[NFBWV-Talk] Fwd: NFB President’s Notebook - week of 11/18/2019

Tue Nov 19 13:13:11 UTC 2019

---------- Forwarded message ---------
From: President, National Federation of the Blind <
OfficeOfThePresident at nfb.org>
Date: Mon, Nov 18, 2019 at 4:24 PM
Subject: NFB President’s Notebook - week of 11/18/2019
To: President, National Federation of the Blind <
OfficeOfThePresident at nfb.org>

President’s Notebook National Federation of the Blind Mark A. Riccobono
officeofthepresident at nfb.org 410-659-9314

Dear Fellow Federationists,

Happy seventy-ninth anniversary to us! Another November 16 has come and
gone, causing us to pause and reflect upon all that we have accomplished as
a movement since that date in 1940. I was pleased to share the day with
Federation members. I know our eightieth year will be marked with many
important milestones, and I know we will think up some new things to pursue
along the way.

In this notebook, I want to prepare you again for the membership-list work
we will need to do to document those who paid dues for 2020. As mentioned
in our call regarding affiliate streaming, our hope is that working with an
existing membership list will help to make it easier. If there is interest,
we can schedule an affiliate president call for mid-December to review the
process and answer questions. Please let us know if this is desirable.
However, do not wait until then to consider how you will get chapters to
work with the affiliate on this important membership-tracking process.

I want to take this opportunity to wish each of you a very happy
Thanksgiving. I anticipate that there may not be any urgent news next
Monday, leaving this as our final notebook before the holiday. I am deeply
grateful for the service, leadership, and friendship of each of you. It
makes a tremendous difference in the lives of so many people. It is also a
true blessing for my family to have the opportunity to know you and enjoy
time with you. We appreciate how many of you who have asked for updates on
Oriana. Thank you for being who you are and doing what you do. We recognize
that your best contributions will go uncelebrated because you do them out
of love and dedication, not to seek award or acknowledgement. Thank you for
all of those unknown kindnesses that may go unrecognized but are deeply
impactful and gratefully appreciated by those of us working in the spirit
of the Federation family.

News:

Membership Data Updates:
Now that we have added all of the members to the database, we have
developed a plan for how that data will be updated. This plan was discussed
on the conference call several weeks ago, but I thought you would benefit
by having it in writing. More details about each step will be forthcoming
as the time draws nearer.

   - In mid-December, we will export and email to affiliate presidents a
   spreadsheet of members with current contact information, sorted by chapter.
   For many chapters, this will be essentially the same data sent to us
   earlier this year. However, any updated contact details and new members
   will be included in these spreadsheets.
   - Each chapter should track membership renewals. We will provide a
   column so that members can be marked as current when they have paid their
   dues.
   - Between March 1 and March 15, affiliates should return spreadsheets
   with updated member status. Members who have not yet renewed will be marked
   as “lapsed” in Connections to differentiate from non-members.
   - Details will be forthcoming for lapsed members that pay their dues
   after March 1.

Celebrating Seventy-Nine Years:
Saturday was the seventy-ninth anniversary of the founding of the National
Federation of the Blind. Since 1940, we have worked collectively in a
unified national organization, improving the lives of blind people
throughout the country, and in some cases, the world. Along with high
expectations and strong values, our structure continues to empower members
of the National Federation of the Blind to live the lives we want. Consider
sharing the history of the organized blind movement
<https://www.nfb.org/about-us/history-and-governance?fbclid=IwAR1R0E8vvGqkFao45ZMxiQDEf6mgHifKJ2ABQ2OrA01ghYujvK9qHSo59Uk>
and invite members to read *Building the Lives We Want*
<https://www.nfb.org/about-us/history-and-governance/building-lives-we-want>
. Send Comments for Elimination of 14(c):
On Friday, November 15, 2019 at 9:00 a.m., the United States Commission on
Civil Rights held a public briefing on the elimination of Section 14(c) of
the Fair Labor Standards Act, which allows subminimum wages for people with
disabilities. The commission plans to issue a report with actionable
recommendations to address this critical civil rights issue. Review the
testimony from many panelists <https://www.youtube.com/user/USCCR>, which
included Anil Lewis, Kimie Eacobacci, John Pare, Melissa Riccobono, and
Derek Manners. Panelists also included those who are still in favor of
14(c). Although it seems like the tides are turning, more voices need to be
heard to end these discriminatory practices. Submit comments to
subminimumwages at usccr.gov for the commission’s consideration no later than
December 15, 2019. Open-House-Gathering Call this Wednesday:
The National Federation of the Blind’s next open-house-gathering call for
people interested in membership will be this Wednesday, November 20, at
8:00 p.m. eastern. This is a great opportunity to learn about joining and
its benefits. The calls cover membership, philosophy, and purpose. Sign up
by emailing membership at nfb.org or calling 410-659-9314, extension 2509. Apple
TV+ Releases New Blindness Show, *See*:
A fantasy world in which everyone is blind, and also strong, capable, and
dynamic. This new show, *See*, on Apple TV+ could set forth a new way that
the entertainment industry portrays blindness. Additionally, there are five
blind actors cast in roles, although not in leading roles. This seems like
progress. Per our 2019 resolution on authentic representation of blind
people in the entertainment industry
<https://www.nfb.org/resources/speeches-and-reports/resolutions/2019-resolutions#14>,
more progress for the growth and inclusion of blind people in the
entertainment industry is needed. Read the recent blog post regarding the
show <https://www.nfb.org/blog/treading-carefully-new-blindness-drama-see>
and share your thoughts on the show.

Disney+:
Last week the Disney+ service was launched. A number of blind grandparents
and parents reported accessibility challenges with the website. We have
raised this with Disney, and they are working with our team to resolve
barriers. We will send additional news as we have it.
Dates to Keep in Mind:

   - January 4, 2020: World Braille Day
   - January 9-11, 2020: BELL® Academy Training Seminar
   - February 10, 2020: Great Gathering-In; Washington Seminar begins
   - March 26-27, 2020: Jacobus tenBroek Law Symposium, Baltimore, Maryland
   - April 14-17, 2020: NABM BLAST <http://www.blindmerchants.org>;
   Chicago, Illinois
   - July 14-19, 2020: NFB National Convention, Houston, Texas

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

Mark A. Riccobono, President

200 East Wells Street, Baltimore, MD 21230
<https://www.google.com/maps/search/200+East+Wells+Street,+Baltimore,+MD+21230?entry=gmail&source=g>

(410) 659-9314 | officeofthepresident at nfb.org

[image: National Federation of the Blind] <https://nfb.org/>

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

-- 
Sheri Koch, President
National Federation of the Blind of West Virginia
304-993-5103