[stylist] More on this subject of working in blindness field

Tue Feb 19 19:35:55 UTC 2013

Julie,
Good for you, standing up for yourself. The funny (cynically speaking) thing
is that people think this doesn't qualify as prejudice.
Donna 

-----Original Message-----
From: stylist [mailto:stylist-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Julie J.
Sent: Tuesday, February 19, 2013 11:46 AM
To: Writer's Division Mailing List
Subject: Re: [stylist] More on this subject of working in blindness field

Linda,

You are awesome!  We need more college professors like you!

I had a college instructor for Biology and Canoeing who did not want me in
his classes no way no how.  Before I could take the Biology class I had to
attend this meeting with the school administration, the instructor and my
rehab counselor.  It was awful.  The school listed all the ways it was going
to be a problem.  I and my rehab counselor tried to explain some techniques
that I could use to make it work.  Finally I had to put my foot down.  I
told them I was taking Biology so we could spend our time productively or
not that was their choice, but taking the class was not up for debate.
There was a moment of silence while they 
absorbed that.   Of course I did take the class and got an A.

then came the PE class I wanted to take which was a weekend canoeing trip,
with the same instructor.  We didn't have to have the big meeting this time,
but I did find myself in his classroom having a heated discussion about the
fact that I was really taking this class.  the instructor told me everything
that could possibly go wrong and a detailed list of every canoeing accident
that had ever occurred in the past 20 years, complete with the blood and
guts Gorey details.  I think my rehab counselor did some behind the scenes
letter writing and "discussions" with the school administration.  the next
time I spoke with the instructor he had an entirely different attitude.

The next year I took a backpacking class with a different instructor.  
I'm not sure if he was afraid of the consequences of telling me no or if he
was genuinely okay with me, but we didn't have any meetings or any retelling
of helicopter rescues of mamed hikers.

I think though that those experiences of denial  in the early years of my
blindness taught me a lot.  I learned to control my temper, to channel my
anger into productivity, to never take no for an answer, to get support when
I needed it and to believe in myself even when others didn't.

Julie

On 2/19/2013 9:59 AM, Lynda Lambert wrote:
> Bridget,
> This is so unprofessional for a professor to tell a student that they 
> cannot take a class they are teaching. Instead, she needed to sit down 
> and find out how she could HELP YOU to realize your potential in her 
> class. I had a blind student take my Drawing and Writing in Salzburg 
> Class one summer - it was my job, in my view, to find out what we 
> needed to do to help her get through the course. In fact, our whole 
> class helped her do it. They took turns working with her in the 
> classroom and out on our daily excursions - and I had never asked them 
> to do this. We all worked together for her. We had a number of 
> problems that made us realize her difficulties, when she was denied 
> entrance into some major places we visited - we all waited it out as I 
> kept dealing with the powers there - and it took over an hour and many 
> people coming to talk with me, before we all gained entrance into the 
> Doge's Palace in Venice. They were determined a guide dog was NOT 
> going in, and we were determined that our student and the guide dog 
> WAS going in - and we finally did. But they put a patrol on to follow 
> me and the student - it was very trying - we were looked at like we 
> were going to destroy their palace.
>
> You are such a good role model, Bridget, that reflects what 
> determination and patience can do for you. You took it all in stride, 
> and you made it through - despite the professor who was not very 
> helpful. Honestly, she was frightened of you and she did not know how 
> to get out of it, but she tried anyway. I can imagine the groaning she 
> was doing to her colleagues, too.
>
> I had another student who had a debilitating disease - she had a 
> helper dog, was in an electric wheelchair, was on oxygen, and had to 
> have a nurse standing by at all times. I moved our entire class to 
> another building so we could have her in our class - and I had her in 
> more than one class. She is a brilliant young woman, and she never 
> missed a beat in getting anything done. She could have had a dozen 
> good excuses as to why she could not do my classes, but she never 
> neglected anything. Even with her difficulties breathing, she 
> delivered her own papers orally - I would never have expected her to 
> do this, but she did it. It was one of the highlights of my course, to 
> have her there. The other students loved her. Courageous peole do not 
> whine about their circumstances or make excuses - they meet the 
> challenges, I have found.  You are one of those people.
> Lynda
>
>
>
>
>
> ----- Original Message ----- From: "Bridgit Pollpeter" 
> <bpollpeter at hotmail.com>
> To: <stylist at nfbnet.org>
> Sent: Tuesday, February 19, 2013 9:34 AM
> Subject: [stylist] More on this subject of working in blindness field
>
>
>> Back at university, for an elective, I wanted to take a stage make-up 
>> class. The instructor had been my Intro to Theatre prof, and as a 
>> final project, we had to write a scene, then the class voted on which 
>> scenes to produce. Small groups were put together and assigned a 
>> scene. I really wanted to direct my scene, which was one of the 
>> scenes chosen. I had to convince her that I could direct even though 
>> I can't see. She was so sure my *visual impairment* would cause too 
>> many problems to effectively direct anything. I gave her detailed 
>> ideas I already had formulated. She let me direct but I was the only 
>> director assigned an assistant director. I spoke with my assistant 
>> explaining the situation, and all I might need from her was to make 
>> sure my actors were in deed following directions when it came to 
>> physical movement and otherwise I was good. I knew how I wanted the 
>> set, what music to use, how the characters should look, and 
>> considering the scene was one I wrote, I knew how I wanted it 
>> performed. My scene was one of the favorites by the class.
>>
>> So anyway, when I decided to sign up for her stage make-up class, she 
>> found out I had registered and emailed me stating we needed to talk. 
>> I knew she wouldn't want me in the class, and during our meeting, she 
>> proceeded to tell me how difficult the class would be and why I 
>> couldn't be able to handle. The sighted lady who had never been blind 
>> was telling me why I couldn't do it. I calmly explained how I could 
>> and that I already was pretty good with make-up. She told me that she 
>> would have to judge my work the same as others, and I said I wouldn't 
>> expect anything less. She said I would have no perspective, to which 
>> I added that having had sight before, it gave me a little advantage 
>> to understand things such as creating wrinkles or bruises. I even 
>> networked with blind actors just to get more ideas on how to do 
>> things nonvisually. The prof still wanted me to drop the course.
>>
>> I took it and was grudgingly given an A, smirk.
>>
>> Bridgit
>> Message: 14
>> Date: Mon, 18 Feb 2013 21:47:21 -0500
>> From: "Donna Hill" <penatwork at epix.net>
>> To: "'Writer's Division Mailing List'" <stylist at nfbnet.org>
>> Subject: Re: [stylist] more on this subject of Working in blindness 
>> field
>> Message-ID: <53130C8156D84A26B96DD5692BF79D0C at OwnerHP>
>> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
>>
>> Lynda,
>> Yes, there are many marginalized kids and adults in this world, and 
>> with the recession more than before. It is enfuriating when you think 
>> of the "privileged" and how much they take for granted and how they 
>> have insullation against their own short-comings and bad decisions. 
>> Good for your daughter trying to help them.
>>
>> By the time I got to junior high, they were asking kids to choose 
>> either college prep or commercial as a course of study to pursue 
>> starting in the eighth grade. I chose college prep, but I had an 
>> encounter with a fellow 7th grader that really riled me up. She was 
>> the daughter of a Lafayette College professor. She came to school on 
>> the morning we were to make our decisions final and sought me out. 
>> She explained, in what I thought was a rather haughty manner, that 
>> her father was a professor and that she discussed my situation with 
>> him at dinner the night before. She knew I wanted to take college 
>> prep. She said that the entire family had agreed that it would be a 
>> mistake for me to consider going to college; there simply was no way 
>> I could do the work. I wish I had punched her, but alas, I didn't.
>> Donna
>>
>>
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>
>
>
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