[nabs-l] NFB-Past, Present and Future

[Jewel S.]

~Jewel

On 5/3/10, Arielle Silverman <nabs.president at gmail.com> wrote:
> Hi all,
>
> Whenever a question arises regarding NFB philosophy, the person asking
> the question is often advised to read books or listen to long speeches
> in order to find the answer. But to me the essence of NFB philosophy
> is very simple and can be conveyed with the sentence, "It is
> respectable to be blind." A single sentence, which can be stated in a
> single breath. The rest, I believe, is our collective opinions about
> how the respectability of blind people can best be affirmed and
> upheld. People can and do debate about the details, the policy
> positions and the program priorities that the organized blind should
> take toward the end of respectability. But the core of our philosophy,
> the notion that blindness is respectable and that the blind deserve
> dignity, is in my opinion a truth that very few people would argue
> against. And I fully believe that many people who choose to affiliate
> with the ACB, or not to join a blindness organization at all, are
> still NFB-ers at heart because they are committed to the
> respectability of being blind and they demonstrate it through their
> daily actions and full participation in society. I don't believe the
> NFB will be gone in fifty years because this basic truth will still
> exist and will still need our effort to keep respectability a reality
> for the blind.
>
> I will say that I don't agree with all the policy decisions and
> priorities that the NFB has taken in recent years. If it were up to
> me, for instance, I would spend much less time and resources on Web
> accessibility lawsuits and more energy trying to improve the quality
> of education at state schools for the blind, or the accessibility of
> entry-level jobs so blind teens can work in the same kinds of
> part-time jobs as their sighted peers and develop a sense of
> self-reliance. I don't agree fully with our Social Security Earnings
> legislation, and I have felt disappointed by the lack of concrete
> plans to match our rhetoric about fixing the Braille literacy crisis.
> I also don't agree with some of the political norms that have become
> widely accepted in the Federation on the national and state levels.
> However, I recognize that the NFB is run by human beings and that our
> programs not only depend on funding, but also tend to reflect the
> particular whims of our leaders and their preferences, talents,
> strengths and weaknesses. I am aware that while I am president of
> NABS, our student division will probably be strong in some areas and
> weak in others corresponding to my particular interests. It's
> something we can remedy by involving a diverse group of leaders, but
> it can't be fully avoided.
>
> I too sometimes feel burned out, and sometimes perceive our national
> convention as more like a big sales outfit than like the meeting of a
> civil rights organization. However, I keep working in the Federation
> and I plan to do so forever because I recognize that there is still
> more work to be done to make respectability a reality for all blind
> people. There are still blind people of all ages and backgrounds who
> haven't yet realized what their potential is or how to reach it. And
> daily encounters with the public remind me that the truth about
> blindness is a surprise rather than a given for many of our sighted
> brethren. Furthermore, I recognize that our organization cannot
> possibly get better in my eyes if I don't make myself part of the
> solution. I believe that it is up to our newer members and
> particularly our younger members to identify new issues, new points of
> change, and to bring them to the attention of the current leadership.
>
> I often hear from national and state NFB leaders that students are
> important because we are the future leaders of the organization. This
> mantra, while well-intentioned, I think is only part of the story. We
> are the future of the NFB but we are part of the present as well. We
> have important contributions to make that we can put into practice
> today, in NABS and also in our affiliates, and we are capable of
> engaging in full-fledged leadership. For example, I know that the
> Wisconsin student division just hosted their affiliate's state
> convention. I also know of at least one state student division that
> managed the legislative appointments for their affiliate's Washington
> Seminar delegation. Whether or not we hold elected offices in our
> chapters or affiliates, we can always involve ourselves by offering to
> serve on committees, head up projects, or present novel ideas to the
> leadership. The key is to figure out how to make a solution happen,
> and to offer to do the necessary work, instead of merely complaining
> about the problem.
>
> Arielle
>
> _______________________________________________
> nabs-l mailing list
> nabs-l at nfbnet.org
> http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nabs-l_nfbnet.org
> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for
> nabs-l:
> http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/options/nabs-l_nfbnet.org/herekittykat2%40gmail.com
>