[Nyagdu] FW: [External] FW: [Njagdu] Disappointed in Guiding Eyes for the Blind's Response

Sat Jan 27 13:39:25 UTC 2018

Here is an interesting read which may give a little insight into why corporations like Delta are making decisions which seem to be discriminatory to some, when in fact it is an attempt, maybe not the best, but an attempt just the same to protect the rights of individuals with legitimate service animals.

Pets Allowed
Why are so many animals now in places where they shouldn't be?

By  Patricia Marx, The New Yorker

The author takes an alpaca to the drugstore. There's a lot of confusion about what emotional-support animals can legally do. 

What a wonderful time it is for the scammer, the conniver, and the cheat: the underage drinkers who flash fake I.D.s, the able-bodied adults who drive cars with handicapped license plates, the parents who use a phony address so that their child can attend a more desirable public school, the customers with eleven items who stand in the express lane. The latest group to bend the law is pet owners.

Take a look around. See the St. Bernard slobbering over the shallots at Whole Foods? Isn't that a Rottweiler sitting third row, mezzanine, at Carnegie Hall? As you will have observed, an increasing number of your neighbors have been keeping company with their pets in human-only establishments, cohabiting with them in animal-unfriendly apartment buildings and dormitories, and taking them (free!) onto airplanes-simply by claiming that the creatures are their licensed companion animals and are necessary to their mental well-being. No government agency keeps track of such figures, but in 2011 the National Service Animal Registry, a commercial enterprise that sells certificates, vests, and badges for helper animals, signed up twenty-four hundred emotional-support animals. Last year, it registered eleven thousand.

Go to this link to read the rest of this interesting article:  https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2014/10/20/pets-allowed

-----Original Message-----
From: Nyagdu [mailto:nyagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of NAGDU President via Nyagdu
Sent: Friday, January 26, 2018 9:37 PM
To: NAGDU Mailing List, the National Association of Guide Dog Users <nagdu at nfbnet.org>; flagdu at nfbnet.org; coagdu at nfbnet.org; txagdu at nfbtx.org; oagdu at nfbnet.org; Michigan Guide Dog Users Committee List <micgdu at nfbnet.org>; vagdu at nfbnet.org; New Jersey Association of Guide Dog Users <njagdu at nfbnet.org>; nyagdu at nfbnet.org
Cc: NAGDU President <blind411 at verizon.net>
Subject: [Nyagdu] FW: [External] FW: [Njagdu] Disappointed in Guiding Eyes for the Blind's Response

Dear All,

                After receiving my comments which I forwarded to the list, Thomas Panek, the CEO of Guiding Eyes for the Blind, telephoned me to discuss my comments. I offered to share with our NAGDU lists any response he would like to make to my comments. Below is Mr. Panek's response.

Fraternally yours,

Marion Gwizdala 

Marion Gwizdala, President

National Association of Guide Dog Users Inc. (NAGDU)

National Federation of the Blind

(813) 626-2789

President at NAGDU.ORG

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

Dear Mr. Gwizdala :

Thank you for your comments regarding Guiding Eyes for the Blind's announcement to graduates about our access hotline.

We too are deeply concerned about Delta's proposed policy and the requirement to present a health record as a precondition to travel, recognizing that any policy by any organization places an undue burden for individuals who use service dogs.

Our goal in launching a access hotline is to provide Guiding Eyes for the Blind guide dog users a resource when accessibility issues are encountered
when travelling with a guide ddog.   

I think it is important to also clarify that we support efforts by NAGDU and guide dog users to advocate to ensure their rights of equal access under the
law.      I have included our announcement below.

Sincerely,

Thomas A. Panek

Presidetn & CEO

Guiding Eyes for the Blind

Dear Graduates,

Guiding Eyes is pleased to announce the launch of the Access Hotline for our graduates. The hotline is available 24/7 and provides real-time assistance in resolving situations in which access is being denied by establishments, transportation, or other services. The hotline is also available for questions about access laws or situations. Graduates with active guides may call 1-800-974-4925 <tel:(800)%20974-4925>  or email access at guidingeyes.org, any time, day or night, seven days a week. 

Guiding Eyes for the Blind has been monitoring and participating in the national conversation about service dog fraud. When individuals break the law by representing a pet as a service animal, it can cause serious safety and access issues for our graduates. 

On January 19, 2018, Delta Airlines announced the requirement of a health certificate for service animals on all domestic flights. Guiding Eyes is communicating with Delta to understand how to help our graduates navigate these new procedures.

Guiding Eyes currently provides health certificates to all graduates that are valid up to one year (depending on date of vaccinations.) After the initial certificate expires, we can provide an updated health certificate to graduates who bring their guides to the Guiding Eyes Training Center in Yorktown Heights, NY, for a check-up by a staff veterinarian.

We continue to issue I.D. cards and letters to all graduates certifying that each Guiding Eyes guide dog has been formally trained as a service dog and has been taught to be well behaved in public. While not required by law, these can be helpful in resolving access challenges. 

The entire Guiding Eyes community works hard to make sure our dogs are bred, socialized and trained to be well behaved in public. Guiding Eyes remains committed to assisting our graduates and are pleased to add this enhancement to our comprehensive follow up services. If you have any questions about this announcement please contact me directly. 

Sincerely,

Ben Cawley

Director of Admissions

Guiding Eyes for the Blind

bcawley at guidingeyes.org

From: NJAGDU [mailto:njagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of NAGDU President via NJAGDU
Sent: Wednesday, January 24, 2018 11:59 PM
To: NAGDU Mailing List, the National Association of Guide Dog Users; coagdu at nfbnet.org; txagdu at nfbtx.org; nyagdu at nfbnet.org; New Jersey Association of Guide Dog Users; oagdu at nfbnet.org; vagdu at nfbnet.org; Michigan Guide Dog Users Committee List; flagdu at nfbnet.org
Cc: NAGDU President
Subject: [Njagdu] Disappointed in Guiding Eyes for the Blind's Response

Dear NAGDU Members & Supporters,

I am writing to share with you my comments to Guiding Eyes for the Blind regarding their comments on Delta's proposed service animal policy. 

Fraternally yours,

Marion Gwizdala their statement 

January 24, 2018 

Dear Mr. Cawley,

Via Email: bcawley at guidingeyes.orgc

                I want to express my extreme disappointment with the response by Guiding eyes for the Blind to the issue we are facing with delta Airlines. The National Association of Guide Dog Users, a strong and proud division of the National Federation of the Blind,  is committed to advocating for all guide dog users, whether they receive their guide dogs from a formal training program or choose to owner-train their dogs. We are also aware that, when we advocate for policies that affect us as guide dog users, we have a more global responsibility to the entire service dog industry. We take this responsibility seriously and reject any attempt to weaken our civil rights. This being said, we oppose any measures that have the effect of discriminating against disabled individuals who use service dogs, including the imposition of an unequal benefit, something Guiding Eyes for the Blind seems to condone in their recent statement. 

Though it is true that consumers of Guiding Eyes for the Blind and other guide dog training programs are issued identification cards, these cards are not and should not be required as a precondition for access under the Air Carrier Access Act or a covered entity under the Americans with Disabilities Act. Though it is equally true that all responsible animal owners, including guide and service dog users, must accept the responsibility of maintaining the health of their dogs, it is paternalistic to require us to demonstrate that we are doing so just because we are blind or otherwise disabled and use a service dog! The requirement to present a health record as a precondition to travel is discriminatory and imposes an undue burden for those of us who use service dogs. Likewise, the inability to book on-demand travel and check-in online, curbside, or by means of a kiosk is a discriminatory unequal benefit. 

By issuing their statement, Guiding Eyes for the Blind has done a disservice to their consumers and the entire service dog using public. Such an ill-informed position compromises the progress made by the National Federation of the Blind and the National Association of Guide Dog Users to ensure that service dog users have the right to full participation in society on terms of full equality and to travel freely without harassment or the imposition of unnecessary, burdensome requirements.

                The National Association of Guide Dog Users strongly urges Guiding Eyes for the Blind to rescind their statement and take a stand with us to demand that those of us who choose to use service dogs have the ability to travel freely and on equal terms with our nondisabled peers. We further urge 

all guide and service dog training programs to stand with the National Federation of the blind and its National Association of Guide Dog Users to ensure that their consumers are well-informed about their civil rights under the law and take an active role in advocating for those rights.

                For more information about the National Association of Guide Dog Users, please visit our website

http://nagdu.org

Follow us on Twitter - @nagdu

Join the discussion on our Facebook page by searching for NAGDU.

Live the life you want; nobody can stop you!

Respectfully yours,

Marion Gwizdala 

Marion Gwizdala, President

National Association of Guide Dog Users Inc. (NAGDU)

National Federation of the Blind

(813) 626-2789

President at NAGDU.ORG

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

Attention: This email was sent from someone outside of Guiding Eyes. Always use caution when opening attachments or clicking links from unknown senders or when receiving unexpected emails.

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