[Ohio-talk] NFB and ACB

[Kaiti Shelton]

Hi, all,

Barbara, sorry for the double email.  For some reason my replies
aren't going through to the list like they should.

I'm sending this on because the responses I've been getting on-list
aren't along the lines of what I was hoping for.  I'm looking for
advice about how to be amicable and productive with someone else who
is in the ACB, but also reconciling that with my desire to do things
like Meet the Blind Month or raise money for BELL (which are NFB
agendas).  What I may see as a national campaign and a program to
promote braille literacy (for children who could grow up and very well
decide to join either organization) she might see as me using the club
to promote my own personal affiliation, and that would not bode well.

On 4/20/15, Kaiti Shelton <kaiti.shelton at gmail.com> wrote:
> Hi, Barbara and all,
>
> I need to clarify a few points.  I don't know if my original email was
> somehow unclear or if the responses to it misconstrued what I was
> really concerned about, but in any case I've been away from my
> computer for most of the weekend and have not been able to really
> respond.
>
> I am not seeking duel membership.  I have no desire to join the ACB
> because I still don't (and never have) agree with their positions on
> important issues.  For example, I have a recording of the ACB general
> assembly failing a resolution to support the Fair Wages of Workers
> With Disabilities Act.  If that isn't evidence enough, I don't know
> what is.  I was so against them that I never applied for their
> scholarship program (though honestly I could have used the money as
> any college student could).  It was Dr. Maurer who told me I should
> have applied, and his thought to go along with that was, "The best way
> for ACB people to spend their money is on NFB people," but to be
> honest I didn't even apply for their program this year.  Old habits
> die hard, I guess, even if a former national president gives the
> go-ahead.  My personal thoughts on the ACB aside, I am in positions
> within the NFB that I would not want to jeopardize.  I am in those
> positions because I want to be a part of this organization and to help
> to advance it.  I'm also involved in other active organizations on
> campus, so I'd hesitate to add anything else to my plate much less an
> organization I don't agree with.
>
> My real concerns are more along the lines of what Barbara was getting
> at.  I want to take advantage of national agenda items like Meet the
> Blind Month, BELL, etc, but I want to remain amicable to my partner so
> that our joint effort on campus isn't messed up by our personal
> affiliations with opposing groups.  My real question is how to
> encorperate my philosophy and be open about it to help those in the
> club or who need advising from someone else with a disability on
> campus while not stepping on my partner's toes or getting into a
> philosophical sticky situation.
>
> I've always said that the NFB philosophy doesn't just apply to the
> blind.  There are those in the deaf/wheelchair/other disability
> communities which are split along similar lines to NFB and ACB folks .
> Deaf people who refuse hearing aids are similar to those who display
> the white cane to some in the deaf community because they're not
> covering up their deafness or trying to fit in with the hearing.  On
> the other hand, there are also people in other disability groups that
> believe there should always be assistance offered to them that is
> above and beyond what they need (size-differentiated money, for
> example).  I mentioned that she really doesn't seem to have that kind
> of an attitude, but I wouldn't want to say something that puts her and
> I in positions where we disagree, especially as the founding members
> odds are we will somehow be president and vice president of the
> organization.  I'd really be interested in doing something to support
> BELL, but the issue I mentioned in my first email is that even
> something like that may put me in an awkward position because to her
> it could appear that I'm using the club to promote an NFB thing
> through the club, rather than raising money for children to learn
> braille (who could join whichever organization as adults but will be
> more independent and literate all the same).
>
> This situation is very similar to the one Eric is in according to
> Barbara's email.  Hopefully this answers the confusion.
>
> On 4/20/15, barbara.pierce9366 at gmail.com <barbara.pierce9366 at gmail.com>
> wrote:
>> Dear Kaiti,
>>
>> I am late to this discussion, but, as you might guess, I have firm
>> opinions
>> on the subject. It is a complicated matter. Eric, for example, is talking
>> with the president of the ACB of Ohio about our effort to change the
>> governance structure of OOD, and she has been very supportive. They are
>> working together amicably and productively. So how do your issues differ
>> from this example?
>>
>> As you know, the ACB arose from the differences that opened up during our
>> civil war. The ACB was composed of the folks who wanted state power and a
>> relatively weak confederacy model at the national level. They were
>> uncomfortable with conflict with the agencies that ruled our lives, and
>> they
>> passionately believed that you attract more flies with honey than with
>> vinegar. This last may be true, but I have never been much interested in
>> collecting flies.
>>
>> In any case historically there have been significant differences between
>> NFBs and ACB stands on lots of issues. For a long time you could pretty
>> much
>> look at the NFB position and guess the ACB position because it would be
>> opposite to ours. I have not read the Braille Forum for years, so I don't
>> pretend to know their stance on the big issues of the day, but I think it
>> is
>> interesting that their positions are not generally known. This suggests
>> to
>> me that they are not doing a lot these days. Certainly in Ohio, when both
>> organizations are present and asked for our positions, they mostly say,
>> "Me
>> too," after we have articulated our position.
>>
>> As for this business of belonging to both organizations, are you aware
>> that
>> we have a policy of no duel membership? We do not make much of it because
>> we
>> do not want to prevent people from deciding to join the NFB if they are
>> members of the ACB, but the policy is in place, and we try to encourage
>> chapters not to allow members of the ACB to hold leadership positions
>> because of the real possibility of conflict of interest. We have not
>> always
>> succeeded in this effort, but we try. This is because ACB members in good
>> standing should be opposed to many of our positions. For example, a
>> couple
>> of years ago the ACB refused to join us in support of the TIME act
>> because
>> they said that the issue of subminimum wages did not affect many of their
>> members, so they saw no reason to take a stand on it. Surely you can see
>> that an officer with that position would not be eager to take a stand
>> against Goodwill.
>>
>> I think you are right to have reservations about affiliation with the
>> ACB.
>> Your friend is a good colleague for you on campus issues, but, if she
>> knows
>> anything about her organization, she will have philosophical differences
>> with you. Maybe she does not know enough about national politics to have
>> differences with you. That may mean that you will bring her across to
>> your
>> way of thinking. Certainly if she does think like you about independence,
>> she belongs with us. The ACB has a long history of not wanting to hurt
>> people's feelings by suggesting that they push themselves out of their
>> comfort zones and try new things. You can see that this fits with be nice
>> to
>> the agencies and always look for the accommodations that will make things
>> easiest for us, like marking the currency.
>>
>> I have gone on long enough. I am sure that I have made some people angry
>> with this position, but it is important that we be clear at the beginning
>> of
>> a new national administration that our policies have not changed even
>> though
>> our president has. We will work with the ACB when our interests coincide,
>> but we will not join their organization. We are strongly opposed to NAC
>> and
>> opposed to agencies that accredit with NAC. These have been our policies
>> for
>> decades, and they continue to be our positions today and into the future.
>>
>> Barbara
>> Barbara Pierce
>> President Emerita
>> National Federation of the Blind of Ohio
>> Barbara.pierce9366 at gmail.com
>> 440-774-8077
>> 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 zwant;
>> blindness is not what holds you back.
>>
>>> On Apr 18, 2015, at 9:52 PM, Kaiti Shelton via Ohio-talk
>>> <ohio-talk at nfbnet.org> wrote:
>>>
>>> Hi all,
>>>
>>> One of the things I've been working on this semester, and talked a
>>> little bit about on the list recently, is an organization for students
>>> with disabilities and allies on UD's campus.  My partner in crime in
>>> this is another blind student, and it is interesting how things have
>>> worked out.  We seem to have very similar attitudes about independence
>>> and are in agreement on how to work to make disability less of a taboo
>>> topic of conversation on campus, but I'm a Federationist and she's an
>>> ACB member.  It's interesting because sometimes in conversations we'll
>>> dance around mentioning the different organizations.  For example, the
>>> other day she said, "I went to a conference in October and-something
>>> about BSVI."  I know it was the ACB convention, so I'm wondering why
>>> there needs to be the secrecy about it.  I doubt she's intentionally
>>> doing it-it's probably passed down through the generations.
>>>
>>> I'm guilty of this, too.  Though I have not been shy about my
>>> allegiance and have specifically said things like, "I heard this at an
>>> NFB thing," I have not done it as much as I normally would.  I am also
>>> guilty of not wanting to do anything with the ACB.  Until Dr. Maurer
>>> made a comment telling me I should apply for ACB scholarships at the
>>> last conventions I never applied simply because I didn't agree with
>>> the organization's approach.  I also heard horror stories of NFB
>>> people being announced as "The other camp" as they entered ACB
>>> functions, and didn't want to be treated like that so I never thought
>>> of attending anything they sponsored.
>>>
>>> It really got me thinking about how the organizations are still at
>>> odds with each other today.  It's funny, too, because when I've
>>> mentioned things like, "We could do something for Meet the Blind
>>> Month," the reaction is just like, "Oh, an NFB thing."  I wouldn't
>>> quite describe it as disappointment, but definitely something along
>>> those lines.  While I personally don't agree with the approach the ACB
>>> takes as an organization, I won't judge someone who does.  I know a
>>> few people who have had membership in both organizations
>>> simultaneously and like them.  I don't think I've ever met a full ACB
>>> person, though, so this is something new.  I really like her and her
>>> attitude about things is very similar to mine, so this is puzzling me.
>>> I would love to use opportunities in the club to promote things like
>>> Meet the Blind Month, or use a fundraiser to possibly get some funds
>>> for BELL as a service event, but in this instance I feel obligated to
>>> keep it neutral.  Thoughts?
>>>
>>>   --
>>> Kaiti Shelton
>>> University of Dayton 2016.
>>> Music Therapy, Psychology, Philosophy
>>> President, Ohio Association of Blind Students
>>> Sigma Alpha Iota-Delta Sigma
>>>
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>>
>>
>
>
> --
> Kaiti Shelton
> University of Dayton 2016.
> Music Therapy, Psychology, Philosophy
> President, Ohio Association of Blind Students
> Sigma Alpha Iota-Delta Sigma
>


-- 
Kaiti Shelton
University of Dayton 2016.
Music Therapy, Psychology, Philosophy
President, Ohio Association of Blind Students
Sigma Alpha Iota-Delta Sigma