[stylist] question about philosophy

[Joe Orozco]

If the group was just sitting in front of a store holding a donation cup, I
might be bothered.  I mean, what a wasted opportunity to pass out brochures
and such.  Yet it sounds as though the cup is only a feature of an
educational outreach event.  For several years I helped the Texas
Association of Blind Students organize their annual Southern Strums
fundraiser at National Convention.  Last year there was no space for the
division to hold its event within the hotel.  We switched it to a public
venue, and in my eyes this was probably better since the event would attract
the general public in addition to fellow Federation members.  People
wondered about whether our donations would go down, and on the contrary, one
lady came by and dropped a hundred-dollar check for the division, among
other contributions.  Did she donate because she felt for the blind group?
I don't know whether she did or not, but I also know that the presence or
absence of a donation cup on a table where there is also literature about
blind empowerment is probably not going to dramatically change the opinion
of the average person walking past.  Opinions will not hinge on whether the
group is taking donations but rather on the type of interaction the group
has with the people who stop to chat.  And, it's a fundraising strategy
completely independent of stereotypes.  Do we not think private agencies not
use certain emotional tactics to get people to donate for the care of foster
children?  Military veterans?  Cancer patients?  I doubt any of these people
would want to inspire pity from the people from whom donations are sought.
It's the world of nonprofits and more to the point, the realm of
fundraising.  We'll change minds and automatic associations by exuding
confidence, not by attempting to meet every acceptable definition of what is
normal to the general public, because that would indeed be a long and
arduous road to follow.

Best,

Joe

"Hard work spotlights the character of people: some turn up their sleeves,
some turn up their noses, and some don't turn up at all."--Sam Ewing 

-----Original Message-----
From: stylist-bounces at nfbnet.org 
[mailto:stylist-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Priscilla McKinley
Sent: Friday, August 20, 2010 1:18 PM
To: Writer's Division Mailing List
Subject: Re: [stylist] question about philosophy

Listers,

While I don't have a problem with donations online, the can or cup
sitting on a table gives a negative image.  Throughout history,
persons with disabilities, including blindness, begged for money,
sitting on street corners with cans or tin cups.  The NFB has been
struggling for years to change what it means to be blind, including
ridding the public of such images.  In 1970, Dr. Jernigan gave his
banquet speech entitled "Blindness: The Myth and the image" in which
he discusses the tin cup:

"How does the tragic view of blindness find expression in modern
society? I would answer that it takes two forms: among the public it
takes one form, and among professionals another. On the public and
popular side, it tends to be conveyed through images of total
dependency and deprivation-images, that is, of the "helpless blind
man." A typical recent example occurred on the well-known TV program,
"Password," in which a number of contestants take turns guessing at
secret words through synonyms and verbal associations. On one such
show the key word to be guessed was "cup." The first cue word offered
was "tin;" but the guesser failed to make the connection. The next cue
word given was "blind"-which immediately brought the response "cup."
There you have it: for all our rehabilitation, all our education, and
all our progress, what comes to the mind of the man in the street when
he thinks of a blind person is the tin cup of the beggar!"

In his speech, Dr. Jernigan goes on to say that we can't go back to
those times, to those images.  We need to move forward.  In my
opinion, donations are fine, but not charity, which the cans and cups
and containers have represented throughout our history.  In fact, many
people in disability studies believe that the term "handicap"
originated from that image, the hand to cap, from the beggar, which is
one reason the term disability is now used.

Anyway, just thought I would share.

Priscilla





On 8/20/10, The Crowd <the_crowd at cox.net> wrote:
> Here here, well said Joe!
>
> Atty
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> Writers Division web site:
> http://www.nfb-writers-division.org 
<http://www.nfb-writers-division.org/>
>
> stylist mailing list
> stylist at nfbnet.org
> http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/stylist_nfbnet.org
> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for
> stylist:
> 
http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/options/stylist_nfbnet.org/priscil
la.mckinley%40gmail.com
>

_______________________________________________
Writers Division web site:
http://www.nfb-writers-division.org 
<http://www.nfb-writers-division.org/>

stylist mailing list
stylist at nfbnet.org
http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/stylist_nfbnet.org
To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account 
info for stylist:
http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/options/stylist_nfbnet.org/jsorozc
o%40gmail.com