[NFBOH-Cleveland] Braille Monitor: Being Black Helped Me Be Blind and Being Blind Helped by Anil Lewis

[Suzanne Turner]

Being Black Helped Me Be Blind and Being Blind Helped Me Understand that
#BlackLivesMatter


by Anil Lewis

>From the Editor: Anil Lewis is a person with such prominence in the
Federation that writing a headnote about him seems almost as unnecessary as
writing an introduction for President Riccobono, Immediate Past President
Maurer, or our first vice president and chairman of the National Federation
of the Blind Board of Directors, Pam Allen. Therefore, I will not use the
space to introduce Anil but to express my appreciation to him for the
writing of an article that required going beyond the past and the present
and demanded that he look into his soul and share with us what he found
there. This takes guts; it takes honesty; it takes humility; it assumes that
for all of his effort we, the readers, will invest some of ourselves,
including our souls, in trying to understand the messages being expressed. I
will never know what it is like to be a black man, but Anil Lewis believes
that I have the capacity to learn more than I now know, and both publicly
and privately I give him my pledge to honor his faith and trust. Here is
what I believe to be the most moving and educational article I have ever had
the privilege of editing and publishing:

Although my father died when I was six, I grew up as part of a large
extended family. My mother raised four children on her own, two of whom were
blind (I became blind at age twenty-five). I am also blessed to have a host
of aunts, uncles, and cousins who are all like mothers, fathers, sisters,
and brothers. 

Growing up as a young black man in Atlanta, one of the most progressive
civil rights cities in the country, I was aware of the challenges I would
have to face as a black person in a predominately-white society. I grew up
realizing that I am the beneficiary of the work of many civil rights leaders
who paved the way for me to receive a proper education and opportunities for
gainful employment. Thanks to my family, I developed a positive self-concept
of myself as a black man despite society's negative depiction of black
people throughout the mainstream media. With their support and
encouragement, I was able to secure opportunities to receive the
interventions that made it possible for me to excel. I was told that I would
need to be better just to be perceived as equal, and as a result, I became
extremely self-confident, regardless of any environment or situation. My
academic success enabled me to receive college scholarships and subsequently
made it possible for me to obtain relatively good jobs with above-average
pay. 
My extended family also taught me the skill of successful interracial
interaction, or how to wear the "mask," a skill that allows me to navigate
within a racially charged environment in a manner that is not perceived as
intimidating, but allows me to use intimidation when it helps me reach my
objective. Although I code-switch (use vocabulary that is appropriate to the
audience), I am able to do this without compromising myself or altering my
true identity-"When in France.." Little did I know, but this lived
experience and acquired skill set would help me adapt to being blind later
in life. 

With the relatively quick onset of my blindness due to retinitis pigmentosa
(RP), I lost a significant amount of my sight over a weekend, leaving me
unable to read the text on my computer screen and making it next to
impossible for me to continue to operate as a sighted person. My mother made
no excuses. She encouraged me to "Get up and do something." Luckily, I was
referred to the services offered by the state vocational rehabilitation
agency and a local community rehabilitation center, where I learned that I
needed to acquire the alternative skills of blindness in order to regain my
independence. However, the systems in place set the bar so low that I would
not be encouraged, supported, or allowed to reach my full potential. I
attained a mediocre skill set at best. My acquisition of limited cane travel
abilities using routes, a Braille reading speed of thirty-three words per
minute, and an inability to cook anything without the use of a microwave
allowed me to graduate from my blindness training with praise and accolades.
Fortunately, I possessed good computer skills prior to my blindness, so I
was able to teach myself how to use JAWS to access the computer and was an
above average user. 

Soon after my graduation, I quickly became a staff member at the same
center, teaching others Braille and access technology. I was proud of my
accomplishments, but I did not realize that my "achievement" was
perpetuating a system of inadequate training and low expectations. Then I
met members of the National Federation of the Blind. This newly acquired
extended family acknowledged my skill set and immediately began encouraging
me to set higher expectations for myself and for other blind people. With
their support, I worked hard in order to maintain my self-confidence and
develop a positive self-concept as a blind person. I improved my blindness
skills and learned a new language of blindness: Structured Discovery, long
white cane, competing on terms of equality, etc. 

As a member of the 1999 Three Strikes Leadership Seminar, I participated in
a week-long leadership training at the NFB national center that exposed me
to the history of the blindness movement, educated me about the achievements
of the NFB, and inspired me to work collectively to overcome the challenges
to our liberty that still remain. I became aware that I have benefitted from
the work that many have done before me to create opportunities to learn,
grow, and be accepted as an equal in society. Once I gained this
consciousness of the struggle and the dedication of the blind people that
came before me and the continued systemic ableism that still exists and
prohibits blind people from reaching their full potential, I engaged in the
collective action of the NFB. 

My Federation family taught me the skill of coping with public attitudes
about blindness and how to blend in on terms of equality. My new mask allows
me to navigate within a custodial-rich environment in a manner that commands
respect. Often the only blind person in the room, I am able to make others
comfortable with my presence and still be able to engage in those
uncomfortable conversations in a manner that facilitates learning rather
than denial. However, in order to educate myself so that I could influence
others, I needed to learn the truth about blindness. 

The knowledge I needed to acquire was not readily available, and the role
models I needed were not depicted on TV or radio. In fact, mainstream
coverage of blind people perpetuates negative stereotypes and misconceptions
about blindness, much like the media has for too long portrayed black
people. I knew it would require a dedicated effort to gain a true
understanding of blindness, and I soon received the support and guidance of
my Federation family. I read Walking Alone and Marching Together, the
written history of our movement, along with other informative materials.
With these and my ongoing contact, I gained a greater understanding of the
truth about blindness and the systemic obstacles to our full participation.
Subsequently, as an active member of the NFB for over twenty years, I have
worked to address the discriminatory policies and practices that prevent
blind people from living the lives we want and to fight for the security,
equality, and opportunity that will enable us to serve as full participating
members of society. 

Recently, in the wake of the extreme social unrest (awakening), brought
about by the videos depicting the racial injustices leading to the murder of
George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, and far too many other black people, I have
realized that I have not exercised the same degree of dedication to address
the systemic racism that prohibits black people from living the lives we
want. If I am to be honest, my lack of dedication to educate myself has
resulted in my ignorance, which is no excuse for my silence and is shameful.
It has made me complicit in the tragedy, which is completely unacceptable.
As Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. stated, "The ultimate tragedy is not the
oppression and cruelty by the bad people but the silence over that by the
good people." I consider myself a good person, and I am recommitted to
acquiring the knowledge to effectively exercise my voice toward ending the
tragedy of systemic racism.

First, I had to process the internal and external anger that grew from my
guilt and newly evolved awareness. Most do not know that I have a really bad
temper, but anyone who really knows me understands that I process anger
through humor. I do not mean laughing at the situation but adopting a less
frustrating perspective that helps me dissipate the anger and focus on the
problem toward a solution. It is imperative for me to be able to decompress
before taking action, or my anger results in my making bad decisions. 

I had to resolve a profound internal conflict in order to determine how I
would take action. A dear friend shared a video from Trevor Noah, the host
of the Daily Show, which was about a twenty-minute train of consciousness
giving his perspective on the recent racially charged situations that have
raised worldwide awareness of systemic racism. Trevor possesses an amazing
talent to use his humor to address socially relevant issues in a manner that
offers alternate perspectives that challenge your existing paradigm.
Subsequently, I read Trevor Noah's book, Born a Crime: Stories from a South
African Childhood, which, for my blind friends, is available on BARD. This
was the therapy I needed in order to deal with my emotional crisis and to
begin my real education. Trevor's lived experience, chronicled in this book,
serves to entertain and enlighten. I encourage anyone who like myself, has
anger issues that prevent them from making a conscious decision to educate
themselves about the nuances of race, racism, and racial interaction to read
this book.

Let me be clear: I am not suggesting that reading Born a Crime is the
textbook to the understanding and enlightenment about systemic racism. I am
only stating that it helped me to get past the anger to be open to learning
more. Far too many people stop at denial, or in my case, presumed
enlightenment. We want to be able to ingest all understanding by watching
the news, reading a newspaper article, and watching YouTube videos. Although
these are tremendous resources to stay informed, as demonstrated by the
impact of the George Floyd video, true understanding requires a dedicated
effort to educate oneself.

Even the formal systems meant to educate usually present an inadequate
presentation of our history. In school I learned black history from a
perspective that was so watered down. I took pride that a black man invented
the cotton gin. I actually thought the Brown vs. Board of Education-after
initial resistance that required National Guard intervention-eliminated
school segregation. I thought the Voting Rights Act was no longer necessary
because I had no problems exercising my right to cast a private, independent
ballot. My work within the NFB has taught me how to effectively advocate for
the passage of civil rights legislation. Moreover, I have learned that
passing legislation is not enough. The ongoing work of advocacy toward
enforcement is essential, lest we regress to the system that we fought to
change. I am extremely embarrassed about my lack of understanding of the
systems and practices that exist and serve to limit opportunities for black
people in this country. I actively work to cope with a significant amount of
guilt related to my ignorance and constantly seek information to educate
myself so that I can fight for the change that is necessary.

In my recent recommitment to self-educate, I have turned to two books: White
Rage: The Unspoken Truth of Our Racial Divide, written by Carol Anderson,
and White Fragility: Why It's So Hard for White People to Talk about Racism,
written by Robin DiAngelo, both also available on BARD. In White Rage, I
read information about black history that shook me to my core and had never
been shared with me in any of my history books. Moreover, the details
provided about everything from school segregation to the Iran Contra scandal
offered information that framed these in a completely new light. White
Fragility was written by a white American author from a white point of view
to address "the challenges of talking to white people about racism." I
thought it would be helpful for me to take a look from this perspective, and
it was more than helpful. It helped me in my quest to acquire the language
to have meaningful conversations about racism by differentiating between the
discrimination caused by prejudice, and the systemic racism resulting from
racist policies and practices.

I encourage everyone to read both books. However, if you identify as black
or any other minority, I suggest that you start by reading White Rage. The
information you gain will be helpful in maintaining your conviction that the
struggle is real. If you identify as white, begin with White Fragility. I
specifically suggest starting with chapter four, "How Does Race shape the
Lives of White People." It begins with a quote from Ijeoma Oluo, "White
people: I don't want you to understand me better, I want you to understand
yourselves." I realize the flaw in executing a strategy that attempts to get
white people to understand the lived experience of black people. It is
similar to the challenge of getting the sighted to understand what it is
like to live as a blind person. However, it is my experience that a better
understanding of your ignorance helps you better understand the problem and
will hopefully motivate you to become part of the solution.
Many of my white brothers and sisters within my Federation family have
reached out to express their support and understanding. I am blessed to have
these relationships, and I hope and pledge to continue to build more allies
to advocate for the systemic change that is necessary. The work we have done
within the Federation to address diversity and inclusion is exemplary, and I
feel it will continue to build awareness in a manner that empowers our blind
black members and our allies to play an active role in this effort. My plan
is to take the skills I have learned as a member of the National Federation
of the Blind and use them to support the work of another organization
focused on addressing systemic racism. I believe I have the capacity to work
within both circles and hope to find concentric areas that leverage what I
learn from one organization to strengthen the work I do for the other. 

The National Federation of the Blind fights tirelessly for the rights of
blind people. Other disability organizations continue to encourage us to
become immersed within a broader coalition of people with disabilities. We
have specific needs that need to be addressed that are unique to blindness,
like Braille, nonvisual access technology, and accessible instructional
materials. Although we participate in advocacy efforts that help to meet our
goals, we cannot afford to have our voices diluted in a sea of other voices
seemingly advocating for the same things. We realize that blind lives matter
and require specific intervention and action to eliminate the discrimination
blind people face. This is also the case with black lives. The systemic
racism that black people face requires specific intervention and action.
#BlackLivesMatter is a movement that acknowledges that we cannot afford to
build a larger coalition of "All Lives Matter" when we need to use our time
and talent to add resources, develop specific strategies, policies, and
legislation to address systemic racism. Reinforcing that #BlackLivesMatter
will help you #LiveTheLifeYouWant. 

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