony, and NFB for their commitment to accessibility and partnership with Be My Eyes.”<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>For Hilton, we will test Virtual Volunteer in and around hotel environments. Hilton has graciously offered free hotel stays to many beta testers to enable real world results which we’ll interpret and utilize for hospitality-centric product improvements.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>"Hilton's participation with Be My Eyes' Virtual Volunteer is an incredible next step in our company's journey as a leader in inclusive hospitality. We look forward to learning from the beta test to improve our experience for guests of all abilities through the power of artificial intelligence." —Becky Ploeger, Global Head of Reservations and Customer Care, Hilton<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>For Microsoft, a longtime Be My Eyes customer, we’re going to test Virtual Volunteer in its customer service. Microsoft has a long history of leadership in accessibility, and its Disability Answer Desk will prove incredibly helpful in testing the abilities and limitations of the technology.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>“Be My Eyes has played an important role in improving how Microsoft can give effective technical support inclusive of all our customers and their needs. With Virtual Volunteer, we continue to improve on creating a safe and accessible environment for our blind and low vision customers.”—Neil Barnett, Director, Inclusive Hiring and Accessibility at Microsoft<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>As one of the world’s largest consumer products companies, our existing customer P&G will work with Virtual Volunteer to test how it performs on everything from identifying specific products, ingredients, and uses, to exploring how it may be used in broader customer service applications.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>“P&G is excited to participate in the Be My Eyes artificial intelligence pilot with Open AI. We’re looking forward to testing the new technology and understanding how it can improve the lives of our blind and low vision consumers.” —Sumaira Latif, Accessibility Leader at Procter & Gamble<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Sony has been a Be My Eyes partner since October 2022, and we are excited to welcome them to the Virtual Volunteer corporate beta. Together with Sony, we will test Virtual Volunteer's ability to help blind and low vision users set up their new Sony product, get access to a wide variety of post sales services, and find all the necessary information about the accessibility features of Sony products.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>“Virtual Volunteer will allow us to bring even more simplicity for our Sony customers using Be My Eyes—we are excited to be part of the future of accessibility by ensuring our products are accessible and enjoyable to everyone.”—Michelle Ward, Policy Lead at Sony<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Finally, our partnership with the NFB will provide early access to Virtual Volunteer to one of the world’s most important blindness organizations. NFB will help keep us honest and provide blunt feedback on the product and its limitations. Together, we will fulfill our public promise to build this new level of accessibility with the direct involvement of the blind and low vision community.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>“Throughout our history, the National Federation of the Blind has created and advanced technologies that are built on the authentic experience of blind people to empower our living the lives we want. Examples include our NFB-NEWSLINE® audio information service, print reading technology for today’s smartphones, and much more. We are therefore proud to be part of this exciting beta program to shape the latest generative AI technology in ways that can enhance the productivity and independence of the blind. Be My Eyes is a forward-thinking company that is putting the experience and expertise of its blind users first as it leverages Chat GPT-4, and we look forward to this collaboration and the many potential benefits it will bring to our community.”—Mark Riccobono, President of the National Federation of the Blind<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Be My Eyes will continue to expand our corporate and organizational beta test in the coming months. If your organization is interested in joining the program, please email us at <a href="mailto:solutions@bemyeyes.com">solutions@bemyeyes.com</a>.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>----------<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>[PHOTO CAPTION: Karl Belanger]<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>[PHOTO CAPTION: Matt Hackert]<o:p></o:p></span></p><h1 id=accessible-remote-access-with-rim><span style='font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Accessible Remote Access with RIM<o:p></o:p></span></h1><p><strong><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>by Karl Belanger and Matt Hackert</span></strong><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'><o:p></o:p></span></p><p><strong><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>From the Editor: If you are blind, have you ever noticed how hard it is to give or get technical support? A new product offers significant advancement in this area, whether a blind person is offering technical support to another blind person, to a sighted person, or is getting support from a sighted person who does not use a screen reader. Here is an article from two experts who explain how it works and pass along their enthusiasm for the beauty of this software:</span></strong><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'><o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Ever lost your mind when a tech support representative on the phone asks you to click “that gear-shaped thingy,” or to look for some icon “down at the bottom of the screen”? Or, conversely, as you try to help a family member troubleshoot some problem, you ask them to click on Settings, however they just see icons on the screen with no text labels, and you have no way of directing them or telling them what to look for because there’s a disconnect in how sighted users understand their computing environment and how blind people navigate. Often, it just becomes easier when the tech support help can “take over” the computer and eliminate all the talking past one another that seems to occur because technical folks and the rest of us just have very different ways of communicating.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Pneuma Solutions, an accessibility-minded software developer, recently released a new tool that is accessible to the blind that allows just that! Meet the Remote Incident Manager (RIM). It’s an innovative tool that allows one person to use their computer to “see” and control what’s happening on another’s computer, regardless of location so long as both are connected to the internet. The user may not even be aware that the person remotely connected is blind or uses a screen reader.<o:p></o:p></span></p><h3 id=getting-started><span style='font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Getting Started<o:p></o:p></span></h3><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>We’ll define some terms to help minimize confusion. “Controller” refers to the computer offering to provide assistance, and “Target” is the computer that’s being helped.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>To set up and install RIM: Type “getrim.app” in your browser’s address bar. Select the Download link. Your computer will install a small file. Open this executable from your downloads folder to begin installation.<o:p></o:p></span></p><h3 id=the-interface><span style='font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>The Interface<o:p></o:p></span></h3><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>The RIM interface is similar to a webpage. It includes headings, links, and buttons. Quick navigation commands work as you would expect them to, and entering information in edit boxes requires forms mode (JAWS) or object mode (NVDA).<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>The first time you open the RIM application, you’ll be asked for your email address. Enter the address associated with your account. RIM will send a verification code and will ask you to enter it into the application window. You should be taken to either the “Receive Help” screen, or the “Provide Help” screen—RIM takes you to whichever you most recently visited.<o:p></o:p></span></p><h4 id=receiving-help><span style='font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Receiving Help<o:p></o:p></span></h4><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>When the “Receive Remote Help” screen loads, focus moves to the Keyword edit box. You can immediately type a keyword provided to you by the control computer. Pressing Enter activates the Connect button, and you are ready to go. The computers will be connected once the controller enters the same keyword on their end. The other buttons on the “Receive Remote Help” screen are “Provide help instead”, “Add to RIM Account”, and “About”.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>“Provide help instead” switches the interface to the controller screen. “Add to RIM Account” is for larger environments with multiple employees’ computers running the RIM client under a master account.<o:p></o:p></span></p><h4 id=providing-help><span style='font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Providing Help<o:p></o:p></span></h4><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>The interface for the person operating the controller computer has some additional options, but the interface is still simple. Below the heading indicating that you are providing remote help, you will find the Keyword edit box, a checkbox to toggle use of voice assistance, and a “Start” button. Once you enter the Keyword you provided to your target computer operator, press Enter (or click Start). The two machines are connected.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>The checkbox to provide voice assistance allows both the controller and target user to communicate verbally while their computers are connected, using a microphone headset at each end.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>The Provide Help screen also includes “Choose a machine”, “RIM Dashboard”, “Receive help instead”, “About”, “Logout”, and “Cancel” options. “Choose a machine” provides a list of computers you’ve configured for unattended connections that you can select from. “RIM Dashboard” takes you to the dashboard, discussed below. “About” provides your client’s version information, “Logout” logs you out of the account you last signed into, and “Cancel” closes the application.<o:p></o:p></span></p><h4 id=rim-dashboard><span style='font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>RIM Dashboard<o:p></o:p></span></h4><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>The RIM Dashboard looks different depending on your account subscription tier. The dashboard allows you to manage unattended target computers, create custom RIM installers, and view session histories. Pro and Enterprise accounts have additional features.<o:p></o:p></span></p><h3 id=pricing><span style='font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Pricing<o:p></o:p></span></h3><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>There are three subscription tiers available—Personal, Pro, and Enterprise. Here’s the basic breakdown of the different tiers:<o:p></o:p></span></p><ul style='margin-top:0in' type=disc><li style='color:#1A1A1A;mso-list:l2 level1 lfo3'><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif'>“Personal” costs $99 annually ($9.95/month) and allows you to set up one controller and up to ten computers with unattended connections. More targets will incur additional costs. You could pay up to $549 annually ($54.95/month).<o:p></o:p></span></li><li style='color:#1A1A1A;mso-list:l2 level1 lfo3'><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif'>“Pro” starts at $999 annually ($99/month) and allows an unlimited number of target machines. Pro accounts may have up to three controller machines and can include up to three simultaneous sessions.<o:p></o:p></span></li><li style='color:#1A1A1A;mso-list:l2 level1 lfo3'><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif'>“Enterprise” costs $5,000 annually, plus a one-time $1,000 setup fee; there is no monthly billing option. Enterprise accounts can have unlimited target computers, can configure groups to help manage target machines, and can configure access control to users on the account by target group. Enterprise accounts can set up unattended access to Windows servers and can set up completely silent installation for unattended target computers.<o:p></o:p></span></li></ul><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Additionally, RIM allows free access for thirty minutes at a time per twenty-four-hour day and also sells day passes which you can purchase. These day passes allow for twenty-four hours of use, according to the time connected, not the calendar day, which is nice. Definitely visit the Pneuma Solutions website for full details.<o:p></o:p></span></p><h3 id=the-screen-reader-difference><span style='font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>The Screen Reader Difference<o:p></o:p></span></h3><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Remote Incident Manager is a streamlined, low-latency remote access tool. I think its biggest strength is its ambivalence to and full compatibility with different screen readers. JAWS and NVDA both have tandem tools for connecting with other computers running the same program, but RIM doesn’t differentiate between them. RIM works whether or not a screen reader is running.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>So, how does this work? Let’s first consider a blind technician wishing to control a remote computer without a screen reader installed. The controller machine must be running NVDA. RIM installs an add-on (developed for NVDA) which allows the local version of NVDA to act as the screen reader for the target computer. The target computer’s user has no overt sign that the controller was using access technology. They would not hear speech.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Let’s consider a sighted controller connecting to a target computer running a screen reader. RIM provides both the video and audio outputs of the target computer, and it transmits both mouse and keyboard inputs. The person operating the controller would hear the screen reader on the target computer, but their work isn’t inhibited.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>What if both computers are running screen readers? Once the connection is established, the person on the controller computer operates the target computer using its local screen reader.<o:p></o:p></span></p><h3 id=conclusion><span style='font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Conclusion<o:p></o:p></span></h3><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>RIM is a true breakthrough in remote desktop access, especially for blind Information Technology professionals. It’s a fast, simple, secure means of connecting to your home and office computers. Both remote and local users can operate the target computer simultaneously, making it a unique tool for providing one-on-one training. Pro and Enterprise subscription tiers offer a variety of advanced tools and functionality, even making remote access to Windows servers possible, without the need to install screen reading software directly on the server. We’ve only scratched the surface of RIM’s capabilities but are seeing valuable benefits from its use at our Baltimore office.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>----------<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>[PHOTO CAPTION: Patti Chang]<o:p></o:p></span></p><h2 id=lift-up-with-lyft-round-up><span style='font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Lift Up with Lyft Round Up<o:p></o:p></span></h2><p><strong><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>by Patti Chang</span></strong><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'><o:p></o:p></span></p><p><strong><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>From the Editor: Everything we do takes funding, and it is good when a business acknowledges our worth and gives customers an opportunity to help. Here is what Patti Chang, our executive director of development, offers to promote this opportunity:</span></strong><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'><o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Lyft and the National Federation of the Blind have been working together for some time. Our partnership often means that we hold Lyft accountable and provide honest feedback on their progress. That feedback is not always positive, particularly when we report issues related to ride denials involving guide dog handlers, but this article shares news about Lyft we hope you will welcome.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>In December, the National Federation of the Blind joined Lyft’s Round Up program and became one of only thirteen charities invited to participate. Anyone who is a Lyft user can select the National Federation of the Blind in the app, and Lyft will round up the rider’s fare to the nearest dollar. One hundred percent of the difference is forwarded to the National Federation of the Blind. The Lyft Round Up program has potential to bring in much needed financial assistance to the National Federation of the Blind from members and non-members alike.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>“It took me all of two minutes to sign up, and I feel good about helping the Federation to fund things like free white canes, early childhood programs, NFB-NEWSLINE®, and BELL® Academy.”—NFB Member.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Signing up is easy—go to the menu, hit donate, and choose the National Federation of the Blind. We hope that readers of the <em><span style='font-family:"Georgia",serif'>Braille Monitor</span></em> will also ask their friends, family, and colleagues to sign up for Lyft Round Up and select the Federation too.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Here is an example of what you can share to encourage those you know to sign up. This would be perfect for a text, social media post, or an outline of what to say in conversation.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>“An exciting and easy giving option for everyone: the organized blind movement has joined the Lyft Up program, so you can contribute every time you ride with Lyft. The program will round up the cost of your ride to the nearest dollar and donate the difference. In the Lyft app, simply go to the menu, navigate to donate, and choose National Federation of the Blind. Share this with all of your friends and family, because all of our small change leads to making a big difference. Thank you for your support!”<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>--------<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>[PHOTO CAPTION: Lashawna Fant]<o:p></o:p></span></p><h2 id=summer-tips-for-parents-of-blind-students><span style='font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Summer Tips for Parents of Blind Students<o:p></o:p></span></h2><p><strong><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>by LaShawna Fant</span></strong><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'><o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Summer reminds us of sweet lemonade, barbecues, swimming, and beaming sunshine. Convertibles, beaches and sandcastles, outdoor walks, and the joy and excitement surrounding the end of the school year are icons, as well. During these summer months, kids will need time to learn and play. Parents, please slide down this refreshing list of ideas to help prepare your child for the upcoming school year and everyday life.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Slice out time for your child to have fun, relax, and enjoy their summer.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Arrange opportunities for them to learn their accommodations, how to advocate for themselves, and what needs to be done to receive the appropriate support.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Create social opportunities for your child to interact with others.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Organize a staycation or vacation for the family. Either of them can be filled with sunny moments.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Have them participate in transition activities to help plan and nurture their postsecondary goals.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Allow time to work on daily duties involving cleaning, organization, personal health, and any needed tasks to propel their independence.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Schedule moments for them to explore communities and areas using various modes of transportation and their orientation and mobility skills.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Download various accessible apps and ensure your child can maneuver them (shopping, navigation, games, learning platforms).<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Talk with your child about their goals and subjects for the upcoming school year and assist them with learning some of the content over the summer months.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>Attend the National Federation of the Blind</span><span dir=RTL></span><span dir=RTL></span><span lang=AR-SA dir=RTL style='font-size:15.0pt;color:#1A1A1A'><span dir=RTL></span><span dir=RTL></span>’</span><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>s 2023 National Convention in Houston, Texas, to attain resources, interact with others, and learn lots of current information.<o:p></o:p></span></p><blockquote style='border:none;border-left:solid #E6E6E6 1.5pt;padding:0in 0in 0in 12.0pt;margin-left:20.4pt;margin-top:12.0pt;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:12.0pt'><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#606060'>---------<o:p></o:p></span></p></blockquote><h2 id=nfb-pledge><span style='font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>NFB Pledge<o:p></o:p></span></h2><p><span style='font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#1A1A1A'>I pledge to participate actively in the efforts of the National Federation of the Blind to achieve equality, opportunity, and security for the blind; to support the policies and programs of the Federation; and to abide by its constitution.<o:p></o:p></span></p></div></body></html>