3848 lines
206 KiB
Plaintext
3848 lines
206 KiB
Plaintext
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THE BRAILLE MONITOR
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July, 1994
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Barbara Pierce, Editor
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Published in inkprint, Braille, on talking-book disc,
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and cassette by
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THE NATIONAL FEDERATION OF THE BLIND
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MARC MAURER, PRESIDENT
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National Office
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1800 Johnson Street
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Baltimore, Maryland 21230
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* * * *
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Letters to the President, address changes,
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subscription requests, orders for NFB literature,
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articles for the Monitor, and letters to the Editor
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should be sent to the National Office.
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* * * *
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Monitor subscriptions cost the Federation about twenty-five
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dollars per year. Members are invited, and non-members are
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requested, to cover the subscription cost. Donations should be
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made payable to National Federation of the Blind and sent to:
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National Federation of the Blind
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1800 Johnson Street
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Baltimore, Maryland 21230
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* * * *
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THE NATIONAL FEDERATION OF THE BLIND IS NOT AN ORGANIZATION
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SPEAKING FOR THE BLIND--IT IS THE BLIND SPEAKING FOR THEMSELVES
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ISSN 0006-8829 THE BRAILLE MONITOR
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A PUBLICATION OF THE NATIONAL FEDERATION OF THE BLIND
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CONTENTS
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JULY, 1994
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A VISIT TO LOUIS BRAILLE'S BIRTHPLACE
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by Kenneth Jernigan
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FACTS ABOUT LOUIS BRAILLE'S BIRTHPLACE
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BRAILLE MADE THE DIFFERENCE
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CONCERNED PARENTS AND KIDS TESTIFY IN FAVOR OF BRAILLE
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BLIND VENDORS CALL FOR CHANGE
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by James Gashel
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ADVICE TO BLIND STUDENT TEACHERS FROM A PROFESSOR OF EDUCATION
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by Homer Page
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MORE TALK ABOUT THE GUI
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TROUBLE AGAIN WITH CRUISE LINES
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by Sheila Hall-Ritchhart
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BEING BLIND IS NOT THE END OF THE WORLD
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by Stephen Laughrey
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THE BIRTHDAY PARTY
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by Lauren L. Eckery
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REFLECTIONS OF AN ELECTRICAL ENGINEER
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by Michael Gosse
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EDUCATION WITH VISION
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by Annie Capestany
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HELPING SOCIETY SEE
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by Kathy Berry
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RECIPES
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MONITOR MINIATURES
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Copyright 1994 National Federation of the Blind
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[LEAD PHOTO: Dr. Jernigan and Fran<61>ois Bentz shake hands as Dr.
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Jernigan hands check to Mr. Bentz. David Blyth stands on Dr.
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Jernigan's left; the Louis Braille home is in the background.
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CAPTION: On Wednesday, May 18, 1994, Dr. and Mrs. Jernigan
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visited Louis Braille's birthplace in Coupvray, France. Shown
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here, Dr. Jernigan presents a check for $10,000 to Mr. Fran<61>ois
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Bentz, the Mayor of Coupvray, while David Blyth, President of the
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World Blind Union, participates in the ceremony.]
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[PHOTO #1: Dr. Jernigan stands next to a monument which is topped by a bust of
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Louis Braille. Dr. Jernigan's hand on a carving of Louis Braille (as a boy)
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and his father which is on the front of the statue. CAPTION: Kenneth Jernigan
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examines the statue of Louis Braille on the outskirts of Coupvray, France.]
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[PHOTO #2: Dr. Jernigan and Marcel Herb stand talking to each other, next to
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Louis Braille's home. CAPTION: Marcel Herb, President of the French Federation
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of the Blind, talks with Kenneth Jernigan during a visit to the Louis Braille
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home, May 17, 1994.]
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[PHOTO #3: Dr. Jernigan shakes hands with the architect, with the Louis
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Braille home in the background. CAPTION: Kenneth Jernigan shakes hands with
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the architect who is drawing the plans and supervising the renovation at the
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Louis Braille home.]
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[PHOTO #4: Dr. Jernigan stands inside the Louis Braille home, next to a
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painting and a bust of Louis Braille. CAPTION: Inside the room adjoining the
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saddle shop at the Louis Braille home. A picture of Louis Braille hangs on the
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wall and directly underneath is a bust of Louis Braille.]
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[PHOTO #5: Dr Jernigan stands in the stairway. CAPTION: The stairway at Louis
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Braille's home.]
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[PHOTO #6: Dr. Jernigan stands with his hand on a wooden plaque with metal
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studs which spell out "Louis Braille" in print and Braille. CAPTION: A print
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and Braille plaque inside the Louis Braille home.]
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[PHOTO #7: Dr. Jernigan stands next to a wooden workbench with his hands on
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wooden tools. A shadow box display of various tools used in the saddle maker's
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trade hangs in the background. CAPTION: Kenneth Jernigan examines the hinged
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boards used in the saddle maker's trade to hold the leather while it is being
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sewed and worked. The leather is placed between the boards, and the ends of
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the boards are gripped between the saddle maker's knees to apply pressure and
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keep the leather in place.]
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[PHOTO #8: Dr. Jernigan sits at the saddle maker's bench and Fran<61>ois Bentz
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hands him a small sharp tool. The museum curator looks on over Dr. Jernigan's
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shoulder. CAPTION: Fran<61>ois Bentz, the Mayor of Coupvray, hands Kenneth
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Jernigan a tool of the type that blinded Louis Braille.]
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[PHOTO/CAPTION #9: Standing in the doorway of the Louis Braille home: from
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left to right, Rodolfo Cattani of Italy, Vice President of the WBU; David
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Blyth of Australia, President of the WBU; Pedro Zurita of Spain, Secretary
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General of the World Blind Union; and Kenneth Jernigan.]
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[PHOTO/CAPTION #10: Boats on the Seine River]
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A VISIT TO LOUIS BRAILLE'S BIRTHPLACE
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by Kenneth Jernigan
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The French have a well-known proverb: The more things
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change, the more they stay the same. I thought of that proverb on
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Tuesday, May 17, 1994, when I went to the birthplace of Louis
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Braille (1809-1852) in Coupvray, France, and read the guide book
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provided to visitors. It says on page nine:
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"At the age of thirteen Louis Braille began his research
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with a view to designing an alphabet based on a cell of six
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raised dots. The system was enthusiastically acclaimed by the
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pupils but was rejected by the teachers (1826). Being sighted
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themselves, they refused to countenance a form of writing which
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they could not read."
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In reading that passage I was, of course, mindful of the
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fact that not all teachers are chauvinistic nor all students
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enthusiastic, but the parallel between the 1820's in France and
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the 1990's in the United States is remarkable and noteworthy. The
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road to Braille literacy for the blind has been long and, in more
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than one sense, bumpy--and the end is not yet discernible. If we
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do our work well, it can probably be reached some time early in
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the next century.
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My trip to Coupvray was part of the effort which the
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National Federation of the Blind is making to try to help repair
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and restore the Louis Braille birthplace and museum. Mrs.
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Jernigan and I left Dulles Airport Sunday evening, May 15, and
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arrived in Paris the next morning. That afternoon we met with
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Marcel Herb, President of the French Federation of the Blind;
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Rodolfo Cattani of Italy, Vice President of the World Blind
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Union; and Fran<61>ois Bentz, the mayor of Coupvray. Mr. Bentz is a
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no-nonsense fellow, who attended college in the United States and
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speaks fluent English. I believe he operates a factory for the
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making of blue jeans and engages in other enterprises. He made it
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clear that he wants the Louis Braille birthplace thoroughly
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restored and that he is prepared to take a leading part in
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getting it done.
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Earlier this year at the meeting of the World Blind Union
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Executive Committee in Melbourne, Australia, we were told that
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architectural studies had been made and that approximately
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$110,000 would be needed to do a thorough job of repairing and
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renovating the Louis Braille home. As Monitor readers know, I
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pledged on behalf of the National Federation of the Blind to try
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to raise half of the needed money. When I returned to the United
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States, the Board of the NFB agreed to undertake the project.
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At the May 16 meeting Mr. Bentz said that the actual
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estimates would be closer to $170,000 than $110,000 but that his
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plan might not require more than $26,000 from us. Here is how he
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outlined it: $26,000 from the Town of Coupvray; another $26,000
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from Coupvray, which it would receive back as a tax refund;
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$26,000 from us; $70,000 from a French governmental authority;
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and the remaining $22,000 from another governmental authority. He
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said that appropriate applications were underway and that he felt
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that the work of repair and renovation should not begin until a
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response had been received from the governmental authorities. "If
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we start the work before getting a commitment from them," he
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said, "they will think we don't need the government money, and
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there will be no chance of getting it."
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When I told him that the National Federation of the Blind
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was prepared to make an immediate contribution of $10,000 to show
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that we were serious and meant business, he was delighted and
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responded with a proposal that underscores his good judgment and
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understanding of politics and public relations. He suggested that
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officials of the World Blind Union, leaders of the French
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Federation of the Blind, and I go to the Louis Braille birthplace
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on Wednesday afternoon, where the $10,000 check would be
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presented in a public ceremony. Pictures would be taken;
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journalists would be present; and an article would be written
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saying that if the blind of America could give money to restore
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Braille's birthplace (and not only give the money but come all
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the way to France to bring it), surely the French government
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could be forthcoming. This is exactly what we did, but there were
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intervening activities and meetings.
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On Tuesday, May 17, the leaders of the French Federation,
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Dr. Cattani, Mrs. Jernigan, and I drove to Coupvray to inspect
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Louis Braille's birthplace. I examined the house in great detail,
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from the third floor area to the wine barrel in the cellar, and I
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talked at length with the architect to see what was planned, and
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why. Here is a summary of what I learned:
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Let me begin by saying that I went to Coupvray with a number
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of misconceptions. I don't know why, but I had thought the Louis
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Braille home was made of wood and that it was probably about to
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fall down. It isn't. It is made of stone. The first floor of one
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part of the house (the workshop and the entry room adjoining it)
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is made of concrete. The second and third floors are wood. The
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interior walls are stone with no paneling on them.
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The house, which was built sometime in the latter part of
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the 1700's, is basically in sound condition. However, certain
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things need to be done. The roof is made of clay tiles. Some of
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these have deteriorated, and others are missing. Water is coming
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through. Where necessary, the roof must be re-tiled. There is
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leakage around the base of the chimney, which must be repaired.
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Below ground, the walls and foundation must have a layer of
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waterproofing material; and above ground, plastering and repair
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must be done as required. Original exterior shutters have been
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replaced by more modern ones. There is nothing wrong with these
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modern shutters, but a return to the original style will be made.
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Inside the house the walls must be thoroughly dried,
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scraped, and painted, and the doors and windows must also be
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painted and refurbished. Originally the structure was two houses
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with a common interior wall. As I understand it, the two houses
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had, by the time of Louis Braille, become one by means of a door
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cut through the common wall at the third-floor stair landing.
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This creates a hazardous situation since the step through the
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wall does not open directly onto a level area but another
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stairway, one that is steep and narrow. It would be easy to lose
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your balance and go tumbling. In fact, I had to reach around the
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corner to find footing as I stepped through the doorway. This
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situation must be remedied with a slight alteration and the
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addition of a step.
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As to other inside repairs, all stairways will be removed,
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reinforced, and then reinstalled. There is a fairly good-sized
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hole in the floor of one of the rooms at the third floor level,
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and there may be other less obvious damage. All floors must be
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examined and, where needed, repaired. At the first floor level,
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the entry room and adjoining workshop (the one used by Louis
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Braille's father, who was a saddle and harness maker) were
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originally floored with brick. Later, the bricks were removed and
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replaced with concrete. It is planned to remove the concrete and
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replace it with brick.
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I was as thorough and careful as I knew how to be, and of
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course I was moved by the spirit of the place. I sat in a chair
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with a leather strap seat by the workbench in the saddle shop and
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felt the worn surface. I looked at the tools of the saddle
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maker's trade and held in my hands an awl (or curved narrow
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blade) of the type that blinded Louis Braille in that very room
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at that very bench. I reached into the stone oven in the kitchen,
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which is part of the living room. I touched the table and chairs-
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-not, I suppose, the originals but certainly of the type and
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period of the originals. I went to the cellar and looked at the
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accoutrements of wine making--particularly, the huge barrel and
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old wine bottles.
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As I went through the house and communed with the essence of
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the place, I thought of Louis Braille's letters to his family
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when he was living in Paris:
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"Paris, 10th September, 1847
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Dear Mother,
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I do so long to see you. Staying in the big town
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bores me and I shall be happy to breathe the air of our
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countryside and to wander with you through the
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vineyards. . . ."
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"Paris, 15th November, 1848
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Dear Mother,
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I was happy to note that the weather was fine for
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the grape harvest, as fine as one could wish for, but
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today the sun is very pale. The cold season has begun
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and we have to stay indoors. As for me, I do not go out
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and while the Parisians were receiving snow on their
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heads as they went to the Feast of the Constitution, I
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was content to listen to the cannon from my well-heated
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room. . . ."
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"Paris, 5th October, 1851
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My dear nephew, my dear niece,
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I have just sent off to you by train a small box
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of jujubes. I hope it will keep you safe from the colds
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which the winter season will bring you. . . . I have
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just spent three days in Coupvray and have now returned
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[to Paris], not to leave it again before next summer. .
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. ."
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For Louis Braille there was no next summer since he was to
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die three months after he wrote this letter--January 6, 1852.
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The visit to Louis Braille's home and the reading of his
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letters caused me to wonder what he thought as he was growing up
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and how he felt, but it also caused me to think about my own
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childhood and how I felt and thought. It strengthened my
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determination to do all I can to preserve and continue the Louis
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Braille heritage, for except for him I might still be living as a
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virtual prisoner on the farm where I grew up in Tennessee,
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hungering to know and longing for freedom. Instead, I escaped to
|
|||
|
|
a broader world of books and achievement, to a life of
|
|||
|
|
opportunity and hope, and to a distant day in France when I stood
|
|||
|
|
at the birthplace of my benefactor and reached across the years
|
|||
|
|
to a common bond. Yes, the home of Louis Braille will survive.
|
|||
|
|
The blind of today will make it happen, and the blind of future
|
|||
|
|
generations will keep the commitment.
|
|||
|
|
David Blyth of Australia, President of the World Blind
|
|||
|
|
Union; Pedro Zurita of Spain, Secretary General of the World
|
|||
|
|
Blind Union; and Pierre Paul B<>langer of the Canadian National
|
|||
|
|
Institute for the Blind, who came as a representative of Dr.
|
|||
|
|
Euclid Herie, arrived in Paris late Tuesday afternoon, May 17.
|
|||
|
|
They, along with those of us who had gone to Coupvray the day
|
|||
|
|
before, met on Wednesday morning with officials of the French
|
|||
|
|
government who deal with museums. Mr. Herb had previously been
|
|||
|
|
given assurances that help would be available from the department
|
|||
|
|
responsible for museums, but from the outset of our meeting it
|
|||
|
|
was clear that we would get pleasant speeches and little else.
|
|||
|
|
The officials said that there were only about 31 national museums
|
|||
|
|
in France and that there was no possibility that the Louis
|
|||
|
|
Braille birthplace could be added to the list. They said that
|
|||
|
|
there were two other kinds of museums: those that are run by
|
|||
|
|
local government authorities, and those that are run by
|
|||
|
|
associations. They said that the Louis Braille Museum could fit
|
|||
|
|
into either category but that regardless of category they could
|
|||
|
|
give no help with repair and renovation. As I saw it, they were
|
|||
|
|
saying that they might give help in finding new objects for the
|
|||
|
|
Louis Braille Museum, but not until repairs were made and money
|
|||
|
|
was available for ongoing upkeep--and that they might help with
|
|||
|
|
ongoing upkeep but not until more objects had been collected.
|
|||
|
|
Mr. Herb was outraged and told them so--and David Blyth, who
|
|||
|
|
is capable of succinct (one might almost say sparse)
|
|||
|
|
communication, said: "There is no point in continuing this
|
|||
|
|
meeting. We should not waste your time or ours." With that and
|
|||
|
|
Mr. Herb's remarks we left. Let me make it clear that this
|
|||
|
|
discussion with the museum officials had nothing to do with the
|
|||
|
|
government assistance that the mayor of Coupvray is seeking, and
|
|||
|
|
thinks he can get. Let me also say at this point that Mr. Herb
|
|||
|
|
publicly and unequivocally pledged that the French Federation of
|
|||
|
|
the Blind would make sizable financial contributions to help with
|
|||
|
|
the work.
|
|||
|
|
On Wednesday afternoon our expanded company boarded a mini-
|
|||
|
|
bus and headed once more for Coupvray. At the Louis Braille
|
|||
|
|
birthplace we met the mayor, and I presented NFB's check for
|
|||
|
|
$10,000. It was done amid the flashing of cameras and the
|
|||
|
|
scribbling of journalists. I have not seen the article, but I
|
|||
|
|
suspect that Mr. Bentz will guide it to fulsome nature and wide
|
|||
|
|
distribution.
|
|||
|
|
In any event, when the deed was done, we headed for the town
|
|||
|
|
hall, where the mayor served up champagne and toasts. He is a
|
|||
|
|
suitable leader for his town, which is located about forty miles
|
|||
|
|
southeast of Paris and has been designated a historic district.
|
|||
|
|
The houses and public buildings (even those of more modern
|
|||
|
|
vintage) are of the style and appearance of the early 1800s.
|
|||
|
|
Everywhere there are stone walls, tile roofs, and a flavor of the
|
|||
|
|
past.
|
|||
|
|
The only thing left to say about the visit to France is that
|
|||
|
|
it was pleasant as well as productive. Mr. and Mrs. Herb and
|
|||
|
|
Madame Yvonne Torres, Mr. Herb's charming and capable assistant,
|
|||
|
|
were excellent hosts. On Tuesday we went for lunch to a
|
|||
|
|
restaurant in the Meaux area, where Meaux mustard and Brie cheese
|
|||
|
|
abound. There were also other enjoyable experiences, but I will
|
|||
|
|
leave it at that.
|
|||
|
|
On Thursday morning, May 19, Mrs. Jernigan and I headed for
|
|||
|
|
London, where we talked with officials of the Royal National
|
|||
|
|
Institute for the Blind. It is good to go abroad to work on a
|
|||
|
|
constructive project, but it is even better to come home to help
|
|||
|
|
bring the project to completion.
|
|||
|
|
The task before us is clear cut and doable. As I have said
|
|||
|
|
before, in the Monitor and on Presidential Releases, those who
|
|||
|
|
want to participate in this project should make checks payable to
|
|||
|
|
the National Federation of the Blind and send them to the
|
|||
|
|
National Federation of the Blind, 1800 Johnson Street, Baltimore,
|
|||
|
|
Maryland 21230. Such contributions should not be made by reducing
|
|||
|
|
other contributions which would have been made to the Federation.
|
|||
|
|
Our ongoing work must continue. Contributions may be made by
|
|||
|
|
check or credit card, and there should be an indication that the
|
|||
|
|
money is for the repair of the Louis Braille birthplace.
|
|||
|
|
The job will require effort. Maybe we will need to raise
|
|||
|
|
only $26,000--maybe the entire $55,000. Maybe more. Whatever sums
|
|||
|
|
are needed, we the blind, along with our sighted friends and
|
|||
|
|
colleagues, will see that Louis Braille's home is fully restored
|
|||
|
|
and given its proper place among the museums of the world and the
|
|||
|
|
historic places of humanity. We can, and we will. Let nobody
|
|||
|
|
doubt it.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
____________________
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
[PHOTO/CAPTION: Louis Braille's birthplace]
|
|||
|
|
[PHOTO: Dr. Jernigan stands beside the wooden workbench with a display of
|
|||
|
|
saddle maker's tools in the background. CAPTION: The workbench and tools in
|
|||
|
|
the saddle shop at Louis Braille's home]
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
FACTS ABOUT LOUIS BRAILLE'S BIRTHPLACE
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
From Kenneth Jernigan: In the accompanying article I have
|
|||
|
|
told you about my visit to Louis Braille's birthplace in
|
|||
|
|
Coupvray, France. I thought you might like to have additional
|
|||
|
|
information, so here are excerpts from the guidebook given to
|
|||
|
|
visitors:
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
It is obviously impossible to do justice to a life as
|
|||
|
|
exceptional as that of Louis Braille in the few pages of a
|
|||
|
|
booklet; the many souvenirs and testimonials contained in his
|
|||
|
|
home could in themselves provide the material for more than one
|
|||
|
|
book.
|
|||
|
|
The purpose of these few lines is to be for some people a
|
|||
|
|
reminder of a visit both moving and enriching--and for those who
|
|||
|
|
are not yet acquainted with Louis Braille and Coupvray, an
|
|||
|
|
encouragement to visit here.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
THE VILLAGE OF COUPVRAY
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The village of Coupvray is situated on the slopes of a
|
|||
|
|
grassy hill set between the Brie region of France and that of the
|
|||
|
|
Champagne province. In spite of the proximity of the Marne
|
|||
|
|
Valley, it retains even today . . . the character of a rural
|
|||
|
|
village. One may still see the small brown-tiled roofs, the
|
|||
|
|
farmyards, the farmhouses and a village green surrounded by trees
|
|||
|
|
where are clustered together St. Pierre Church (where Louis
|
|||
|
|
Braille was christened on January 8, 1809), the village hall, and
|
|||
|
|
the monument by <20>tienne Leroux set up in 1887 and topped by a
|
|||
|
|
bust of the inventor of the alphabet for the blind. The body of
|
|||
|
|
Louis Braille rested in the village cemetery till 1952. On his
|
|||
|
|
tomb can be seen a casket in which the remains of his hands are
|
|||
|
|
preserved--those hands which were the first in the world to
|
|||
|
|
finger the raised dots of the Braille alphabet. All around is
|
|||
|
|
still open country. High above is the farm of the ch<63>teau. Here
|
|||
|
|
and there amid the gardens and orchards, small grassy paths
|
|||
|
|
meander across the hillside. And, on the lower slopes, is an old
|
|||
|
|
wash-house with wooden posts and mossy tiles where the clear
|
|||
|
|
waters of the Fr<46>minette flow swiftly by, gently murmuring.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
THE BRAILLE FAMILY HOME
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The Braille family home is in the lower part of Coupvray at
|
|||
|
|
the end of a small street which in the past went by the name of
|
|||
|
|
Knoll Street. . . . It is a large solid house, built in the
|
|||
|
|
latter half of the 18th century and restored at various times
|
|||
|
|
since then. The Braille family also owned several farm buildings
|
|||
|
|
in the yard and on the opposite side of the street. A marble
|
|||
|
|
tablet was affixed in 1952 to the wall of the house facing the
|
|||
|
|
yard. The text, in French and English, reads:
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
In this house
|
|||
|
|
on January 4, 1809 was born
|
|||
|
|
Louis Braille
|
|||
|
|
inventor of writing
|
|||
|
|
in raised dots
|
|||
|
|
for use of the blind.
|
|||
|
|
He opened the doors of
|
|||
|
|
knowledge to those
|
|||
|
|
who cannot see.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
THE LIVING ROOM
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
This room is really the heart of the house, both by reason
|
|||
|
|
of the memories it evokes and on account of the very well-
|
|||
|
|
preserved Briard-style architecture. On entering, we find
|
|||
|
|
ourselves in the warm, cozy atmosphere of the homes of
|
|||
|
|
yesteryear. Here in this one living room, Simon-Ren<65> Braille, the
|
|||
|
|
saddler, lived with his whole family: his wife Monique and their
|
|||
|
|
four children<65><6E>Monique-Catherine, Louis-Simon, Marie-C<>line, and
|
|||
|
|
their youngest, Louis. It is here that are gathered together all
|
|||
|
|
the essentials of daily living.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Under the mantelpiece:
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
<20> The fireplace with its fireback bearing the arms of
|
|||
|
|
France, dated 1659.
|
|||
|
|
<20> The bread oven built of small tiles. Its arch fits under
|
|||
|
|
the winding staircase. It used to be heated by burning dry vine
|
|||
|
|
shoots. Then after the embers had been pushed back, pies and
|
|||
|
|
loaves were placed in the oven.
|
|||
|
|
<20> The cheese recess. The warmth of the oven enabled the
|
|||
|
|
successful processing of the renowned Brie cheese to be carried
|
|||
|
|
out; this was later further "refined" in the cellar.
|
|||
|
|
<20> The door into the loft [or upstairs]. This stands between
|
|||
|
|
the alcove and the bread oven. In the past the term "granary" was
|
|||
|
|
used--where the grain would be stored.
|
|||
|
|
<20> The alcove is very typical of the Brie region--oak-framed,
|
|||
|
|
adorned with roundels and ears of corn; the latter are symbols of
|
|||
|
|
the Brie region.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
To the left, as you enter:
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
<20> The sink. The Briards used to call it "the washer." It is
|
|||
|
|
a large flat stone, slightly concave, where the wooden pail was
|
|||
|
|
set down. [By means of a hole in the bottom], the water drained
|
|||
|
|
away through the wall straight into the yard.
|
|||
|
|
<20> The stove-setter. This consisted of crossed wooden slats
|
|||
|
|
on which frying pans and sauce pans were hung. A recess above the
|
|||
|
|
sink provided storage space for jugs, pots, and other utensils.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Also of note in this room are: the oak beams on the ceiling;
|
|||
|
|
the doors of the 18th-century wardrobe; the "maie" or bread bin,
|
|||
|
|
in which the loaves were stored; the warming pan used to warm the
|
|||
|
|
bed; the oak table; the gun; the lantern; the cross; and, above
|
|||
|
|
the door leading to the [upstairs], the portrait of Louis
|
|||
|
|
Braille--the only photograph of the celebrated inventor.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
THE WORKSHOP OF SIMON-REN<45> BRAILLE, SADDLER
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
For over a century the Braille family carried on the craft
|
|||
|
|
of saddler from father to son. Louis Braille's grandfather, Simon
|
|||
|
|
Braille, had settled in Coupvray early in the 18th century. He
|
|||
|
|
had taken over his father-in-law's business which was already
|
|||
|
|
established in the village in the 17th century.
|
|||
|
|
Some of the equipment and furniture used by the Brailles in
|
|||
|
|
their craft may be seen in this workshop:
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
<20> The wooden workbench, much worn from long use; the typical
|
|||
|
|
chair with its seat consisting of crossed leathern thongs.
|
|||
|
|
<20> The horse collar block. This enabled the saddler to shape
|
|||
|
|
the collar to fit the horse's neck.
|
|||
|
|
<20> The sewing clamp, which the saddler gripped tightly
|
|||
|
|
between his knees to hold the leather firm.
|
|||
|
|
<20> The branding iron. Heated, the iron was used to brand the
|
|||
|
|
owner's initials on the horse's rump.
|
|||
|
|
<20> The saddler's tools: paring knives, awls, tool for
|
|||
|
|
stuffing, moulds, etc.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
On the walls of the room:
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
<20> A grape harvester's basket. Simon-Ren<65> Braille owned some
|
|||
|
|
vines in Coupvray.
|
|||
|
|
<20> The Accident. A painting by Andr<64> Harfort.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Here we come to the tragedy which cost young Louis Braille
|
|||
|
|
his sight. In 1812, he is a happy little three-year old. He loves
|
|||
|
|
to come and watch his father handle those mysterious tools laid
|
|||
|
|
out on the work bench. Mysterious and attractive. One day, taking
|
|||
|
|
advantage of his parents' absence, he seizes a [tool] and tries
|
|||
|
|
to cut a piece of leather, but his small hands are clumsy. The
|
|||
|
|
leather is tough. Suddenly, the blade slips and penetrates the
|
|||
|
|
child's eye. Nothing can arrest the infection which sets in, and
|
|||
|
|
the other eye becomes infected. At the age of five, Louis Braille
|
|||
|
|
[becomes totally blind].
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
LOUIS BRAILLE'S ACHIEVEMENT
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
When we speak of Louis Braille's work, we should not forget
|
|||
|
|
two men who, in one way or another, were his forerunners. The
|
|||
|
|
first is Valentin Ha<48>y. In the 18th century this philanthropist
|
|||
|
|
had founded a school for the blind and invented an embossed
|
|||
|
|
alphabet for them. If Louis Braille was able to enter a special
|
|||
|
|
school in 1819, it was thanks to the pioneering work of Valentin
|
|||
|
|
Ha<EFBFBD>y. The second is Charles Barbier de la Serre, a captain in the
|
|||
|
|
artillery [during the Napoleonic Wars]. He had found a way to
|
|||
|
|
communicate with his brother officers at night by means of a
|
|||
|
|
system of raised dots. The pupils at the . . . Royal Institution
|
|||
|
|
for the Young Blind . . . tried out this "Sonography," which took
|
|||
|
|
no account of spelling and, in addition, was most complicated. At
|
|||
|
|
the age of thirteen Louis Braille began his research with a view
|
|||
|
|
to designing an alphabet based on a cell of six raised dots. This
|
|||
|
|
system was enthusiastically acclaimed by the pupils but was
|
|||
|
|
rejected by the teachers (1826). Being sighted themselves, they
|
|||
|
|
refused to countenance a form of writing which they could not
|
|||
|
|
read. It was not till 1844 that, at the inauguration of some new
|
|||
|
|
buildings in the Boulevard des Invalides, the governors at last
|
|||
|
|
recognized the undeniable value of the system. Since then
|
|||
|
|
Braille, adapted to many of the languages of the world, has
|
|||
|
|
become for the blind a universal written language.
|
|||
|
|
In the room which is devoted to Louis Braille's work,
|
|||
|
|
various pieces of equipment and documents have been assembled,
|
|||
|
|
showing the birth of raised dot writing, its development and use.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
<20> Barbier rule (1819)
|
|||
|
|
<20> Barbier slate with wooden frame (end of 19th century)
|
|||
|
|
<20> Slate with removable frame (end of 19th century)
|
|||
|
|
<20> Raphigraph device invented by Braille and Foucault, making
|
|||
|
|
it possible for the shape of normal handwriting to be reproduced
|
|||
|
|
by means of a succession of raised dots. Braille used this method
|
|||
|
|
to write to his family.
|
|||
|
|
<20> Braille writer [the Hall writer] manufactured in Chicago
|
|||
|
|
(beginning of 20th century).
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Books written in linear relief following Valentin Ha<48>y's
|
|||
|
|
method:
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
<20> Elements of Spanish Grammar, for the blind, by M. Guilli<6C>
|
|||
|
|
(1819)
|
|||
|
|
<20> Manual of Ancient History (1841)
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Several books written in French and other languages, printed
|
|||
|
|
in Braille, books for educational or cultural use, are shown
|
|||
|
|
here. Among other titles, attention is drawn to:
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
<20> The Imitation of Christ, one of the first books published
|
|||
|
|
in raised dots (1849)
|
|||
|
|
<20> The Constitution of the United States of Brazil (1946)
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Gifts and Distinctions received by the Louis Braille Museum:
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
<20> Open Book in bronze, gift of Argentina (1948)
|
|||
|
|
<20> Commemorative Medal, struck by the Paris Mint to mark the
|
|||
|
|
occasion of the transfer of the remains of Louis Braille to the
|
|||
|
|
Panth<EFBFBD>on (1952)
|
|||
|
|
<20> Book of Gold, gift of the town of Chicago (1952)
|
|||
|
|
<20> Louis Braille. Sculpture by Raika (1954)
|
|||
|
|
<20> Louis Braille. Miniature on ivory by Lucienne Filippi
|
|||
|
|
(1966)
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
LOUIS BRAILLE IN COUPVRAY
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
First a pupil and later a teacher at the Royal Institution
|
|||
|
|
for the Young Blind in Paris, Louis Braille always remained
|
|||
|
|
deeply attached to his native village. Letters written in
|
|||
|
|
"raphigraphy," preserved by the family Lecouvey-Braille are proof
|
|||
|
|
of the interest he always took in his family and friends in
|
|||
|
|
Coupvray.
|
|||
|
|
When, weakened by illness, he was forced to rest for long
|
|||
|
|
periods of time, it is here that he sought the impossible cure.
|
|||
|
|
He had one of the rooms of the family home, facing the street and
|
|||
|
|
with a fireplace, prepared for his own use. In this room where,
|
|||
|
|
close to his family, he lived out some months of respite, some
|
|||
|
|
touching mementoes have been assembled.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
<20> Arithmetic prize awarded to Louis Braille and bearing the
|
|||
|
|
signature of Pignier, the principal of the Royal Institution.
|
|||
|
|
<20> Some dominoes from a set he once possessed.
|
|||
|
|
<20> Marie-Th<54>r<EFBFBD>se Marniesse, born 1828, daughter of Marie-
|
|||
|
|
C<EFBFBD>line Braille. Painted portrait.
|
|||
|
|
<20>Silver tumbler bearing the arms of old Paris, initialled
|
|||
|
|
F.G. (Fran<61>ois Gronon, Louis Braille's foster sister).
|
|||
|
|
<20> Decorated plates from the home of Louis-Simon Braille
|
|||
|
|
(middle of 19th century).
|
|||
|
|
<20> Family Group of the Marniesse and Maurice families.
|
|||
|
|
Photograph (end of 19th century).
|
|||
|
|
<20> Clock with wooden column casing, Braille family (middle of
|
|||
|
|
19th century).
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Documents from the village archives:
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
<20> Document appointing Simon-Ren<65> Braille as inspector of
|
|||
|
|
taxes for year 13 [1804-05].
|
|||
|
|
<20> Passport (for travel in the interior of the kingdom) in
|
|||
|
|
the name of Monique Baron, wife of [Louis Braille's father].
|
|||
|
|
<20> Roll of pupils of the primary school of Coupvray. "10 -
|
|||
|
|
BRAILLE Louis" (November 23, 1818).
|
|||
|
|
<20> Transfer of Louis Braille's body to Coupvray. Notice
|
|||
|
|
issued by the Paris Pr<50>fecture Headquarters (January 9, 1852). .
|
|||
|
|
. . .
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
DAILY LIFE IN COUPVRAY IN LOUIS BRAILLE'S TIME
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
From this house, a real witness in stone, we are able to
|
|||
|
|
recreate the daily life of a 19th-century village. There is a
|
|||
|
|
strong emotional bond between Louis Braille, his family, and
|
|||
|
|
Coupvray. Ties were forged with inhabitants of the little market
|
|||
|
|
town. Childhood ties: Louis went to the village school; his two
|
|||
|
|
sisters, Monique-Catherine and Marie-C<>line, married two of the
|
|||
|
|
local boys<79><73>Jean Fran<61>ois Caron and Louis-Fran<61>ois Marniesse.
|
|||
|
|
Civic ties: Ren<65>, the father, was appointed several times to
|
|||
|
|
posts of local authority. Ties due to shared experiences:
|
|||
|
|
together they endured the war, the Russian occupation. Religious
|
|||
|
|
ties: Louis's christening, the various feasts of the Christian
|
|||
|
|
liturgy: Christmas, Easter, the Assumption, and, of course, St.
|
|||
|
|
Peter's (the local patronal festival). The bonds of tradition,
|
|||
|
|
too: the evenings 'round the fireside at the homes of friends and
|
|||
|
|
neighbors.
|
|||
|
|
In order to bring to life anew these vanished village
|
|||
|
|
activities and old customs, the Louis Braille Museum presents--in
|
|||
|
|
four distinct exhibitions--a variety of objects, documents,
|
|||
|
|
pictures, and articles of furniture, revealing clearly another
|
|||
|
|
way of life.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The attic (the old granary store):
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Childhood: games, books, clothing.
|
|||
|
|
Religion: religious articles, books, pictures.
|
|||
|
|
Marriage: a bridal bouquet, the jewel case.
|
|||
|
|
Dress: the dress of a young girl of the Brie region, caps,
|
|||
|
|
scarves.
|
|||
|
|
Furnishings: the dresser, the bread bin.
|
|||
|
|
Tableware: china, glasses, pots.
|
|||
|
|
Household goods: irons.
|
|||
|
|
Pictures: portraits, colored pictures sold by traveling
|
|||
|
|
peddlers.
|
|||
|
|
History: the monks of Saint-Maur, the Rohan family,
|
|||
|
|
Cardinal Collier, the lectern.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The loft:
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Agricultural work: field work, harvesting.
|
|||
|
|
Women's work: laundry, butter making, making straw mats
|
|||
|
|
for Brie cheeses.
|
|||
|
|
Memorabilia: the trunk, railings of Braille monument,
|
|||
|
|
15th-century door, spiral staircase, the bed warmer.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The cellar:
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The wood pile: axes, pruning knives, wood-splitting
|
|||
|
|
wedges.
|
|||
|
|
Cooperage: various tools for manufacturing and marking
|
|||
|
|
barrels.
|
|||
|
|
The vines: field work, planting, care of the vineyard.
|
|||
|
|
Grape harvesting, picking grapes: carrying baskets, wine
|
|||
|
|
press tools, casks, taps, old bottles.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
FULL INFORMATION ABOUT THE BIRTHPLACE
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
After the death of Louis Braille and his direct heirs, the
|
|||
|
|
house became the property of the Maurice, Marniesse, and Braille
|
|||
|
|
families<EFBFBD><EFBFBD>his nieces and nephew<65><77>who administered the property
|
|||
|
|
jointly until 1878. At that time Mr. Toupet bought the house
|
|||
|
|
which overlooked the courtyard and in 1889 the Baudin family
|
|||
|
|
purchased the one facing onto the street. From 1898, the whole
|
|||
|
|
became the property of the Crapart family. The Braille home was
|
|||
|
|
sold on March 29, 1952, to the association "The Friends of Louis
|
|||
|
|
Braille," which was represented by Mr. Pierre Henri Monnet, the
|
|||
|
|
Mayor of Coupvray; it was then fitted up as a museum and opened
|
|||
|
|
to the public. With a view to acquiring for it the status of a
|
|||
|
|
municipal museum under government control, the association
|
|||
|
|
decided to donate all its assets to the Parish, recommending that
|
|||
|
|
the museum should be administered by an international
|
|||
|
|
organization (November 23, 1956). The Deed of Covenant setting
|
|||
|
|
out the agreement between the W.C.W.B. (World Council for the
|
|||
|
|
Welfare of the Blind) and Coupvray was signed on July 27, 1957.
|
|||
|
|
Since that time the World Council for the Welfare of the
|
|||
|
|
Blind (now the World Blind Union) has proudly devoted itself to
|
|||
|
|
caring for this shrine which the blind of the whole world value
|
|||
|
|
as the birthplace of their benefactor.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
____________________
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
BRAILLE MADE THE DIFFERENCE
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
From the Editor: Material of all kinds comes across the desk
|
|||
|
|
of the Braille Monitor Editor. But this week I read two articles
|
|||
|
|
within a two-hour period that, taken together, make the case for
|
|||
|
|
Braille more powerfully than anything I have yet seen or written.
|
|||
|
|
The pieces came from totally different sources, but the authors
|
|||
|
|
have a number of things in common. Both are working women--
|
|||
|
|
single, educated, committed to helping other people. Both live in
|
|||
|
|
the Midwest and were educated in regular schools. One, however,
|
|||
|
|
was taught Braille early and with wise insistence that she use it
|
|||
|
|
in her classes and at home. Her parents expected her to read well
|
|||
|
|
and did all the things that good parents do to encourage
|
|||
|
|
effective reading skills in their youngsters. The other was
|
|||
|
|
forced to use print even when it was slow and painful. The cost
|
|||
|
|
academically and personally was immense. Not until she lost the
|
|||
|
|
remainder of her sight as an adult was she able to learn the
|
|||
|
|
Braille that she depends upon today and that could have made all
|
|||
|
|
the difference to her in school.
|
|||
|
|
Mary Hartle lives in Iowa, though she grew up in Minnesota.
|
|||
|
|
The article reprinted here first appeared in the Spring/Summer
|
|||
|
|
issue of Future Reflections, the publication of the National
|
|||
|
|
Organization of Parents of Blind Children, a division of the
|
|||
|
|
National Federation of the Blind.
|
|||
|
|
Jana Schroeder lives in Ohio. She was a 1984 NFB scholarship
|
|||
|
|
winner, and she has served as President of the National
|
|||
|
|
Federation of the Blind of the Miami Valley. She submitted her
|
|||
|
|
essay on the value of Braille to a Braille-writing contest
|
|||
|
|
conducted by the NFB of Ohio this past winter. Contest entries
|
|||
|
|
were to be written on this topic using a slate and stylus, and
|
|||
|
|
the winner was to receive a Braille 'n Speak 640. Jana's six-page
|
|||
|
|
essay was done in flawless Braille code and without a single
|
|||
|
|
slate error. It was the winning entry in the adult category.
|
|||
|
|
Viewed together, these two short autobiographies provide a
|
|||
|
|
powerful illustration in support of our contention that Braille
|
|||
|
|
is a vital tool for anyone who can't read print easily but who
|
|||
|
|
wishes to succeed in life. Here is Mary Hartle's article:
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The Value of Learning Braille as a Child
|
|||
|
|
by Mary Hartle
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Although visually impaired, I attended regular school in the
|
|||
|
|
1950's and 1960's. I attended a parochial school in Minneapolis
|
|||
|
|
and was the only child with a vision impairment. I was taught to
|
|||
|
|
read print and progressed through the grades along with other
|
|||
|
|
children my age. No effort was ever made to teach me Braille.
|
|||
|
|
But, in retrospect, I wish I had been taught Braille as a small
|
|||
|
|
child.
|
|||
|
|
Although I could read standard print, I could not read it as
|
|||
|
|
fast as sighted students could. My grades ranged from a few B's
|
|||
|
|
to several C's, and some D's. (My brothers and sisters got A's
|
|||
|
|
and B's.) I was tracked into the lowest-ability group in junior
|
|||
|
|
high, although I was promoted to the middle group halfway through
|
|||
|
|
both the seventh and eighth grades. I could not read as much
|
|||
|
|
material as others could and thus had to spend more time on
|
|||
|
|
homework. I also had to hold books much closer to my face. Due to
|
|||
|
|
prolonged periods of bending over to read books at close range, I
|
|||
|
|
developed posture problems which, to this day, require
|
|||
|
|
chiropractic treatment.
|
|||
|
|
Learning became difficult and painful rather than joyful and
|
|||
|
|
exciting. As reading and learning became more difficult, I came
|
|||
|
|
to feel less intelligent. I began to feel shame and thus had more
|
|||
|
|
difficulty concentrating on learning. I became more anxious
|
|||
|
|
because of my increased difficulty. This was manifested in my
|
|||
|
|
struggles with arithmetic in fifth grade. I can still recall my
|
|||
|
|
extreme frustration and tears as I attempted to do my homework
|
|||
|
|
with my family's tutorial help.
|
|||
|
|
As a child I read fewer books than my classmates, especially
|
|||
|
|
novels, although I did read magazines and a few quick-read books.
|
|||
|
|
I also had, and still have, trouble spelling many words because I
|
|||
|
|
was not able to see the letters within words correctly. For
|
|||
|
|
instance, spelling double-consonant words has been particularly
|
|||
|
|
difficult because my eyes did not focus normally when I first
|
|||
|
|
learned to spell these words.
|
|||
|
|
Since I did not use Braille as a child, I was truly
|
|||
|
|
handicapped in my educational progress, and my self-confidence
|
|||
|
|
was low because I was unable to read fluently at a normal speed.
|
|||
|
|
I was embarrassed about both my slow reading speed and the fact
|
|||
|
|
that I had to look closer in order to read. Had I learned Braille
|
|||
|
|
earlier, I would have been able to read at a speed similar to
|
|||
|
|
that of sighted students.
|
|||
|
|
As I progressed through high school and college, the reading
|
|||
|
|
requirements became much greater, and the size of the print
|
|||
|
|
became much smaller. In college I avoided classes with heavy
|
|||
|
|
reading demands, such as history and literature.
|
|||
|
|
Over the past ten years I have lost the rest of my vision,
|
|||
|
|
thus necessitating my learning Braille. I am not unique. Many
|
|||
|
|
legally blind children with a little useful residual vision
|
|||
|
|
become blind adults with little or no ability to read print.
|
|||
|
|
Although I use Braille in my day-to-day life and on the job, I do
|
|||
|
|
not read with the speed I could have, if I had learned Braille in
|
|||
|
|
the primary grades. There is nothing shameful about reading
|
|||
|
|
Braille or using any other non-visual technique. Today's blind
|
|||
|
|
children deserve a better education and a better chance to
|
|||
|
|
succeed in our highly competitive information age than I had. In
|
|||
|
|
fact, the need to read as efficiently as possible is more crucial
|
|||
|
|
today than ever before. Without Braille the chances of these
|
|||
|
|
children's getting through high school, much less going beyond
|
|||
|
|
it, will be minimal.
|
|||
|
|
When I think of how much Braille would have enhanced my
|
|||
|
|
education even though I could read standard print at the time, I
|
|||
|
|
know how important Braille is for children today who can barely
|
|||
|
|
read standard print or who rely on large print. School does not
|
|||
|
|
have to be torture. I believe visually impaired children should
|
|||
|
|
be given the opportunity to learn Braille if:
|
|||
|
|
1. they cannot read print at speeds comparable to that of
|
|||
|
|
their classmates;
|
|||
|
|
2. they cannot hold reading material at a normal distance
|
|||
|
|
from their eyes; or,
|
|||
|
|
3. they cannot read print for long periods.
|
|||
|
|
Braille is as effective a reading method as print is, and
|
|||
|
|
blind and visually impaired children have the right to become as
|
|||
|
|
literate as their sighted classmates.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
That was Mary Hartle's description of growing up and being
|
|||
|
|
educated without an efficient tool for reading and writing.
|
|||
|
|
Contrast her experience with that of Jana Schroeder:
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Braille is an Essential Part of My Life Because...
|
|||
|
|
by Jana Schroeder
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
I was born with extremely limited vision to a family with no
|
|||
|
|
prior experience of blindness. It was the early 1960's, and we
|
|||
|
|
lived near Dayton, Ohio. Looking back, I recognize that I was
|
|||
|
|
lucky to have been born in that place and time and into a
|
|||
|
|
sensible, loving family. Without that fortunate combination of
|
|||
|
|
factors, my life might have been very different.
|
|||
|
|
My family did a lot of reading aloud. From my earliest days
|
|||
|
|
I assumed that I would learn to read when I went to school, just
|
|||
|
|
as my sighted brothers had.
|
|||
|
|
I began my education in a public school that included a
|
|||
|
|
resource room for blind students. These students were assigned to
|
|||
|
|
a regular classroom where we spent most of our time, but we went
|
|||
|
|
to the resource room for part of the day to learn the skills of
|
|||
|
|
blindness. I understand that Dayton was one of the first cities
|
|||
|
|
in Ohio with a public school program for blind children,
|
|||
|
|
beginning in the 1950's.
|
|||
|
|
In the first grade, when reading lessons began in earnest, I
|
|||
|
|
was encouraged to read print. Various magnifiers were tried, but
|
|||
|
|
the only thing that worked for me was to put my nose against the
|
|||
|
|
paper and hope the print was big and dark enough. This worked
|
|||
|
|
fine with first grade primers. However, I quickly read all the
|
|||
|
|
big print picture books at the local library. My mom and I soon
|
|||
|
|
discovered that in second- and third-level books the print
|
|||
|
|
quickly diminished in size to the point where I could not
|
|||
|
|
distinguish the letters.
|
|||
|
|
My mother believed, like most sighted people (at least those
|
|||
|
|
who are not blindness professionals), that blind people read
|
|||
|
|
Braille. So sensibly, she insisted that I be taught Braille.
|
|||
|
|
Fortunately, the resource room teachers agreed. I cannot be
|
|||
|
|
certain that it would be as easy if I were in school today. I
|
|||
|
|
believe that very few blind students in the Dayton area today are
|
|||
|
|
taught Braille.
|
|||
|
|
I had heard my mom and other adults read quickly and
|
|||
|
|
fluently, and I assumed that I would read like that myself. I was
|
|||
|
|
never told that Braille was slower or harder than reading print.
|
|||
|
|
I simply accepted that I was learning to read with my fingers
|
|||
|
|
while my sighted classmates learned to read with their eyes.
|
|||
|
|
One of the best things about the school I attended was that
|
|||
|
|
it had a Braille library. Never since then have I had access to a
|
|||
|
|
library where I could browse to my heart's content. I took home a
|
|||
|
|
different book almost every night. My favorites were biographies
|
|||
|
|
and the Little House series by Laura Ingalls Wilder. On the
|
|||
|
|
forty-five minute drive to and from school I would often read
|
|||
|
|
aloud to Mom. She endured a lot of stumbling and mispronunciation
|
|||
|
|
with patience and good humor. From those earliest days I received
|
|||
|
|
a lot of praise from my parents, grandparents, and other people
|
|||
|
|
for my reading and writing ability. I knew that I read as well as
|
|||
|
|
or better than most of my classmates, and this knowledge helped
|
|||
|
|
lay a solid foundation of self-esteem that has served me well in
|
|||
|
|
the years since, when faced with new challenges.
|
|||
|
|
In the fifth grade a significant challenge came along in the
|
|||
|
|
form of the slate and stylus. By this time I was attending school
|
|||
|
|
in my own district with an itinerant teacher who came to work
|
|||
|
|
with me a couple of times a week. She told me that I needed to
|
|||
|
|
learn to use the slate and stylus because I would soon be going
|
|||
|
|
to junior high and I couldn't lug a heavy, noisy Brailler with me
|
|||
|
|
from class to class.
|
|||
|
|
I absolutely hated the slate. My e's and i's were inevitably
|
|||
|
|
transposed, and I invariably put the paper in crooked. I pretty
|
|||
|
|
much refused to practice, so my itinerant and classroom teachers
|
|||
|
|
got together and decided that I would be required to take
|
|||
|
|
spelling tests using the slate and stylus. I always did well on
|
|||
|
|
my spelling tests, so I wasn't very happy with this new
|
|||
|
|
development. Gradually, however, I didn't have to reverse each
|
|||
|
|
letter consciously before writing it. My speed picked up, and my
|
|||
|
|
diagonal lines became horizontal. Since then I have written
|
|||
|
|
thousands of pages with the slate and stylus.
|
|||
|
|
When I was in high school, closed circuit televisions began
|
|||
|
|
to become affordable and popular. It was very exciting to be able
|
|||
|
|
to read things that were only available in print, like the covers
|
|||
|
|
of my record albums. I spent one whole summer reading a 500-page
|
|||
|
|
novel that I could have read in about three days in Braille,
|
|||
|
|
because that was what all my friends were reading.
|
|||
|
|
I knew, however, that the CCTV was no substitute for
|
|||
|
|
Braille. I'm almost glad that the CCTV was not available when I
|
|||
|
|
was in first grade because I don't know if Braille would then
|
|||
|
|
have been emphasized in my education. During my first two years
|
|||
|
|
in college my sight gradually decreased to the light perception I
|
|||
|
|
have today. Although I had to make some adjustments, already
|
|||
|
|
having well-developed Braille skills helped immensely.
|
|||
|
|
In high school nearly all of my textbooks, including
|
|||
|
|
advanced math and French, were in Braille. In contrast, all of my
|
|||
|
|
college texts were on tape. By this time, though, I was familiar
|
|||
|
|
with spelling, punctuation, and the Braille literary and math
|
|||
|
|
codes. I took copious notes while listening to the texts and
|
|||
|
|
studied these at exam time rather than having to re-skim the
|
|||
|
|
entire book.
|
|||
|
|
I have read that ninety-one percent of employed blind people
|
|||
|
|
know Braille. I am not at all surprised by this statistic. I am
|
|||
|
|
only surprised that so few educators and counselors of the blind
|
|||
|
|
seem to recognize the importance of Braille to employment. I
|
|||
|
|
cannot imagine being competitive without Braille.
|
|||
|
|
Today I direct the Dayton criminal justice program of the
|
|||
|
|
American Friends Service Committee, a Quaker organization. My
|
|||
|
|
activities range from leading workshops and presentations in
|
|||
|
|
prison and the community to advocating for criminal justice
|
|||
|
|
reform. I use Braille every day to keep track of phone numbers,
|
|||
|
|
file away relevant statistics, make outlines for talks, draft
|
|||
|
|
articles, and much more.
|
|||
|
|
Like most non-profits, we have a very small staff in our
|
|||
|
|
office. For the most part we do our own filing, typing, and
|
|||
|
|
minute-taking. My independence is greatly enhanced by the use of
|
|||
|
|
a scanner and other adaptive computer technology, but I don't
|
|||
|
|
think it would be possible for me to do my job at all without
|
|||
|
|
Braille. At meetings, workshops, and presentations I always have
|
|||
|
|
my slate and stylus ready. Although prison officials sometimes
|
|||
|
|
worry that my stylus could be turned into a weapon, I always have
|
|||
|
|
my Braille notes with me and have given several impromptu Braille
|
|||
|
|
lessons to interested prisoners.
|
|||
|
|
Since those early days Braille has opened many doors for me.
|
|||
|
|
Reading is a source of great pleasure as well as information and
|
|||
|
|
education. Braille writing allows me not only to keep track of
|
|||
|
|
personal information but also to articulate and craft my thoughts
|
|||
|
|
into written communication that can be shared with others. I
|
|||
|
|
cannot imagine my life without Braille.
|
|||
|
|
I am currently studying to become certified as a Braille
|
|||
|
|
transcriber and proofreader. I am deeply concerned by the lack of
|
|||
|
|
Braille skills among the blind today and the shortage of
|
|||
|
|
qualified Braille teachers, both for blind children and for
|
|||
|
|
people who become blind later in life. Perhaps someday I will
|
|||
|
|
have the opportunity to put my love of Braille to good use by
|
|||
|
|
teaching others to read it.
|
|||
|
|
____________________
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
[PHOTO: Sunny Emerson stands with microphone in her hand. CAPTION: Sunny
|
|||
|
|
Emerson]
|
|||
|
|
[PHOTO: Adam Emerson walks along dirt road with cane in hand. CAPTION: Adam
|
|||
|
|
Emerson]
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
CONCERNED PARENTS AND KIDS TESTIFY IN FAVOR OF BRAILLE
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
From the Editor: With the momentum growing to pass federal
|
|||
|
|
and state legislation protecting the right of blind children to
|
|||
|
|
learn Braille, Federationists increasingly find themselves
|
|||
|
|
delivering testimony, preparing comments, and writing letters to
|
|||
|
|
legislators in favor of Braille. This past spring it was the NFB
|
|||
|
|
of Michigan's turn to argue the case before the House Education
|
|||
|
|
Committee of the State Legislature. What follows is a sample of
|
|||
|
|
the testimony presented on April 12, 1994:
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
My name is Dawn Neddo, and I am the parent of a blind six-
|
|||
|
|
year-old son. I am also the President of the Parents of Blind
|
|||
|
|
Children (POBC) of Michigan, a division of the National
|
|||
|
|
Federation of the Blind. I get calls from concerned parents of
|
|||
|
|
blind and visually impaired children all over our state,
|
|||
|
|
reporting that education of their children is lacking in
|
|||
|
|
blindness skills. The basic skill of an educated, successful
|
|||
|
|
citizen is reading. The mode of reading that allows a blind
|
|||
|
|
person to be independent and strive to be all that he or she can
|
|||
|
|
be is Braille.
|
|||
|
|
Everyone assumes that, if your child is legally blind, he or
|
|||
|
|
she will be taught Braille. It would seem reasonable to most
|
|||
|
|
people that the timetable for teaching reading to a blind child
|
|||
|
|
would be the same as that for teaching any other child to read--
|
|||
|
|
after all, Braille is to a blind child what print is to a sighted
|
|||
|
|
child.
|
|||
|
|
My son has been enrolled in the early-intervention program
|
|||
|
|
in our school district since he was nine months old. He has had a
|
|||
|
|
visually impaired (V.I.) teacher/consultant for all that time. I
|
|||
|
|
have been persistent in having him exposed to Braille just as
|
|||
|
|
parents of sighted children expose them to print. But I must tell
|
|||
|
|
you that it has been a frustrating struggle to get the V.I.
|
|||
|
|
teachers to see legally blind students as children first.
|
|||
|
|
When two-year-olds are recognizing the local K-Mart sign,
|
|||
|
|
parents and educators of blind children need to be showing
|
|||
|
|
Braille to the blind child so that they can develop the same
|
|||
|
|
concepts as sighted children do, and at the same age as sighted
|
|||
|
|
children do. When Sesame Street is showing print letters and
|
|||
|
|
singing songs to preschoolers, we need to be showing those
|
|||
|
|
letters to our blind children in Braille.
|
|||
|
|
As an active member of my son's Individualized Education
|
|||
|
|
Program (IEP) team, I have advocated for this concept of
|
|||
|
|
educating him. I have not felt it unreasonable to expect his
|
|||
|
|
teachers to think of my son as a child first and to consider his
|
|||
|
|
blindness second. But this has not been true in many aspects of
|
|||
|
|
his education.
|
|||
|
|
My son entered a preschool head start program, with a V.I.
|
|||
|
|
teacher two to three times a week, along with the general
|
|||
|
|
education teacher and two general education aides. I thought that
|
|||
|
|
after three years of pre-Braille we were finally going to get
|
|||
|
|
going on letter recognition. I was wrong. I was told, "We don't
|
|||
|
|
teach Braille to preschoolers. He is not ready to learn letters
|
|||
|
|
yet." The V.I. teacher told me that, if I pushed him too fast, it
|
|||
|
|
would be confusing and that Braille is taught on a different
|
|||
|
|
timetable. I went along with this idea, trusting that my son
|
|||
|
|
would be ready for kindergarten when the other children were. I
|
|||
|
|
was wrong again.
|
|||
|
|
My son entered kindergarten last fall in our school district
|
|||
|
|
after I agreed to the IEP that I thought would finally bring his
|
|||
|
|
education up to that of his sighted peers. Everyone agreed that
|
|||
|
|
he was a normal child who happened to be blind and that Braille
|
|||
|
|
instruction would finally begin.
|
|||
|
|
My son entered school already behind his sighted peers, even
|
|||
|
|
though he had been with a V.I. teacher since he was an infant. In
|
|||
|
|
September he started school without having had any formal letter
|
|||
|
|
recognition or even the ability to recognize his name in Braille,
|
|||
|
|
let alone the capacity to Braille it on a Braillewriter. The V.I.
|
|||
|
|
teacher introduced the first letters to my son along with the
|
|||
|
|
other aspects of Braille such as tracking, finding the beginning
|
|||
|
|
and ending of the line, and inserting push pins in the paper.
|
|||
|
|
They worked on five letters, four of which were in his name. By
|
|||
|
|
December the V.I. teacher was discouraged with his lack of
|
|||
|
|
progress. By February she felt that he was still not ready to
|
|||
|
|
learn Braille and that perhaps we were pushing him too hard.
|
|||
|
|
I had taken an introductory Braille course and was familiar
|
|||
|
|
with basic Braille. I started to work with my son at home on
|
|||
|
|
letter recognition and writing his name in Braille on the
|
|||
|
|
Braillewriter. We worked for two weeks, and then I attended one
|
|||
|
|
of his Braille sessions. He correctly read eight letters and
|
|||
|
|
Brailled his first name on the Braillewriter for his teacher. I
|
|||
|
|
felt confident that we were not expecting too much from him, nor
|
|||
|
|
were we pushing him too hard. He was very proud of his
|
|||
|
|
accomplishments and demonstrated his reading and Braille skills
|
|||
|
|
to family and friends. He finally felt he was doing the same
|
|||
|
|
things in school as his peers.
|
|||
|
|
The V.I. teacher still felt that my son was not learning
|
|||
|
|
Braille fast enough and that it wouldn't hurt to have him
|
|||
|
|
psychologically evaluated and get an I.Q. test done. Needless to
|
|||
|
|
say, I was disappointed in the presumption that, when something
|
|||
|
|
doesn't work, it must be the blind person's deficiency and never
|
|||
|
|
the technique used. Since my son's report card does not reflect
|
|||
|
|
any problems in learning and he knows all the letter sounds, I
|
|||
|
|
will not subject him to a test that might mislabel him and once
|
|||
|
|
again discriminate against the blind community.
|
|||
|
|
I have made a commitment to my son that he will know all of
|
|||
|
|
his Braille alphabet and numbers by the end of the summer.
|
|||
|
|
(Braille numbers have not yet been taught, and therefore my son
|
|||
|
|
knows no numbers at the end of kindergarten.) The blind adult
|
|||
|
|
members of the National Federation of the Blind and I will have
|
|||
|
|
to supplement his education through tutoring sessions they have
|
|||
|
|
established throughout the year.
|
|||
|
|
A blind man once said to me that the professionals' attitude
|
|||
|
|
about teaching Braille to our blind children has been that it
|
|||
|
|
will always be too soon to teach it, until finally it is too
|
|||
|
|
late. I will not allow that to happen to my son, and I urge you
|
|||
|
|
not to let it happen to any other legally blind child in the
|
|||
|
|
state. I am committed to educating and empowering parents to
|
|||
|
|
advocate for their children and to make sure our blind children
|
|||
|
|
come out of the education system having the blindness skills to
|
|||
|
|
succeed in life. Our attitudes about blindness and Braille need
|
|||
|
|
to change. Blind people can be productive, independent, employed
|
|||
|
|
citizens of our state if they are allowed to acquire the skills
|
|||
|
|
they need and deserve.
|
|||
|
|
We need this Braille bill now. It will give us a tool to
|
|||
|
|
make sure no legally blind child is forgotten. It is for parents
|
|||
|
|
that don't yet have the knowledge to recognize what lies ahead
|
|||
|
|
for their children and their need to have Braille skills for
|
|||
|
|
independence. Our blind children need this bill. I urge you not
|
|||
|
|
to forget them.
|
|||
|
|
__________
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Here is the testimony of parents of a teenage son. Sunny
|
|||
|
|
Emerson is an active member of both the Michigan affiliate's
|
|||
|
|
parents division and the National Organization of Parents of
|
|||
|
|
Blind Children. Here is the Emersons' statement:
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
We are the parents of a fourteen-year-old son who is very
|
|||
|
|
bright, healthy, and blind with partial vision. Although he had
|
|||
|
|
to lie on the floor with his chin on his books to focus a
|
|||
|
|
powerful reading aid on one eye, the educators certified to teach
|
|||
|
|
blind students in the most affluent county in Michigan refused to
|
|||
|
|
teach our son Braille. We pleaded, begged, and even cried to have
|
|||
|
|
them instruct him in Braille and cane travel in a positive and
|
|||
|
|
productive manner. The instruction we asked for did not cost any
|
|||
|
|
more money; the teachers were already working with him. In fact,
|
|||
|
|
it would have been less expensive than furnishing him with
|
|||
|
|
stationary magnification equipment which did not meet his need,
|
|||
|
|
which he did not use, and which would have separated him from the
|
|||
|
|
rest of his class.
|
|||
|
|
We need your help. We have four grown children and eight
|
|||
|
|
grandchildren. We have had sickness, sadness, and the other
|
|||
|
|
trials families go through. But nothing has been as difficult as
|
|||
|
|
getting the appropriate education for our legally blind son--
|
|||
|
|
mainly Braille and the other skills of blindness. We have never
|
|||
|
|
before heard of educators refusing to instruct students in
|
|||
|
|
subjects they were certified to teach. Many of Adam's regular
|
|||
|
|
teachers had hobbies or talents which they were happy to pass on
|
|||
|
|
to their students, but the teachers of the visually impaired
|
|||
|
|
refused to teach our very competent son Braille.
|
|||
|
|
You have it within your power to prevent other families from
|
|||
|
|
going through this struggle to receive an appropriate education
|
|||
|
|
for their blind children. You must put a stop to the fact that
|
|||
|
|
only ten percent of blind students attending school know enough
|
|||
|
|
Braille to do their class work. The only way this can be
|
|||
|
|
accomplished is to present Braille right along with print, even
|
|||
|
|
before preschool. Sighted children are exposed to print in their
|
|||
|
|
daily lives as soon as they open their eyes and can focus. The
|
|||
|
|
special educators working with our children from birth need to do
|
|||
|
|
this for our blind children also. It will not cost the taxpayers
|
|||
|
|
any more to educate our children properly.
|
|||
|
|
We have talked with many other parents of blind children,
|
|||
|
|
and they are having the same problems. Even totally blind
|
|||
|
|
children have trouble receiving Braille instruction and are not
|
|||
|
|
age-appropriate in their literacy skills. Much of this lag has to
|
|||
|
|
do with the expectations of the educators working with them. Many
|
|||
|
|
certified teachers of the visually impaired that worked with our
|
|||
|
|
son had the manual with them and were learning Braille right
|
|||
|
|
along with the student. Would this be acceptable practice for
|
|||
|
|
those teaching French or math? I've spoken with a volunteer
|
|||
|
|
Braille transcriber who was asked to teach our V.I. educators
|
|||
|
|
Braille, and she was very disappointed in their commitment to
|
|||
|
|
learn Braille.
|
|||
|
|
Fortunately we had an opportunity to see for ourselves that
|
|||
|
|
totally blind individuals with good Braille skills were able to
|
|||
|
|
function better than many partially sighted people. Most parents
|
|||
|
|
don't find this out until their children are out of school. The
|
|||
|
|
education establishment will not tell them. Armed with this
|
|||
|
|
knowledge, we were going to insist that our son learn Braille.
|
|||
|
|
When we did, our superintendent of special education told us that
|
|||
|
|
we could go to court, which is very expensive. This is
|
|||
|
|
intimidating to parents who have only the home they have worked
|
|||
|
|
for and are afraid they could lose trying to get the proper
|
|||
|
|
reading and writing skills for their child.
|
|||
|
|
Please pass House Bill 4497 so our children can have the
|
|||
|
|
same opportunity to be literate as other students. This will be a
|
|||
|
|
giant step forward in making our children independent, self-
|
|||
|
|
supporting citizens. We will thank you, future parents of blind
|
|||
|
|
children will thank you, and the taxpayers of the State of
|
|||
|
|
Michigan and the nation will thank you.
|
|||
|
|
Most sincerely,
|
|||
|
|
Mrs. Sunny S. Emerson
|
|||
|
|
__________
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Now here is the statement of Adam Emerson, the son of the
|
|||
|
|
parents just quoted:
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
My name is Adam C. Emerson. I am currently a student and the
|
|||
|
|
president of what will soon be the world's largest software
|
|||
|
|
company.
|
|||
|
|
When I was in elementary school, I attended Roeper City and
|
|||
|
|
Country School, which is in Oakland County. This is supposed to
|
|||
|
|
be one of the best counties to go to school in, especially if you
|
|||
|
|
have a disability, but the teachers absolutely refused to teach
|
|||
|
|
me Braille. Instead they gave me $500 glasses which had a focal
|
|||
|
|
length about as long as your nose, and a closed circuit TV. They
|
|||
|
|
apparently forgot that the glasses of an elementary school
|
|||
|
|
student last about one week before ending up full of scratches,
|
|||
|
|
and if they get broken, it takes about twelve weeks to obtain a
|
|||
|
|
replacement. A closed circuit television system (CCTV) is nice,
|
|||
|
|
but it isn't practical. It has to sit in one place all the time.
|
|||
|
|
In elementary school that isn't so bad, but when you start having
|
|||
|
|
classes in different locations, it's impossible to get anything
|
|||
|
|
done. My parents decided I needed to use Braille too, but the
|
|||
|
|
teachers insisted that, since I had some vision, I use print
|
|||
|
|
exclusively. My parents begged and pleaded but to no avail--the
|
|||
|
|
teachers would not teach me Braille. Meanwhile, I was complaining
|
|||
|
|
of an aching back and lying on the floor so I could read. And I
|
|||
|
|
couldn't even read my own handwriting.
|
|||
|
|
Then my parents found an organization called the NFB that
|
|||
|
|
fought with the teachers for five years until finally Dorothy
|
|||
|
|
Goldie decided to teach me Braille. This was wonderful, but I was
|
|||
|
|
nine at the time and didn't really appreciate having to read
|
|||
|
|
Three Ducks Went Waddling in Braille while reading books on
|
|||
|
|
particle physics in print.
|
|||
|
|
To sidetrack for a moment, cassette books are a wonderful
|
|||
|
|
thing, but they are not a replacement for Braille. Cassettes are
|
|||
|
|
better for reading a whole book all the way through, but in
|
|||
|
|
school, when you have to read a specific page and answer some
|
|||
|
|
questions, finding the right page will absolutely make you throw
|
|||
|
|
your cassette player against the wall and use a jackhammer on it.
|
|||
|
|
Besides, there is practically no way to do math using a cassette
|
|||
|
|
book. When using Braille, you can read a problem, flip back to
|
|||
|
|
get the method or whatever, and go back to the problem. You just
|
|||
|
|
cannot do that with a cassette. No one learns spelling and
|
|||
|
|
punctuation from a cassette, but you do when reading Braille. You
|
|||
|
|
learn the same way as when you read print.
|
|||
|
|
Many blind people who have even more powerful visual aids
|
|||
|
|
than I had take two and a half times longer to do their work than
|
|||
|
|
their sighted classmates, not because they can't do the work, but
|
|||
|
|
because they don't know Braille. They strain their eyes trying to
|
|||
|
|
make out a fuzzy blob on a page, get a headache, take a rest, and
|
|||
|
|
do the next problem. All this could be solved if they knew
|
|||
|
|
Braille.
|
|||
|
|
Even the glasses I am wearing now are no replacement for
|
|||
|
|
Braille, though I can read from a normal distance with them. They
|
|||
|
|
are more expensive, they take much longer to repair, and they are
|
|||
|
|
much more easily broken than my others. If these break I can
|
|||
|
|
either take a twelve-week vacation from my job or wear an old
|
|||
|
|
pair of scratched-up glasses that were made for me when I was
|
|||
|
|
nine.
|
|||
|
|
For a visually impaired person, there is just no replacement
|
|||
|
|
for Braille, which is why I am asking all of you to support H.B.
|
|||
|
|
4497. Thank you.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Adam Emerson
|
|||
|
|
__________
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Finally, here is the testimony of Kathleen Hilliker, the
|
|||
|
|
mother of an eleven-year-old girl who has been denied sufficient
|
|||
|
|
Braille:
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
I am here today speaking on behalf of my eleven-year-old
|
|||
|
|
daughter, Allison Hilliker, who is legally blind. She is a sixth-
|
|||
|
|
grade student mainstreamed in a regular class in the Utica
|
|||
|
|
(Macomb County) School District.
|
|||
|
|
Allison, who was born with glaucoma, has been through more
|
|||
|
|
than forty eye surgeries to lower her eye pressure. Without these
|
|||
|
|
surgeries she would have become totally blind. In the past four
|
|||
|
|
months she has gone through three more surgeries, missing a total
|
|||
|
|
of thirty days of school.
|
|||
|
|
She sees at close range and only out of her left eye.
|
|||
|
|
Through her educational life she has been taught primarily by the
|
|||
|
|
Macomb Intermediate School District, which coordinates the
|
|||
|
|
conversion of her work to ink print large enough for her to see
|
|||
|
|
and gives her some mobility to get around her school building.
|
|||
|
|
She's very bright, usually getting all A's, but doing her
|
|||
|
|
school work independently has definitely become more challenging
|
|||
|
|
as each year goes by.
|
|||
|
|
In the lower grades she did well keeping up. Of course, the
|
|||
|
|
print was large, there wasn't page after page to read in each
|
|||
|
|
subject, and her vision was slightly better. As she got older, we
|
|||
|
|
requested Braille be taught, but the educators got to choose when
|
|||
|
|
it was taught and how she would use it. It was presented as a
|
|||
|
|
hard-to-learn secondary subject, like a foreign language. She was
|
|||
|
|
never made to read it daily or do any work in it. When we
|
|||
|
|
questioned these educators, they insisted she was progressing
|
|||
|
|
adequately and continued to add more low-vision aids, like closed
|
|||
|
|
circuit TV's, text on tape, two different kinds of telescopic
|
|||
|
|
glasses, assistants for reading texts, and administration of
|
|||
|
|
tests orally--all for her to continue doing her daily work in
|
|||
|
|
print, not Braille. To this day, her textbooks in every subject
|
|||
|
|
are provided in up to three media--large print, audio tapes, and
|
|||
|
|
rarely Braille.
|
|||
|
|
Sadly, each year we insisted at her IEP meeting that it was
|
|||
|
|
not enough. We saw that, while the rest of her classmates grew
|
|||
|
|
into more independent students, able to read and write on their
|
|||
|
|
own, our daughter depended more and more on her vision teacher
|
|||
|
|
and her classroom teacher's making hourly adjustments. Her
|
|||
|
|
confusion and frustration grew at having to choose constantly
|
|||
|
|
which medium to use for each subject. Instead of sharpening her
|
|||
|
|
Braille skills and increasing her speed at reading and writing
|
|||
|
|
Braille, she is still being made to do subjects like algebra,
|
|||
|
|
geometry, and literature in a medium that is not compatible with
|
|||
|
|
her extremely limited eyesight.
|
|||
|
|
Allison's life has been an emotional roller coaster of
|
|||
|
|
medical procedures and doctors' visits that constantly drain us
|
|||
|
|
as we aggressively fight to save her vision. But dealing with her
|
|||
|
|
medical condition is nothing compared to the emotional fight we
|
|||
|
|
have had to go through to get her the basic literacy skills that
|
|||
|
|
every child is entitled to. Why should we have to spend many
|
|||
|
|
emotional hours begging educators to teach this crucial
|
|||
|
|
independent skill to our blind children?
|
|||
|
|
This fall, when Allison begins junior high, meeting her
|
|||
|
|
classroom needs will be even more of a challenge. Without good
|
|||
|
|
Braille skills she will be unable to compete. Whether she's an
|
|||
|
|
all-A student or not, without age-appropriate reading skills, she
|
|||
|
|
will not remain equal with her sighted peers. It already takes
|
|||
|
|
her two to three times longer to complete tests or do homework.
|
|||
|
|
Just last week my husband and I helped her read material in
|
|||
|
|
an encyclopedia and other reference materials that she couldn't
|
|||
|
|
see in order for her to do her science project and an Egyptian
|
|||
|
|
hieroglyphic report. My husband had to enlarge each of her
|
|||
|
|
geometric math problems to ten by six inches for her to be able
|
|||
|
|
to see, since she has not been taught the Braille math code. I
|
|||
|
|
read her a biography that needed to be completed in a week
|
|||
|
|
because neither her classroom nor vision teacher cared to locate
|
|||
|
|
one that she could independently read to herself in Braille. As
|
|||
|
|
her parents we see that without Braille literacy skills she will
|
|||
|
|
continue to need to have these many daily exceptions made for
|
|||
|
|
her. But I ask you, what future employer will make all these
|
|||
|
|
exceptions?
|
|||
|
|
There is no place for negative attitudes about Braille in
|
|||
|
|
our daughter's education, but they appear constantly, exhibited
|
|||
|
|
by the very professionals whose task is to train her in the
|
|||
|
|
skills she'll need to compete in the next century. Partially
|
|||
|
|
blind students should not be forced to accept print as their
|
|||
|
|
literacy medium in spite of eye strain and inefficiency, and as
|
|||
|
|
parents we should not have to spend years fighting the
|
|||
|
|
educational system to gain basic Braille literacy for our
|
|||
|
|
children. Too many parents in this state are left ignorant
|
|||
|
|
regarding the importance of Braille because they have trusted
|
|||
|
|
sighted educators to understand and tell them what's best for
|
|||
|
|
their blind or partially sighted children.
|
|||
|
|
The passage of H. B. 4497 will give our blind children the
|
|||
|
|
same privilege to be literate as each child reading print. By
|
|||
|
|
supporting and passing this bill, you will help all blind
|
|||
|
|
children of this state grasp the fundamental key to unlock their
|
|||
|
|
equality and independence in the twenty-first century, not to
|
|||
|
|
mention achieving future success.
|
|||
|
|
Thank you,
|
|||
|
|
David and Kathleen Hilliker
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
____________________
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
[PHOTO: Portrait. CAPTION: James Gashel]
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
BLIND VENDORS CALL FOR CHANGE
|
|||
|
|
by James Gashel
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
From the Editor: James Gashel is the Director of
|
|||
|
|
Governmental Affairs for the National Federation of the Blind. He
|
|||
|
|
is knowledgeable and experienced in dealing with the Randolph-
|
|||
|
|
Sheppard Program and with issues of concern to vendors in
|
|||
|
|
general. The following is his report on an important meeting that
|
|||
|
|
took place this past spring:
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The Randolph-Sheppard Act is the basic federal law which
|
|||
|
|
requires that priority be given to blind persons in the operation
|
|||
|
|
of vending facilities on federal property. Most states have
|
|||
|
|
either laws or regulations on the books which extend the federal
|
|||
|
|
mandate to state property and often to county and municipal
|
|||
|
|
property as well. There are specific federal regulations for the
|
|||
|
|
program under which the state vocational rehabilitation agency
|
|||
|
|
serving the blind in each state is designated as a licensing
|
|||
|
|
agency for the vendors. Two states-- Montana and Wyoming--do not
|
|||
|
|
have licensing agencies and do not participate in the
|
|||
|
|
Randolph-Sheppard program.
|
|||
|
|
The federal law, which originally provided only a
|
|||
|
|
"preference" for blind people in operating "vending stands," was
|
|||
|
|
enacted in 1936. Amendments were passed in 1954 and again in
|
|||
|
|
1974. The 1974 amendments were intended to lead to a significant
|
|||
|
|
expansion of the program on federal property. The term "priority"
|
|||
|
|
was chosen over "preference" to reflect an intent to place
|
|||
|
|
opportunities for blind vendors ahead of others in selling
|
|||
|
|
products on federal property. The term "vending stand" was
|
|||
|
|
replaced by "vending facility," which also reflected an intent to
|
|||
|
|
expand the program.
|
|||
|
|
It has now been almost twenty years since the
|
|||
|
|
Randolph-Sheppard Amendments of 1974 were enacted. You might say
|
|||
|
|
that this represents a milestone in time if nothing else.
|
|||
|
|
Certainly the passage of twenty years leads to some reflection on
|
|||
|
|
the progress made. It also leads to a natural reassessment, a
|
|||
|
|
kind of taking stock, and a desire to plan for the future. With
|
|||
|
|
this in mind the National Council of State Agencies for the Blind
|
|||
|
|
(NCSAB) decided to promote the idea of convening a national
|
|||
|
|
Randolph-Sheppard conference.
|
|||
|
|
The conference was not just promoted; it was actually held.
|
|||
|
|
The meetings took place in Washington, D.C., from March 10
|
|||
|
|
through March 13. Approximately 252 people attended. The
|
|||
|
|
participants included a significant number of blind vendors from
|
|||
|
|
the Merchants Division of the National Federation of the Blind; a
|
|||
|
|
contingent from the American Council of the Blind (ACB)
|
|||
|
|
Randolph-Sheppard Vendors of America; and other vendors who are
|
|||
|
|
not involved (or involved to any great extent) in either
|
|||
|
|
organization. Staff members (including several directors) from
|
|||
|
|
many of the state licensing agencies for the Randolph-Sheppard
|
|||
|
|
program also attended.
|
|||
|
|
Perhaps the most significant outcome of this conference was
|
|||
|
|
the fact that it occurred. Admittedly there were some rough
|
|||
|
|
spots, but generally speaking those who attended did so in a
|
|||
|
|
spirit of harmony and cooperation. It is fair to say that
|
|||
|
|
everyone involved expressed a shared concern that, far from
|
|||
|
|
expanding, the Randolph-Sheppard program was beginning to
|
|||
|
|
experience serious long-term problems which could ultimately
|
|||
|
|
threaten its viability. We also shared the view that legislation
|
|||
|
|
to improve the Randolph-Sheppard Act itself is not needed at this
|
|||
|
|
time. More consistent and strong leadership, especially from the
|
|||
|
|
Federal government, is needed.
|
|||
|
|
This point was made several times, but most dramatically
|
|||
|
|
when Howard Moses, Acting Commissioner of the Rehabilitation
|
|||
|
|
Services Administration (RSA), was responding to questions from
|
|||
|
|
the group at the opening session. RSA is responsible for
|
|||
|
|
administering the Randolph-Sheppard program at the federal level.
|
|||
|
|
When he was asked what RSA would do to challenge possible
|
|||
|
|
violations of the Randolph-Sheppard Act by the Department of
|
|||
|
|
Veterans Affairs and other federal agencies, he immediately asked
|
|||
|
|
an attorney from the Office of the General Counsel to respond.
|
|||
|
|
The attorney proceeded to explain that every legal issue has more
|
|||
|
|
than one side. She offered no assurance that RSA could bring
|
|||
|
|
other federal agencies into compliance with the Randolph-Sheppard
|
|||
|
|
Act merely on the strength of the law itself.
|
|||
|
|
At this point I asked for the floor to address the group. I
|
|||
|
|
said that the exchange which we had just witnessed illustrated
|
|||
|
|
the problem. The question was this: what would RSA do to enforce
|
|||
|
|
compliance with the Randolph-Sheppard Act by other agencies?
|
|||
|
|
Immediately the acting commissioner referred the matter to the
|
|||
|
|
general counsel, who in turn told us how difficult it all was. I
|
|||
|
|
said that perhaps all of us, myself included, had emphasized
|
|||
|
|
litigation far too much. As a result we have been tied down in
|
|||
|
|
court case after court case for many years while opportunities
|
|||
|
|
for blind vendors are slipping away.
|
|||
|
|
Then I observed that it is time for real leadership on
|
|||
|
|
behalf of blind vendors to be exercised by responsible officials
|
|||
|
|
in the federal government. For example, the Secretary of
|
|||
|
|
Education and ultimately the President of the United States both
|
|||
|
|
have responsibility for the health and prosperity of the
|
|||
|
|
Randolph-Sheppard program. RSA is one of the agencies in the
|
|||
|
|
Department of Education. If the Secretary of Education or the
|
|||
|
|
President cared enough about the blind vendor program, a phone
|
|||
|
|
call by either of them to the secretary of any other federal
|
|||
|
|
department could probably straighten out most compliance problems
|
|||
|
|
in the blink of an eye.
|
|||
|
|
I said that the fact that this is not happening is a failure
|
|||
|
|
of political leadership. Therefore, we should look to political
|
|||
|
|
solutions more than legal ones to strengthen the
|
|||
|
|
Randolph-Sheppard program in the future. We cannot rely upon the
|
|||
|
|
courts to interpret or apply the Randolph-Sheppard Act favorably
|
|||
|
|
in all instances. Besides, recourse to litigation as a primary
|
|||
|
|
program-building tool usually consumes far too much time, energy,
|
|||
|
|
and expense. The audience responded enthusiastically to this
|
|||
|
|
view, and the theme of stronger political leadership's being
|
|||
|
|
needed was repeated throughout the weekend.
|
|||
|
|
Other issues emerged throughout the conference. The process
|
|||
|
|
for placing issues before the group included papers which were
|
|||
|
|
circulated to most participants in advance of the trip to
|
|||
|
|
Washington. The Friday afternoon and Saturday morning sessions
|
|||
|
|
consisted of panel presentations to highlight some of the matters
|
|||
|
|
raised in the papers as well as voicing other concerns. The
|
|||
|
|
remainder of the day on Saturday was devoted to small group
|
|||
|
|
meetings. By design each group included a mixture of state agency
|
|||
|
|
representatives, blind vendors, and others involved in the
|
|||
|
|
conference. The final meeting on Sunday morning brought the
|
|||
|
|
entire group together once again to discuss priority issues
|
|||
|
|
resulting from the smaller meetings.
|
|||
|
|
While a great deal of unanimity was expressed on issues such
|
|||
|
|
as the need for stronger political leadership, there were obvious
|
|||
|
|
differences in emphasis on other issues and certainly on the
|
|||
|
|
solutions. Some participants advocated the creation of a new
|
|||
|
|
national coordinating agency to promote collective buying
|
|||
|
|
arrangements and program activities. Those of us from the
|
|||
|
|
Federation responded that such a plan would likely lead to more
|
|||
|
|
bureaucracy and would divert resources. We pointed out that there
|
|||
|
|
may be a danger in promoting such an idea since National
|
|||
|
|
Industries for the Blind, which already coordinates federal
|
|||
|
|
contracts with sheltered workshops, would likely be standing in
|
|||
|
|
line to absorb the Randolph-Sheppard program. This outcome would
|
|||
|
|
certainly not be desirable.
|
|||
|
|
On another point most of the delegates from the American
|
|||
|
|
Council of the Blind were strongly in favor of a plan to request
|
|||
|
|
an annual appropriation of federal funds from the Congress to be
|
|||
|
|
devoted specifically to the Randolph-Sheppard program. The figure
|
|||
|
|
mentioned was something like $15 or $17 million. The counter-
|
|||
|
|
view, which was expressed by many Federationists and others, was
|
|||
|
|
that a direct federal appropriation might actually result in
|
|||
|
|
reducing the support which the Randolph-Sheppard program already
|
|||
|
|
receives from sources such as vocational rehabilitation and state
|
|||
|
|
appropriations. We also pointed out that several no-cost issues
|
|||
|
|
should be addressed before we tackled the question of funding.
|
|||
|
|
The federal funding idea was not one which had emerged as a
|
|||
|
|
priority from the small group process. Even so, the
|
|||
|
|
representatives from the ACB demanded that a vote should be
|
|||
|
|
taken. Up to this point we had been operating under the idea that
|
|||
|
|
conference positions would pretty much depend upon group
|
|||
|
|
consensus. All the same, a voting procedure had been agreed upon
|
|||
|
|
in advance, and a vote was taken. The majority favored putting
|
|||
|
|
the request for specific federal funds off for now. In a
|
|||
|
|
deviation from the otherwise harmonious spirit of the meeting,
|
|||
|
|
the outcome of this vote led to a small walk-out by the ACB
|
|||
|
|
representatives who most ardently sought to have it their way on
|
|||
|
|
the federal funding issue. Nevertheless the conference went
|
|||
|
|
forward to a successful conclusion without them.
|
|||
|
|
The paper reprinted below was especially prepared for this
|
|||
|
|
conference by the National Federation of the Blind. Those of us
|
|||
|
|
who are most directly and routinely involved in matters affecting
|
|||
|
|
blind vendors gave considerable thought to selecting the ten top
|
|||
|
|
priority issues which we would like to see addressed in order to
|
|||
|
|
improve opportunities for blind vendors. In thinking about these
|
|||
|
|
issues, we focused on the vendors, not the agencies. Clearly, in
|
|||
|
|
addition to the issues presented in the paper, there may be some
|
|||
|
|
concerns of a more generic or programmatic nature upon which both
|
|||
|
|
the vendors and the agencies would likely agree. Our
|
|||
|
|
responsibility in this conference, however, was to express the
|
|||
|
|
views of the vendors, and that is exactly what we did.
|
|||
|
|
It should not be surprising that the matters discussed below
|
|||
|
|
were reflected to a very significant degree in the results of the
|
|||
|
|
small group meetings and in other presentations. Clearly the
|
|||
|
|
voice of the National Federation of the Blind had a powerful
|
|||
|
|
impact on shaping the direction of this conference. To the credit
|
|||
|
|
of those who may not share some of our views on other matters in
|
|||
|
|
the blindness field, our views on the Randolph-Sheppard program
|
|||
|
|
were heard and objectively considered.
|
|||
|
|
The entire weekend, with perhaps the single exception of the
|
|||
|
|
acrimony surrounding the small walk-out by ACB members, was
|
|||
|
|
representative of a new atmosphere of respect for organized
|
|||
|
|
consumers which is being felt increasingly in our field. Of
|
|||
|
|
course this also speaks to our own growing strength as a movement
|
|||
|
|
as much as it does to the changing reaction from others. So, with
|
|||
|
|
the omission of our introductory remarks, here are the views of
|
|||
|
|
the National Federation of the Blind on the Randolph-Sheppard
|
|||
|
|
program, as submitted for consideration by the NCSAB Conference:
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Randolph-Sheppard Issues
|
|||
|
|
A Report Submitted By The National Federation of the Blind
|
|||
|
|
To the National Council of State Agencies for the Blind
|
|||
|
|
Randolph-Sheppard Conference Participants
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
ISSUES AND RECOMMENDATIONS
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
(1) FORCED PARTNERSHIPS
|
|||
|
|
DISCUSSION: Forced partnerships are situations in which two
|
|||
|
|
or more blind vendors are placed in a co-manager relationship to
|
|||
|
|
operate the same vending facility. State practices vary on this
|
|||
|
|
point. However, relatively few states actually have formal
|
|||
|
|
arrangements under which more than one vendor is assigned to a
|
|||
|
|
vending facility. When this is done, the decision is normally
|
|||
|
|
based on procedures which purport to analyze both the income
|
|||
|
|
potential of the facility and workload requirements.
|
|||
|
|
Forced partnerships are unacceptable to blind vendors. They
|
|||
|
|
result in placing rather arbitrary limits on both actual and
|
|||
|
|
potential income. By requiring partnerships, the state agency
|
|||
|
|
places itself in the position of deciding how much income is
|
|||
|
|
considered to be enough for a blind vendor. Exercising such
|
|||
|
|
authority is fundamentally at odds with a business-oriented
|
|||
|
|
philosophy and an entrepreneurial spirit. Forced partnerships
|
|||
|
|
actually represent a social service or welfare mentality rather
|
|||
|
|
than a business orientation.
|
|||
|
|
RECOMMENDATIONS: Regulatory actions, both state and federal,
|
|||
|
|
should be taken to prohibit forced partnerships. First, each
|
|||
|
|
state licensing agency should adopt regulations which specify
|
|||
|
|
that two or more blind vendors will not be placed in the same
|
|||
|
|
vending facility. Second, the federal regulations should be
|
|||
|
|
amended to require a no-forced-partnership policy as a condition
|
|||
|
|
for approval of the state's application for designation as a
|
|||
|
|
state licensing agency.
|
|||
|
|
(2) VENDING FACILITY COMPETITION
|
|||
|
|
DISCUSSION: Reducing competition for blind vendors was
|
|||
|
|
expressed as one of the principal goals of the 1974 amendments to
|
|||
|
|
the Randolph-Sheppard Act. However, in the twenty years since the
|
|||
|
|
amendments, very little progress has been made to address this
|
|||
|
|
problem. In fact, state agencies themselves sometimes
|
|||
|
|
deliberately decide to place two or more vending facilities at
|
|||
|
|
one location without first carefully evaluating the competitive
|
|||
|
|
impact caused by doing so. In other instances competition from
|
|||
|
|
sources outside of the blind vending program is allowed to occur
|
|||
|
|
because of program indifference and inaction.
|
|||
|
|
Under the federal law the priority extends to blind persons,
|
|||
|
|
not merely to state agencies. Therefore, when state agencies are
|
|||
|
|
contemplating the establishment of more than one vending facility
|
|||
|
|
within an individual location or installation, the extent to
|
|||
|
|
which competition among these facilities may diminish the income
|
|||
|
|
potential of each such facility must be evaluated. Income
|
|||
|
|
potential must not be sacrificed. The priority for blind persons
|
|||
|
|
to operate vending facilities is a valuable right. It translates
|
|||
|
|
directly into business opportunities and income for blind
|
|||
|
|
vendors.
|
|||
|
|
While the priority right for blind vendors may not be
|
|||
|
|
exclusive in each instance, it should be interpreted as a "first
|
|||
|
|
right of refusal" in every instance. When two or more facilities
|
|||
|
|
operated by blind vendors exist at the same site, the standard
|
|||
|
|
should be "no competition," meaning essentially that there is no
|
|||
|
|
adverse effect on income caused by more than one facility. The same
|
|||
|
|
standard should be applied to resist competition from non-blind
|
|||
|
|
vending facilities which may be allowed to operate on the same
|
|||
|
|
property. Competition from such facilities violates the blind
|
|||
|
|
vendors' priority. Therefore, it must be vigorously resisted.
|
|||
|
|
The so-called "break-even" policy, normally applied in the
|
|||
|
|
United States Postal Service, is one of the most egregious forms
|
|||
|
|
of unfair competition with blind vendors. The policy as exercised
|
|||
|
|
by the Postal Service ordinarily prohibits operators of lunchroom
|
|||
|
|
facilities (often consisting of vending machines) from making a
|
|||
|
|
profit on the business. As a consequence of this policy, prices
|
|||
|
|
are held below customary marketplace levels. Even if the break-
|
|||
|
|
even policy is not applied to blind vendors, which is normally
|
|||
|
|
the case, it has the obvious effect of limiting their income.
|
|||
|
|
The income limits occur in two respects. First, blind
|
|||
|
|
vendors faced with competition from break-even facilities are
|
|||
|
|
forced to reduce their prices to a point which often threatens
|
|||
|
|
the viability of the business itself. Second, vending machine
|
|||
|
|
income is not available for distribution to blind vendors as a
|
|||
|
|
deliberate consequence of the policy. The break-even policy is,
|
|||
|
|
in fact, a means of subsidizing federal employees in a way which
|
|||
|
|
circumvents the vending-machine income-sharing provisions of the
|
|||
|
|
federal Randolph-Sheppard Act.
|
|||
|
|
RECOMMENDATIONS: The federal regulations should be amended
|
|||
|
|
to define the term "priority," including the use of a "no-
|
|||
|
|
competition" standard. The standard should insure that the income
|
|||
|
|
potential for blind vendors is not eroded by competition from
|
|||
|
|
inside or outside the program. Policies designed to keep income
|
|||
|
|
from vending machines below market levels should specifically be
|
|||
|
|
prohibited by the federal regulations. State licensing agencies
|
|||
|
|
and blind vendor committees should adopt no-competition standards
|
|||
|
|
and apply them to facility-establishment decisions. State
|
|||
|
|
agencies should also seek enforcement of existing regulations to
|
|||
|
|
protect blind vendors against unlawful competition from outside
|
|||
|
|
sources.
|
|||
|
|
(3) FEDERAL LEADERSHIP
|
|||
|
|
DISCUSSION: The Secretary of Education, through the
|
|||
|
|
Rehabilitation Services Administration (RSA), has been given
|
|||
|
|
responsibility for coordinating government-wide federal agency
|
|||
|
|
compliance with the Randolph-Sheppard Act. Several provisions of
|
|||
|
|
the 1974 amendments to the Act specify this role because Congress
|
|||
|
|
found that lack of clear federal leadership and accountability
|
|||
|
|
were a principal reason for declining opportunities. To remedy
|
|||
|
|
this condition, the amended law applies the "lead agency" concept
|
|||
|
|
and makes the Secretary of Education ultimately responsible for
|
|||
|
|
implementing federal regulations with government-wide
|
|||
|
|
applicability.
|
|||
|
|
Examples of the leadership role given to the Secretary and
|
|||
|
|
RSA include the following: one or more vending facilities are to
|
|||
|
|
be established on federal property unless the establishment or
|
|||
|
|
operation of such facilities would adversely affect the interests
|
|||
|
|
of the United States. RSA is expected to make annual surveys of
|
|||
|
|
vending facility opportunities and to report the results to
|
|||
|
|
affected agencies and organizations. Any limitation on the
|
|||
|
|
placement or operation of a vending facility on federal property,
|
|||
|
|
based on a finding that such placement or operation would
|
|||
|
|
adversely affect the interests of the United States, must be
|
|||
|
|
fully justified in writing to the Secretary of Education, who
|
|||
|
|
shall determine whether the limitation is justified.
|
|||
|
|
As the lead agency for Randolph-Sheppard implementation and
|
|||
|
|
compliance, RSA is in a position to initiate and carry out an
|
|||
|
|
active campaign to promote the program throughout the federal
|
|||
|
|
government. If such an effort does exist, it is not apparent to
|
|||
|
|
those who depend upon RSA's leadership. In fact, it appears that
|
|||
|
|
the preeminent leadership role envisioned in the law for RSA has
|
|||
|
|
been permitted to atrophy through ineptness or lack of exercise
|
|||
|
|
over time. Contrary to the clear policy direction of the amended
|
|||
|
|
law, RSA has continued a pattern of merely reacting to situations
|
|||
|
|
as they arise. This posture is a major reason for the program's
|
|||
|
|
downward trend.
|
|||
|
|
It should be noted that RSA is not alone in the federal
|
|||
|
|
government in failing to support the Randolph-Sheppard program.
|
|||
|
|
The Department of Justice, which is supposed to provide legal
|
|||
|
|
support and coordination, has typically weighed in on the side of
|
|||
|
|
non-compliant federal agencies. In more than one instance the
|
|||
|
|
Department of Justice has even argued before the courts that the
|
|||
|
|
arbitration provisions of the Randolph-Sheppard Act may be
|
|||
|
|
unconstitutional. There are also other instances, so numerous as
|
|||
|
|
to form an unmistakable pattern, when the Justice Department's
|
|||
|
|
legal advice and support given to agencies has been at odds with
|
|||
|
|
programmatic and legal interpretations made by the Department of
|
|||
|
|
Education and RSA.
|
|||
|
|
RECOMMENDATIONS: The Secretary of Education, through RSA,
|
|||
|
|
should pursue a proactive, rather than a reactive, strategy for
|
|||
|
|
developing and enforcing the Randolph-Sheppard regulations. This
|
|||
|
|
strategy should be initiated with an action plan consisting of
|
|||
|
|
specific steps designed to reverse the trends of declining
|
|||
|
|
facilities and blind vendor income. The plan should be developed
|
|||
|
|
within a three-month time period. Provisions should be made for
|
|||
|
|
participation by interested persons and organizations in the
|
|||
|
|
process. Once adopted, the planned strategy should be publicly
|
|||
|
|
announced and vigorously pursued. At a minimum the strategy
|
|||
|
|
should include:
|
|||
|
|
(a) strict enforcement of the prohibition on limitations
|
|||
|
|
placed on vending facilities unless first justified to the
|
|||
|
|
Secretary and approved or disapproved by the Secretary, including
|
|||
|
|
aggressive initiation of proceedings by RSA;
|
|||
|
|
(b) revisions to the program regulations which specifically
|
|||
|
|
clarify the meaning of the priority required for blind vendors
|
|||
|
|
and the way in which it is to be applied to achieve program
|
|||
|
|
expansion;
|
|||
|
|
(c) a clear statement in the regulations that policies or
|
|||
|
|
practices which limit income potential for blind vendors violate
|
|||
|
|
the priority provisions of the Act;
|
|||
|
|
(d) procedures for each federal property-managing agency and
|
|||
|
|
each state licensing agency to follow in establishing goals and
|
|||
|
|
timetables for program expansion both in the quality and number
|
|||
|
|
of vending facilities available for operation by blind vendors;
|
|||
|
|
(e) regular and systematic monitoring by RSA of federal and
|
|||
|
|
state agency practices, including the routine issuance of legal
|
|||
|
|
interpretation and policy guidance documents;
|
|||
|
|
(f) improved coordination with the Department of Justice to
|
|||
|
|
support the Department of Education's lead agency role, with
|
|||
|
|
deference to be given to its programmatic and legal
|
|||
|
|
interpretations; and
|
|||
|
|
(g) plans for regular surveys of vending facility
|
|||
|
|
opportunities and potential opportunities to be conducted by RSA
|
|||
|
|
as required by the Randolph-Sheppard Act.
|
|||
|
|
(4) COMMISSIONS AND OTHER CHARGES
|
|||
|
|
DISCUSSION: It is often said that effective implementation
|
|||
|
|
of the Randolph-Sheppard Act on federal property depends upon the
|
|||
|
|
formation of a partnership among Federal property-managing
|
|||
|
|
agencies, state licensing agencies, and blind vendors themselves.
|
|||
|
|
While the ultimate beneficiaries of the program may appear to be
|
|||
|
|
the blind vendors, the affected agencies, both state and federal,
|
|||
|
|
also derive substantial benefits from the program. Indeed, such
|
|||
|
|
benefits were part of the original concept. State licensing
|
|||
|
|
agencies are aided in accomplishing their broader mission of
|
|||
|
|
placing blind people in productive jobs. Federal agencies receive
|
|||
|
|
food, beverage, and other services which they must provide to
|
|||
|
|
their employees in order to maintain morale and productivity.
|
|||
|
|
With some notable exceptions most federal property-managing
|
|||
|
|
agencies usually seem to acknowledge their role in the
|
|||
|
|
Randolph-Sheppard partnership. They recognize the benefits that
|
|||
|
|
accrue when federal space is provided for vending facilities to
|
|||
|
|
be operated by blind people. However, the Department of Veterans
|
|||
|
|
Affairs, which is seeking to condition opportunities for vending
|
|||
|
|
facilities on payment of sales commissions, represents an extreme
|
|||
|
|
form of non-cooperation with the Randolph-Sheppard program. The
|
|||
|
|
commissions sought may be as high as twenty percent of gross
|
|||
|
|
sales or more than half of a blind vendor's net proceeds. Some
|
|||
|
|
other agencies have followed the practice of charging blind
|
|||
|
|
vendors the flat rate of 1<> percent of gross sales, which is said
|
|||
|
|
to be a "utility charge."
|
|||
|
|
The Randolph-Sheppard Act clearly specifies certain charges
|
|||
|
|
for goods or services that may be assessed against the net
|
|||
|
|
proceeds of a vendor. Sales commissions or any other charges for
|
|||
|
|
vending facility space (including utilities) are not among the
|
|||
|
|
costs to be born in whole or in part by blind vendors.
|
|||
|
|
Unfortunately, most state licensing agencies, many blind vendors,
|
|||
|
|
and RSA officials as well have acquiesced in permitting the
|
|||
|
|
charges in the range of 1<> percent, while the more outrageous
|
|||
|
|
assessments such as sales commissions have usually been
|
|||
|
|
challenged.
|
|||
|
|
Set-aside payments, allowed by law and assessed against net
|
|||
|
|
vendor proceeds, can also become an inequity. The theory of set-
|
|||
|
|
aside is that vendors derive direct benefits from the program, so
|
|||
|
|
therefore they must pay for them. But other blind people who
|
|||
|
|
receive services at substantial cost to the state are not
|
|||
|
|
required to rebate the amount spent at some later date. The
|
|||
|
|
greatest problem is that the vendors are, in effect, a captive
|
|||
|
|
audience with a ready source of revenue to tap. Moreover, state
|
|||
|
|
agencies are constantly faced with budget pressures. In all too
|
|||
|
|
many instances the blind vendor program is not given high
|
|||
|
|
priority by responsible officials at the highest levels in the
|
|||
|
|
agency. When this happens, federal and state funds which could
|
|||
|
|
legitimately be devoted to the program are diverted to other
|
|||
|
|
uses.
|
|||
|
|
Set-aside should be viewed as a tax. It is, in fact, a
|
|||
|
|
double tax, for it is paid on top of a vendor's normal tax
|
|||
|
|
obligation. In this respect the Randolph-Sheppard program is
|
|||
|
|
unique, and blind vendors are uniquely vulnerable to the very
|
|||
|
|
real possibility of excessive charges. For example, in the state
|
|||
|
|
of North Carolina, half of each vendor's net income above $65,000
|
|||
|
|
must be turned over to the state. This rate goes to sixty-five
|
|||
|
|
percent charged on any net income above $91,000. The same vendors
|
|||
|
|
are paying federal and state income taxes, plus additional
|
|||
|
|
amounts of set-aside charged on their income below $65,000. The
|
|||
|
|
combined effect of these taxes and set-aside charges is to place
|
|||
|
|
an arbitrary ceiling on the income which a blind vendor may earn
|
|||
|
|
in North Carolina.
|
|||
|
|
RECOMMENDATIONS: The federal regulations should be amended
|
|||
|
|
to specify that the priority for blind people to operate vending
|
|||
|
|
facilities on federal property is based on the concept that the
|
|||
|
|
space and services related to the normal maintenance of the
|
|||
|
|
facilities are expected to be provided free of charge to support
|
|||
|
|
the blind vendor program. State licensing agencies should resist
|
|||
|
|
entering into contracts or permits which include any form of
|
|||
|
|
assessment against blind vendor proceeds on the basis that such
|
|||
|
|
assessments are not authorized by law. State licensing agencies
|
|||
|
|
and vendors should develop plans to reduce or eliminate set-aside
|
|||
|
|
payments whenever possible.
|
|||
|
|
(5) RESPONSIBILITIES OF BLIND VENDOR COMMITTEES
|
|||
|
|
DISCUSSION: The law requires that a committee, fully
|
|||
|
|
representative of the state's blind vendors, must be elected at
|
|||
|
|
least biennially. Certain responsibilities are also specified for
|
|||
|
|
the elected committee. The language of both the Act and the
|
|||
|
|
regulations goes beyond the normal advisory concept which is used
|
|||
|
|
to provide opportunities for consumer input in governmentally
|
|||
|
|
sponsored programs. The clear language of the statute and
|
|||
|
|
regulations seeks collaboration between vendors and agency
|
|||
|
|
representatives in significant aspects of policy-making and
|
|||
|
|
program-administration.
|
|||
|
|
The regulations use the term "active participation" to
|
|||
|
|
describe the committee/agency relationship. At the federal level
|
|||
|
|
the concept of active participation has never been defined with
|
|||
|
|
any degree of precision, however. To the extent that it has been
|
|||
|
|
defined, RSA typically advises state agencies to insure that the
|
|||
|
|
committee is involved at least to some degree in the areas of
|
|||
|
|
policy development and administration specified by law. If the
|
|||
|
|
agency does not adopt the course or courses of action recommended
|
|||
|
|
by the committee, the committee should be so notified in writing
|
|||
|
|
together with the reasons for making a contrary decision. This is
|
|||
|
|
about the extent of RSA's advice.
|
|||
|
|
RSA's interpretation of the committee/agency role is unduly
|
|||
|
|
restrictive. It follows the notion that agencies must decide
|
|||
|
|
important program matters after they have received input from
|
|||
|
|
consumers. Congress chose the term "participation," rather than
|
|||
|
|
"consultation," advisedly. Participation by the vendors in making
|
|||
|
|
policy decisions which vitally affect their business
|
|||
|
|
opportunities was considered to be essential for this particular
|
|||
|
|
program. The standard of "participation," rather than
|
|||
|
|
"consultation," is admittedly more stringent than the normal
|
|||
|
|
advisory committee approach. Therefore, creative policies must be
|
|||
|
|
used to foster significant opportunities for genuine
|
|||
|
|
participation between committees and state agencies. This can
|
|||
|
|
certainly be done without sacrificing agency accountability.
|
|||
|
|
RECOMMENDATIONS: The federal regulations should be amended
|
|||
|
|
to define the phrase "actively participate with," or "active
|
|||
|
|
participation," as follows: "Active participation means an
|
|||
|
|
ongoing process of negotiations between the state licensing
|
|||
|
|
agency and the elected committee of blind vendors to achieve
|
|||
|
|
joint planning and approval of policies, standards, and
|
|||
|
|
procedures, prior to their implementation by the agency." This
|
|||
|
|
definition should also be included in regulations adopted by each
|
|||
|
|
state agency and blind vendor committee. The state regulations
|
|||
|
|
should then be examined to insure that substantive opportunities
|
|||
|
|
for active participation are clearly prescribed.
|
|||
|
|
The federal regulations should also be amended to require
|
|||
|
|
each state to submit a plan for active participation along with
|
|||
|
|
its application for designation as a state licensing agency. At a
|
|||
|
|
minimum the plan should express the agency's commitment to the
|
|||
|
|
joint policy making and approval process described in the
|
|||
|
|
definition and should identify the procedures to be used to
|
|||
|
|
insure that active participation occurs. The plan should also
|
|||
|
|
specify with some precision the areas of policy-making and
|
|||
|
|
administration in which active participation will be used,
|
|||
|
|
including areas such as development of the annual program budget
|
|||
|
|
and recommendations for employment or dismissal of key personnel.
|
|||
|
|
(6) VENDING MACHINE INCOME CEILING
|
|||
|
|
DISCUSSION: The Randolph-Sheppard regulations establish a
|
|||
|
|
ceiling on the amount of vending machine income which may be
|
|||
|
|
received by a blind vendor under the income-sharing provisions of
|
|||
|
|
the Act. The ceiling is the average amount of net vendor proceeds
|
|||
|
|
for all vendors in the U. S. during the previous year--the
|
|||
|
|
national average--or the state average if higher than the
|
|||
|
|
national average. Any income above the ceiling which would
|
|||
|
|
otherwise be paid to a blind vendor is paid instead to the state
|
|||
|
|
licensing agency. In circumstances in which there is no vending
|
|||
|
|
facility operated by a blind vendor, state licensing agencies
|
|||
|
|
receive all of the income that would otherwise be paid to a blind
|
|||
|
|
vendor.
|
|||
|
|
The placement of a ceiling on any income paid to vendors is
|
|||
|
|
fundamentally at odds with a business-oriented, entrepreneurial
|
|||
|
|
program. The ceiling represents a judgment call as to how much
|
|||
|
|
money a blind vendor should receive. It really doesn't matter
|
|||
|
|
that in this instance the income in question is produced by
|
|||
|
|
machines which compete with the blind vendor; the effect--the
|
|||
|
|
limitation on net vendor proceeds--is still the same. If it is
|
|||
|
|
justified for blind vendors to receive such income, which the law
|
|||
|
|
says that it is, then there is no valid justification for
|
|||
|
|
imposing a limitation merely because the amount of the income
|
|||
|
|
seems too high.
|
|||
|
|
RECOMMENDATION: The federal regulations should be amended to
|
|||
|
|
remove the ceiling on the amount of vending machine income to be
|
|||
|
|
paid to a blind vendor.
|
|||
|
|
(7) ACQUISITION OF CAFETERIAS
|
|||
|
|
DISCUSSION: Cafeterias are included in the general
|
|||
|
|
definition of "vending facility" used in the program. Even so,
|
|||
|
|
the regulations create a distinction between vending facilities
|
|||
|
|
that are not cafeterias and vending facilities that are.
|
|||
|
|
Non-cafeteria facilities are normally secured by means of an
|
|||
|
|
instrument referred to in the regulations as a "permit." The
|
|||
|
|
terms of permits are directly negotiated between property-
|
|||
|
|
managing agencies and state licensing agencies. A general format
|
|||
|
|
is followed. Cafeterias, on the other hand, are normally but not
|
|||
|
|
always secured by a contract. The contract is far more extensive
|
|||
|
|
than the standard vending facility permit and is the type of
|
|||
|
|
instrument used to secure the same service from a commercial food
|
|||
|
|
service provider.
|
|||
|
|
Blind vendors are to receive a priority for the operation of
|
|||
|
|
cafeterias on federal property. However, the regulations provide
|
|||
|
|
two options which may be used to determine cafeteria awards under
|
|||
|
|
the priority. The first option, and the one generally applied, is
|
|||
|
|
a standard bid-solicitation and award process. The second option
|
|||
|
|
is direct negotiations between the federal and state agencies to
|
|||
|
|
reach a negotiated award. By both logic and experience, we know
|
|||
|
|
that the bid-solicitation option is demonstrably inconsistent
|
|||
|
|
with the intended priority for blind vendors to operate
|
|||
|
|
cafeterias.
|
|||
|
|
By their very nature bid solicitations involve competition.
|
|||
|
|
When that occurs under normal procedures, it is virtually
|
|||
|
|
impossible to determine whether the bid of a state licensing
|
|||
|
|
agency received any meaningful competitive preference. Besides, a
|
|||
|
|
competitive preference in the evaluation of proposals is not
|
|||
|
|
necessarily the same as a priority or a "prior right," as
|
|||
|
|
expressed in the legislative intent. Also, once contracts are
|
|||
|
|
awarded, they are normally extended automatically for two
|
|||
|
|
additional terms. Therefore, if a state licensing agency fails to
|
|||
|
|
receive an award for a cafeteria pursuant to a competitive
|
|||
|
|
solicitation, the opportunity can be lost for as long as fifteen
|
|||
|
|
years. These conditions have proven to be major obstacles to the
|
|||
|
|
establishment of a significant number of new opportunities for
|
|||
|
|
blind people to operate cafeterias during the past twenty years.
|
|||
|
|
RECOMMENDATIONS: The federal regulations should be amended to
|
|||
|
|
apply the well-known permit procedures to cafeteria as well as
|
|||
|
|
other vending facility awards. Just as in the case of other vending
|
|||
|
|
facilities, the terms and conditions of permits for cafeterias
|
|||
|
|
should be free from sales charges or any other required payments to
|
|||
|
|
federal property-managing agencies. Direct negotiations, leading to
|
|||
|
|
the terms of each specific permit, should be used for cafeterias.
|
|||
|
|
Also each existing cafeteria contract with a commercial firm should
|
|||
|
|
be subject to termination at the expiration of each term if direct
|
|||
|
|
negotiations with a state licensing agency result in satisfactory
|
|||
|
|
arrangements for a blind vendor to operate the cafeteria.
|
|||
|
|
(8) UNIFORM APPLICATION OF THE ACT
|
|||
|
|
DISCUSSION: The 1974 amendments anticipated that the
|
|||
|
|
requirements of the amended Act would be applied in a uniform
|
|||
|
|
manner throughout the United States. The federal regulations
|
|||
|
|
recognize this fact by obtaining each state's assurance that it
|
|||
|
|
will cooperate with the Secretary in applying the requirements of
|
|||
|
|
the Act in a uniform manner. The meaning and applicability of
|
|||
|
|
this phrase is not defined or described. Therefore, most state
|
|||
|
|
agencies have rather casually made the commitment without knowing
|
|||
|
|
or planning how to follow through.
|
|||
|
|
The conditions which may exist within each state for
|
|||
|
|
implementing the Act are not necessarily identical. Therefore,
|
|||
|
|
certain policies may not be entirely uniform. However, there are
|
|||
|
|
certain minimum requirements which could be met by every state
|
|||
|
|
agency. There is a need for RSA to issue clear instructions for
|
|||
|
|
national distribution when problems in uniform application of the
|
|||
|
|
Act are discovered. Several concerns come immediately to mind.
|
|||
|
|
For example, initial stocks of merchandise should always be
|
|||
|
|
provided without charge to the vendor, but there are at least a
|
|||
|
|
few states which do not do so. Also, although training, upward
|
|||
|
|
mobility, and continuing education programs are to be available
|
|||
|
|
to vendors, very few states have done anything meaningful to
|
|||
|
|
implement this requirement. As already noted, the extent of
|
|||
|
|
substantive opportunities for participation by committees of
|
|||
|
|
blind vendors is also quite variable.
|
|||
|
|
RECOMMENDATIONS: RSA should implement a program of frequent
|
|||
|
|
communications with state licensing agencies and blind vendors.
|
|||
|
|
Circulation of a regular newsletter should be considered. In
|
|||
|
|
addition, RSA should issue regular instructions to the state
|
|||
|
|
agencies and blind vendor committees to assist them in applying
|
|||
|
|
the requirements of the Act with as much uniformity as possible.
|
|||
|
|
Information resulting from arbitration decisions and other
|
|||
|
|
developments which have a potential impact on the program should
|
|||
|
|
also be circulated promptly to the states and to blind vendor
|
|||
|
|
committee representatives.
|
|||
|
|
(9) ADVOCACY
|
|||
|
|
DISCUSSION: Lack of advocacy by state licensing agencies is
|
|||
|
|
a principal and perennial complaint expressed by blind vendors.
|
|||
|
|
The complaint is often, but not necessarily always, justified.
|
|||
|
|
Because of the legal responsibilities specified in the law, the
|
|||
|
|
licensing agencies are interposed between the vendors and
|
|||
|
|
property managers. This position creates a situation which can be
|
|||
|
|
somewhat delicate. The vendors are the principal clientele or
|
|||
|
|
constituency of the state agency, yet in matters of conflict the
|
|||
|
|
path of least resistance may seem to be to respond favorably to
|
|||
|
|
the wishes of property managers. Disregarding the well-founded
|
|||
|
|
views of vendors can lead agencies into a pattern of needless and
|
|||
|
|
unproductive conflict with blind licensees. This will happen when
|
|||
|
|
vendors lose trust in the agency and feel that it is not and does
|
|||
|
|
not want to be their advocate.
|
|||
|
|
RECOMMENDATION: State licensing agencies and blind vendors
|
|||
|
|
should develop relationships of trust and mutual respect for the
|
|||
|
|
rights and responsibilities of all parties in the
|
|||
|
|
Randolph-Sheppard program. To achieve this goal, state licensing
|
|||
|
|
agencies must not shrink from assuming an advocacy posture on
|
|||
|
|
behalf of the vendors in appropriate circumstances. One such
|
|||
|
|
circumstance certainly exists when a property-managing agency
|
|||
|
|
commits acts that violate the rights of blind vendors and the
|
|||
|
|
law. When this happens, the agency can earn the everlasting
|
|||
|
|
respect of the vendors by coming to their aid in a time of need.
|
|||
|
|
In fact, it is the state licensing agency's responsibility to do
|
|||
|
|
so. Each state licensing agency should acknowledge this
|
|||
|
|
responsibility in its program regulations and policies.
|
|||
|
|
(10) ADMINISTRATIVE DUE PROCESS
|
|||
|
|
DISCUSSION: The Randolph-Sheppard regulations clearly
|
|||
|
|
require that an opportunity for a full evidentiary hearing must
|
|||
|
|
be provided to a blind vendor whenever the vendor's license is to
|
|||
|
|
be suspended or revoked. It is somewhat surprising that this
|
|||
|
|
rather unambiguous statement has been the subject of numerous
|
|||
|
|
disputes, often to the point of litigation. The disputes normally
|
|||
|
|
arise when vendors are summarily removed from vending facilities.
|
|||
|
|
The removal is subject to challenge on the basis that there was
|
|||
|
|
no opportunity for a hearing in advance.
|
|||
|
|
An agency's only defense is to claim that the vendor's
|
|||
|
|
license is still in effect. Vendors respond that the license is
|
|||
|
|
not actually in effect at all because the opportunity to operate
|
|||
|
|
a vending facility has been withdrawn. The license in the
|
|||
|
|
Randolph-Sheppard program means essentially nothing if it does
|
|||
|
|
not include an assignment to a vending facility, because the
|
|||
|
|
Randolph-Sheppard license cannot be used in open commerce. In
|
|||
|
|
this respect it is not the same as having an occupational or
|
|||
|
|
professional license in some other form, such as a teaching
|
|||
|
|
credential or a license to practice law or medicine. Unlike these
|
|||
|
|
other situations, the state agency in the Randolph-Sheppard
|
|||
|
|
program exclusively controls vending facility assignments. The
|
|||
|
|
only way for it to prove that a vendor's license is still in
|
|||
|
|
effect is to assign the vendor to a facility.
|
|||
|
|
RECOMMENDATIONS: The federal regulations should be amended
|
|||
|
|
to specify the circumstances in which a license is deemed to be
|
|||
|
|
suspended or revoked. Involuntary removal of the vendor from any
|
|||
|
|
particular vending facility assignment should be defined as the
|
|||
|
|
suspension or revocation of the license. State licensing agencies
|
|||
|
|
should also adopt regulations to implement this policy.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
____________________
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
[PHOTO: Portrait. CAPTION: Dr. Homer Page.]
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
ADVICE TO BLIND STUDENT TEACHERS FROM A PROFESSOR OF EDUCATION
|
|||
|
|
by Homer Page
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Editor's Note: Dr. Homer Page is blind and for many years
|
|||
|
|
has been a professor in the Department of Education at the
|
|||
|
|
University of Colorado at Boulder. He is also Chairman of the
|
|||
|
|
Boulder County Board of Commissioners and President of the
|
|||
|
|
National Federation of the Blind of Colorado. At the 1993 meeting
|
|||
|
|
of the National Association of Blind Educators he had good advice
|
|||
|
|
for blind students planning to do student teaching. His remarks
|
|||
|
|
were printed in the Spring/Summer 1994 issue of the Blind
|
|||
|
|
Educator, the publication of the National Association of Blind
|
|||
|
|
Educators. This is what he said:
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
I am very pleased to have a chance to speak to you on this
|
|||
|
|
topic. Of course, the blind student teacher must have a good
|
|||
|
|
knowledge of the subject which is to be taught, but equally
|
|||
|
|
important is mastery of the skills of blindness. The blind
|
|||
|
|
student teacher must be literate in Braille, quick with keyboard
|
|||
|
|
skills, and experienced in the use of the long white cane. Since
|
|||
|
|
sighted student teachers are expected to pick up a list of
|
|||
|
|
student names on the first day and read them quickly, the blind
|
|||
|
|
student teacher must have the skills to do the same. For most of
|
|||
|
|
us who do not see or do not see very well, Braille skills are a
|
|||
|
|
requirement. When closed circuit TV or very enlarged materials
|
|||
|
|
must be used, so much energy is consumed in decoding the print
|
|||
|
|
that the teacher inevitably loses contact with the students.
|
|||
|
|
Braille is the solution for such a teacher.
|
|||
|
|
Always remember, classroom management is essential. The
|
|||
|
|
blind student teacher must be assertive. The teacher manages
|
|||
|
|
everything in the educational process. It is absolutely necessary
|
|||
|
|
that the blind student teacher do everything required of the
|
|||
|
|
sighted teachers. If the blind teacher gets by with not doing
|
|||
|
|
something, a mark will almost certainly be placed in the record
|
|||
|
|
showing that this teacher cannot perform required tasks. Never
|
|||
|
|
let an on-site teacher or friend talk you out of completing a
|
|||
|
|
requirement. In fact, it would be better to do more than other
|
|||
|
|
students are doing. The blind student teacher must have a lot of
|
|||
|
|
pre-student teaching experience. Take advantage of opportunities
|
|||
|
|
such as observations, internships, summer camps, and other
|
|||
|
|
experiences which build confidence. Make sure that the faculty of
|
|||
|
|
the Department of Education are aware of these pre-teaching
|
|||
|
|
experiences.
|
|||
|
|
A lot of students tell me that they would love to teach
|
|||
|
|
because math, English, history, . . . is the field in which they
|
|||
|
|
have knowledge. The reality is that, in most schools and
|
|||
|
|
universities today, classroom management is every bit as
|
|||
|
|
important as subject knowledge. If a teacher does not have the
|
|||
|
|
management skills, he or she should choose another career. If the
|
|||
|
|
teacher cannot keep the students under control, it simply does
|
|||
|
|
not matter how much the teacher knows. Not only will the teacher
|
|||
|
|
not last, but he or she will be miserable while trying to teach.
|
|||
|
|
My definition of hell is trying to instruct students who are not
|
|||
|
|
learning. These days an educator must have the skills to handle
|
|||
|
|
students with a variety of unique needs. The talent of dealing
|
|||
|
|
with individual needs is developed by working with a variety of
|
|||
|
|
students in different settings. One cannot learn all these skills
|
|||
|
|
while trying to student teach.
|
|||
|
|
I use an important word when talking to student teachers; it
|
|||
|
|
is "presence." By this I mean that the teacher has the talent to
|
|||
|
|
tell students what to do and have them do it. As a professor in a
|
|||
|
|
Department of Education, I have supervised hundreds of student
|
|||
|
|
teachers, most of whom were not blind. Their major problem was
|
|||
|
|
that they could not control the people they were expected to
|
|||
|
|
educate. Many student teachers appear to be teaching on their
|
|||
|
|
heels when they need to be instructing on their toes. The teacher
|
|||
|
|
must sit or stand tall, leaning forward and truly engaging with
|
|||
|
|
everything and everyone in the area. Careful listening is a
|
|||
|
|
necessary skill.
|
|||
|
|
One of the hardest techniques for new teachers to learn is
|
|||
|
|
to encompass the entire environment in their attention, rather
|
|||
|
|
than one or two students. If the teacher's full attention is on
|
|||
|
|
one or two students or one portion of the class, he or she has
|
|||
|
|
lost. Everyone and everything must be in the teacher's
|
|||
|
|
consciousness. This skill is not easy to learn. I have read
|
|||
|
|
estimates that it takes five years to learn to engage completely
|
|||
|
|
with the class. Blind educators must learn these skills for all
|
|||
|
|
the usual reasons, but it is also true that students are
|
|||
|
|
perfectly happy to take advantage of the teacher's blindness. If
|
|||
|
|
the blind teacher does not recognize this truth, I don't believe
|
|||
|
|
he or she is long for this profession. Blind educators must hear
|
|||
|
|
and engage all the students simultaneously. This ability only
|
|||
|
|
comes with a lot of practice. I recommend that you get it before
|
|||
|
|
you begin student teaching. Schools always want speakers on
|
|||
|
|
blindness, so take advantage of these opportunities to take over
|
|||
|
|
a class and deal with students. Do not forget internships,
|
|||
|
|
observation, and off-campus experience. And always remember that
|
|||
|
|
magic word, "engagement."
|
|||
|
|
It is also very important to be organized. When the blind
|
|||
|
|
teacher goes into a classroom, the lesson must be planned, and he
|
|||
|
|
or she must have prepared all the necessary materials and know
|
|||
|
|
where they are. A teacher can't be hunting for things or
|
|||
|
|
wondering what comes next or what the sequence is. If the student
|
|||
|
|
teacher is not well organized, the students will be gone. Being
|
|||
|
|
organized is part of having the presence of a real teacher.
|
|||
|
|
I always tell my student teachers, be they sighted or blind,
|
|||
|
|
to get the list of students and learn their names before meeting
|
|||
|
|
them for the first time. If a teacher does not know names, the
|
|||
|
|
students can really get out of control. Have a relationship with
|
|||
|
|
each student; take the time to learn something about each one and
|
|||
|
|
remember it.
|
|||
|
|
You have probably heard these ideas before; however, it is
|
|||
|
|
very easy for the blind student teacher not to have realized that
|
|||
|
|
extra effort before student teaching would make all the
|
|||
|
|
difference. Learning to deal with a variety of activities in the
|
|||
|
|
environment, with the layout of the school, and with the building
|
|||
|
|
plan for fire drills--all these take planning and practice. The
|
|||
|
|
bottom line is that blind student teachers must obtain the same
|
|||
|
|
results as their sighted peers. How blind teachers learn about
|
|||
|
|
the environment is not important. What is crucial is that we
|
|||
|
|
accomplish the same goals as all other teachers.
|
|||
|
|
The first day of student teaching the teacher must feel at
|
|||
|
|
home in the classroom. That means a lot of preparation ahead of
|
|||
|
|
time and being aggressive and assertive. Make the lesson plan for
|
|||
|
|
the first day the best one of the whole year. Remember to start
|
|||
|
|
in control. It is very hard to recover from a poor start. When
|
|||
|
|
any student teacher loses control, the supervising teacher must
|
|||
|
|
take over. This happens all the time, but if the student teacher
|
|||
|
|
happens to be blind, the supervisor is all too likely to conclude
|
|||
|
|
that this student cannot teach. He or she may well communicate
|
|||
|
|
these reservations about the blind student teacher's ability to
|
|||
|
|
the education faculty, who are still too often just waiting for
|
|||
|
|
such a report. The next thing you know, the blind student teacher
|
|||
|
|
has not obtained a credential.
|
|||
|
|
By taking heed of this scenario, the blind student teacher
|
|||
|
|
can take the necessary measures to earn a place at the top of the
|
|||
|
|
class in a Department of Education. So remember these things:
|
|||
|
|
1) know the skills of blindness before beginning student
|
|||
|
|
teaching,
|
|||
|
|
2) be assertive in university education classes,
|
|||
|
|
3) be prepared,
|
|||
|
|
4) sit in the front row and be smart,
|
|||
|
|
5) let everybody get to know the blind student teacher and
|
|||
|
|
observe the alternative teaching skills of blindness in
|
|||
|
|
operation,
|
|||
|
|
6) get pre-student-teaching experience,
|
|||
|
|
7) get to know the school and the supervising teacher, and
|
|||
|
|
8) know where everything is kept in the classroom, know the
|
|||
|
|
students, and have an excellent lesson plan.
|
|||
|
|
In your heart be in control and believe that you have a
|
|||
|
|
great deal to give each student. If the blind student teacher
|
|||
|
|
follows this plan, he or she should have an enjoyable student-
|
|||
|
|
teaching experience.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
____________________
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
MORE TALK ABOUT THE GUI
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
From the Editor: At the Second U.S./Canada Conference on
|
|||
|
|
Technology for the Blind, which took place last fall at the
|
|||
|
|
National Center for the Blind, there was a good deal of
|
|||
|
|
discussion of the problems involved in operating access
|
|||
|
|
technology for the blind with computer systems using one of the
|
|||
|
|
graphical user interface (GUI) operating systems. (See the
|
|||
|
|
January, 1994, issue of the Braille Monitor for a full report of
|
|||
|
|
the conference.) One of the speakers was Curtis Chong, President
|
|||
|
|
of the National Federation of the Blind in Computer Science, who
|
|||
|
|
raised his concern that the GUI threat to the jobs and futures of
|
|||
|
|
blind employees is so serious as to require a genuine effort
|
|||
|
|
throughout the industry to solve the access problems and allow
|
|||
|
|
blind computer-users to operate the software being developed
|
|||
|
|
using the GUI. Comments received since publication of the
|
|||
|
|
conference proceedings suggest that most people agree with Mr.
|
|||
|
|
Chong's concern, but not all. The following is a letter Curtis
|
|||
|
|
Chong received by E-mail from a Federationist who works for IBM
|
|||
|
|
and is himself a gifted programmer and experienced computer user.
|
|||
|
|
Here is Christopher Chaltain's letter, followed by Curtis Chong's
|
|||
|
|
response and a letter to Curtis from Peggy Elliott (Second Vice
|
|||
|
|
President of the National Federation of the Blind), who happened
|
|||
|
|
to see the exchange of correspondence:
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
From: Christopher J. Chaltain
|
|||
|
|
To: Curtis Chong
|
|||
|
|
Subject: Comments about your remarks at the technology conference
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Dear Curtis,
|
|||
|
|
In the Braille Monitor I read the comments you made at the
|
|||
|
|
meeting of the Joint Committee on Technology held at the National
|
|||
|
|
Center in 1993. I have some critical comments on your
|
|||
|
|
presentation and other remarks you made at the meeting.
|
|||
|
|
First, you stated that IBM first demonstrated Screen
|
|||
|
|
Reader/2 at the 1992 National Convention held in Charlotte, North
|
|||
|
|
Carolina. Actually, Jim Thatcher demonstrated a prototype of
|
|||
|
|
Screen Reader/2 in 1990 at the national convention held in
|
|||
|
|
Dallas. Furthermore, in 1991 in New Orleans IBM was demonstrating
|
|||
|
|
a version of Screen Reader/2 for version 1.3 of OS/2. This
|
|||
|
|
version was also available on a limited basis to IBM customers.
|
|||
|
|
What was unique about the demonstration in Charlotte was that it
|
|||
|
|
marked the general availability of Screen Reader/2, which ran on
|
|||
|
|
OS/2 2.0 and provided support for MS Windows applications.
|
|||
|
|
Second, you implied that Microsoft's interest in making MS
|
|||
|
|
Windows accessible began with the passage of the Americans with
|
|||
|
|
Disabilities ACT (ADA). Unfortunately, the structure of your
|
|||
|
|
presentation also had you referring to IBM in the surrounding
|
|||
|
|
comments, which could lead the listeners to infer that IBM's
|
|||
|
|
efforts were also a result of ADA. As you know, this is not the
|
|||
|
|
case. Besides the dates mentioned in my previous paragraph, I
|
|||
|
|
have been aware of Jim's efforts to make OS/2 accessible to the
|
|||
|
|
blind since 1988, and I believe he started earlier than that.
|
|||
|
|
This shows that IBM's interest in making OS/2 accessible predates
|
|||
|
|
the passage of ADA. The accessibility of OS/2 by the blind is
|
|||
|
|
more a result of Jim Thatcher's drive and efforts than any other
|
|||
|
|
single cause. Third, when the subject of the American Printing
|
|||
|
|
House for the Blind's (APH) producing a tape to instruct the
|
|||
|
|
blind on using the graphical user interface (GUI) came up, you
|
|||
|
|
recommended that the target system should be a Macintosh with
|
|||
|
|
OutSpoken, since that is the only graphical user interface
|
|||
|
|
accessible to the blind. I have never used a Macintosh running
|
|||
|
|
OutSpoken, but I cannot imagine that it is more accessible than
|
|||
|
|
an OS/2 machine running Screen Reader/2. I have been using OS/2
|
|||
|
|
and Screen Reader/2 exclusively since the first month of 1991.
|
|||
|
|
Not only has this allowed me to advance in my career, but it has
|
|||
|
|
made me a more efficient and productive employee.
|
|||
|
|
Finally, the overall tone of your remarks was negative and
|
|||
|
|
pessimistic regarding the blind's use of the graphical user
|
|||
|
|
interface. I, on the other hand, am optimistic and encouraged by
|
|||
|
|
the work done by IBM, Berkeley Systems, and others. There is a
|
|||
|
|
reason that the graphical user interface is becoming so popular
|
|||
|
|
among our sighted colleagues, and those very same reasons make it
|
|||
|
|
an exciting opportunity for the blind computer user. As I stated
|
|||
|
|
above, I am a more efficient and productive computer user because
|
|||
|
|
of my access to a GUI. Furthermore, I have access to applications
|
|||
|
|
I never could have accessed under DOS like the desktop publishing
|
|||
|
|
software, FrameMaker for Windows. Under DOS this WYSIWYG
|
|||
|
|
application would have been totally graphical and inaccessible to
|
|||
|
|
the blind user.
|
|||
|
|
Obviously the blind user faces some challenges with the
|
|||
|
|
graphical user interface. It is not as intuitive for the blind
|
|||
|
|
user as it is supposed to be for the sighted user. However, once
|
|||
|
|
the blind user has mastered the additional complexity of a GUI
|
|||
|
|
and the associated access application, the benefits of the Common
|
|||
|
|
User Access (CUA) standards and multi-tasking make it well worth
|
|||
|
|
the effort.
|
|||
|
|
I guess I was particularly distressed by your comments. I,
|
|||
|
|
like many other blind computer users, hold you in high regard and
|
|||
|
|
value your opinion. I was under the impression from your comments
|
|||
|
|
at previous conventions that you were impressed with the work of
|
|||
|
|
Jim Thatcher and IBM to make OS/2 and MS Windows accessible to
|
|||
|
|
the blind. I was also under the impression that you had an open
|
|||
|
|
mind to the benefits the GUI could have for a blind computer
|
|||
|
|
user. None of this came out in your comments, at least not in my
|
|||
|
|
reading.
|
|||
|
|
Would it be possible for me to get a copy of your remarks? I
|
|||
|
|
am sure they are available somewhere on the Internet or on some
|
|||
|
|
bulletin board. I would like to pass them around to a few people
|
|||
|
|
to see if my comments are shared by any of the other blind GUI
|
|||
|
|
users.
|
|||
|
|
Christopher
|
|||
|
|
__________
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
That is what Chris Chaltain wrote to Curtis Chong. Here is
|
|||
|
|
Curtis's response:
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
To: Christopher J. Chaltain
|
|||
|
|
From: Curtis Chong
|
|||
|
|
Subject: My Remarks on the GUI
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Dear Chris:
|
|||
|
|
Thank you for taking the time to write to me with your
|
|||
|
|
thoughts concerning my speech on the Problems and Challenges of
|
|||
|
|
the Graphical User Interface (GUI). I am always glad to receive
|
|||
|
|
constructive and thoughtful criticism about the articles and
|
|||
|
|
speeches I write.
|
|||
|
|
First, I would like to set the record straight concerning my
|
|||
|
|
view of Screen Reader/2 in general and my high regard for Jim
|
|||
|
|
Thatcher in particular.
|
|||
|
|
In many informal conversations in person, on the phone, over
|
|||
|
|
the Internet, on NFB-NET, and in the CompuServe Disabilities
|
|||
|
|
Forum, I have expressed the belief that IBM deserves a lot of
|
|||
|
|
credit for developing Screen Reader/2. As you so rightly point
|
|||
|
|
out, IBM's work on this program pre-dates the Americans with
|
|||
|
|
Disabilities Act (ADA). Screen Reader/2 is today the only screen
|
|||
|
|
access solution for blind people who want or need to use the OS/2
|
|||
|
|
operating system. If a corporation selects OS/2 as its platform
|
|||
|
|
of choice, blind people who are affected by this decision will be
|
|||
|
|
able to keep their jobs because of Screen Reader/2. And yes I
|
|||
|
|
know that Screen Reader/2, used with OS/2, can provide access to
|
|||
|
|
applications designed to run under Microsoft Windows.
|
|||
|
|
As I learn more about Screen Reader/2 (having recently
|
|||
|
|
converted my office computer to OS/2), I am impressed by the
|
|||
|
|
amount of planning, forethought, and downright genius that has
|
|||
|
|
gone into the development of this software. I thank God, quite
|
|||
|
|
literally, for Jim Thatcher. Although he would probably not admit
|
|||
|
|
it, I believe that he has been the inspiration, the driving
|
|||
|
|
force, and the architect for the entire Screen Reader project.
|
|||
|
|
Jim Thatcher possesses great personal warmth, public charm,
|
|||
|
|
tremendous enthusiasm, and intuitive genius. I have made no
|
|||
|
|
secret of my high personal regard for him. This is why year after
|
|||
|
|
year I have invited him to speak at annual meetings of the
|
|||
|
|
National Federation of the Blind in Computer Science. Jim has
|
|||
|
|
never disappointed me. He always has something interesting and
|
|||
|
|
thought-provoking to say, and he is always upbeat about the
|
|||
|
|
potential for blind people to use the GUI on the same terms as
|
|||
|
|
their sighted peers.
|
|||
|
|
Why then in my speech did I not devote more space to IBM and
|
|||
|
|
Screen Reader/2? Why did I fail to mention the fact that in 1990
|
|||
|
|
and again in 1991 prototypes of Screen Reader/2 were demonstrated
|
|||
|
|
at Federation conventions? Why did I not express more optimism
|
|||
|
|
about the potential for blind people to use GUI applications?
|
|||
|
|
I think, to understand why my speech turned out as it did,
|
|||
|
|
you have to be aware of the context in which it was presented and
|
|||
|
|
the audience I was attempting to address. As you know, the Second
|
|||
|
|
U.S./Canada Conference on Technology for the Blind brought
|
|||
|
|
together people from four groups: leaders from the field of work
|
|||
|
|
with the blind, leaders from organizations of the blind, leaders
|
|||
|
|
from companies manufacturing or marketing specialized technology
|
|||
|
|
for the blind, and representatives from the principal computer
|
|||
|
|
companies in private industry having a major effect upon the
|
|||
|
|
ability of blind people to use commercial software (i.e., IBM and
|
|||
|
|
Microsoft). Because of the diverse nature of the group, it was
|
|||
|
|
difficult for me to come up with points that would mean the same
|
|||
|
|
thing to everybody. I wanted to shake up the rehabilitation
|
|||
|
|
professionals--to stop them from wallowing in DOS-based solutions
|
|||
|
|
for their blind clients. I wanted to send a message to private
|
|||
|
|
industry to the effect that today the GUI is still a problem for
|
|||
|
|
the blind, despite Screen Reader/2. I wanted to make the point
|
|||
|
|
that access to the GUI is not a matter to be considered once and
|
|||
|
|
then forgotten; it is something that must be considered each and
|
|||
|
|
every time a new operating system or application is developed.
|
|||
|
|
I readily admit that at the time my speech was written I
|
|||
|
|
knew next to nothing about how to run a GUI platform. When I
|
|||
|
|
wrote my speech, I was getting a constant stream of queries from
|
|||
|
|
blind people around the country who were concerned that their
|
|||
|
|
jobs were on the line because of conversions to a graphical
|
|||
|
|
platform or application. The platform most frequently mentioned
|
|||
|
|
was Windows. I had no current and specific information from
|
|||
|
|
knowledgeable, articulate blind people (such as you) about the
|
|||
|
|
ability of OS/2 and Screen Reader/2 to provide real access to
|
|||
|
|
such software as Word for Windows or (in your case) Framemaker
|
|||
|
|
for Windows. I was thinking in terms of the average blind
|
|||
|
|
computer user--one who could not get early releases of software
|
|||
|
|
from IBM, who knew nothing about the differences between DOS and
|
|||
|
|
an operating system using the GUI, and who was told to convert to
|
|||
|
|
Windows but not to OS/2.
|
|||
|
|
I do recall that in 1990 and 1991 prototypes of Screen
|
|||
|
|
Reader/2 were demonstrated at NFB and other conventions. I
|
|||
|
|
remember going to a Wednesday afternoon demonstration of Screen
|
|||
|
|
Reader/2 at the Charlotte convention in 1992. Because the 1990
|
|||
|
|
and 1991 demonstrations were of prototypes, available only to a
|
|||
|
|
limited set of individuals, I did not regard them as having much
|
|||
|
|
significance in the overall scheme of things. It was perhaps
|
|||
|
|
because of this perception that I did not mention them in my
|
|||
|
|
speech. The 1992 demonstration was quite another matter, as you
|
|||
|
|
know. By then Screen Reader/2 was a viable product, soon to be
|
|||
|
|
available generally. That, I felt, was worth mentioning in my
|
|||
|
|
speech. And while we are on the subject, I did not actually say
|
|||
|
|
that the Charlotte demonstration was the first time IBM had ever
|
|||
|
|
demonstrated Screen Reader/2. My exact words were, "At the 1992
|
|||
|
|
convention of the National Federation of the Blind, IBM
|
|||
|
|
demonstrated its screen reading system for the graphical OS/2
|
|||
|
|
Presentation Manager." Although this statement fails to make note
|
|||
|
|
of the 1990-91 prototype demonstrations, it was never meant to
|
|||
|
|
imply that IBM had done nothing in this area until 1992.
|
|||
|
|
You say that the over-all tone of my remarks was negative
|
|||
|
|
and pessimistic. I would prefer to think of the tone as
|
|||
|
|
realistic. As you say, you have been using Screen Reader/2 and
|
|||
|
|
OS/2 Presentation Manager since the beginning of 1991. You have
|
|||
|
|
doubtless had access to Screen Reader developers, OS/2 support
|
|||
|
|
personnel, and perhaps even some intensive training. With all of
|
|||
|
|
these resources to help you, how could you not feel positive
|
|||
|
|
about the GUI and your ability to develop and use applications
|
|||
|
|
built around it?
|
|||
|
|
On the other hand, I and a growing number of other blind
|
|||
|
|
people are only now beginning to use GUI operating systems and
|
|||
|
|
applications. In my case, although I am fortunate to have contact
|
|||
|
|
with some key IBM people such as Jim Thatcher, I found that I was
|
|||
|
|
not getting enough day-to-day help to understand the intricacies
|
|||
|
|
of this new graphical operating system, OS/2. No one where I
|
|||
|
|
worked could tell me how to manipulate objects on the OS/2
|
|||
|
|
desktop without a mouse, not to mention learning about Screen
|
|||
|
|
Reader/2. I was continually frustrated by the fact that the
|
|||
|
|
documentation, even though it was online, provided very little
|
|||
|
|
in-depth information about how everything worked together.
|
|||
|
|
Installing a simple DOS application (WordPerfect 5.1) would have
|
|||
|
|
been far more difficult if I had followed the instructions in the
|
|||
|
|
OS/2 User's Guide. In the end it became necessary for me to
|
|||
|
|
arrange to receive a week's training from Frank DiPalermo, a
|
|||
|
|
Screen Reader/2 consultant. Fortunately for me, my employer was
|
|||
|
|
more than willing to pay for the training. How many other blind
|
|||
|
|
people do you suppose will find themselves in exactly the fix I
|
|||
|
|
was in? Quite a few, I would bet. How many of them will be as
|
|||
|
|
fortunate as I was? I simply don't know.
|
|||
|
|
I think that it is also important to point out here that
|
|||
|
|
OS/2 is not the only graphically-based system that has created
|
|||
|
|
concern among blind computer users and professionals. More and
|
|||
|
|
more blind people want to know when a commercial access product
|
|||
|
|
will be available for X Windows applications. I have received
|
|||
|
|
complaints from frustrated blind Macintosh users who tell me that
|
|||
|
|
Berkeley Systems is diminishing its support for the outSPOKEN
|
|||
|
|
program. Do these problems cause me to be negative and
|
|||
|
|
pessimistic? I prefer to think of them as helping me to be
|
|||
|
|
"concerned." As you say, blind people still face challenges
|
|||
|
|
accessing the graphical user interface. Screen Reader/2 is one
|
|||
|
|
solution to the problem, but it is by no means the only
|
|||
|
|
solution--nor should it be.
|
|||
|
|
Screen Reader/2 and OS/2 are fine systems in their own
|
|||
|
|
right. Together they provide access to a wide variety of GUI
|
|||
|
|
applications. This is the message I have been communicating to
|
|||
|
|
blind people in a variety of forums. I chose not to promote
|
|||
|
|
Screen Reader/2 quite so heavily in my speech because I was
|
|||
|
|
attempting to communicate a different message. If you feel that I
|
|||
|
|
was not as positive about Screen Reader/2, OS/2, and IBM in my
|
|||
|
|
speech as you might have liked, I can only say that I have had
|
|||
|
|
other opportunities to demonstrate my support in ways that you
|
|||
|
|
may not know. For example, on behalf of the NFB in Computer
|
|||
|
|
Science a few months ago I wrote a letter of support for the
|
|||
|
|
Screen Reader project when I learned that it was being
|
|||
|
|
re-examined by IBM top management. I circulated the letter quite
|
|||
|
|
widely and caused other blind people to write letters of their
|
|||
|
|
own.
|
|||
|
|
Under separate cover I will be shipping you an electronic
|
|||
|
|
copy of my speech as an ASCII text file. Feel free to circulate
|
|||
|
|
it to other blind GUI users or to anyone else you think would be
|
|||
|
|
interested in reading it. When you solicit reactions to the
|
|||
|
|
speech, I hope you will keep in mind what I have said here.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Cordially,
|
|||
|
|
Curtis Chong, President
|
|||
|
|
National Federation of the Blind in Computer Science
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
__________
|
|||
|
|
April 12, 1994
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Dear Curtis:
|
|||
|
|
Thanks for letting me see your exchange with Chris Chaltain.
|
|||
|
|
I have a few additional comments growing out of my status as an
|
|||
|
|
amateur and lay user. Neither of you can claim this status.
|
|||
|
|
As I understand it, the theoretical benefits of GUI are
|
|||
|
|
twofold: first, the GUI allows faster and more versatile use of
|
|||
|
|
computers. And second, it allows more transparent use of a
|
|||
|
|
computer through manipulation of intuitively obvious icons--that
|
|||
|
|
is, allowing the computer to appear less like a computer and more
|
|||
|
|
like a tool to get the job done. Chris actually addresses only
|
|||
|
|
the first issue, versatility and efficiency.
|
|||
|
|
For the able, dedicated (and usually vocational) blind
|
|||
|
|
computer user, access to the GUI as Chris describes it is now
|
|||
|
|
possible (although not necessarily ideal). As you point out, the
|
|||
|
|
choices for the blind user are much more limited than for the
|
|||
|
|
sighted user. However, I don't think that this is the real
|
|||
|
|
problem.
|
|||
|
|
When starting to use a GUI application, the sighted user's
|
|||
|
|
learning curve is just plain faster than it would be for a blind
|
|||
|
|
person. As I understand it, GUI uses obvious visual prompts and
|
|||
|
|
pictures to guide a user intuitively through the desired tasks.
|
|||
|
|
The theory is that the sighted user of a GUI system can become
|
|||
|
|
comfortable and productive with the software much more quickly
|
|||
|
|
than would be the case with a program using plain text. Moreover,
|
|||
|
|
the commands that a sighted person has to use can be displayed on
|
|||
|
|
the screen through the use of pull-down menus that are simple and
|
|||
|
|
intuitive to access. There is also the indisputable fact that a
|
|||
|
|
sighted person can learn at a glance (and does not have to
|
|||
|
|
remember) how windows and other elements on the graphical screen
|
|||
|
|
are laid out. Then there is the mouse. GUI applications make
|
|||
|
|
extensive use of this device. Sighted users click the mouse on
|
|||
|
|
icons and other items on the screen or move them from place to
|
|||
|
|
place by dragging them with the mouse. A sighted person using a
|
|||
|
|
mouse can tell at a glance where items are being moved and what
|
|||
|
|
item is being clicked on.
|
|||
|
|
The blind person who needs to use a GUI application is
|
|||
|
|
operating at a disadvantage from the word go. In addition to
|
|||
|
|
learning everything that the sighted person has to learn, the
|
|||
|
|
blind user must learn how to make the speech- or Braille-access
|
|||
|
|
program (assuming it exists) do what is wanted. Also the blind
|
|||
|
|
person has to find other ways to do what a sighted person can do
|
|||
|
|
intuitively and at a glance with the mouse.
|
|||
|
|
To put it plainly, for the sighted, commands and tasks are
|
|||
|
|
standardized, simplified, and speeded up through the use of a GUI
|
|||
|
|
application; for us the steps you go through to find out what is
|
|||
|
|
available, what is wanted, and how to do it are often varied,
|
|||
|
|
complicated, and not very well understood by those who use sight
|
|||
|
|
to work with GUI programs.
|
|||
|
|
You make this point in a different way. Many of us blind
|
|||
|
|
users don't have the skill you have; many of us don't have the
|
|||
|
|
persistence you have; most of us don't have an employer who will
|
|||
|
|
pay for a week's training. The sighted user doesn't need this
|
|||
|
|
kind of specialized training, but a blind person very well might
|
|||
|
|
because of the inherently visual nature of the GUI. This may be
|
|||
|
|
dismissed as merely the problems of software development for and
|
|||
|
|
skill development by the blind. But GUI in all its forms is a
|
|||
|
|
sufficiently large barrier that it has come close to shutting a
|
|||
|
|
lot of us out of computers. The other point, however, remains.
|
|||
|
|
For a sighted user, as I understand it, the use of GUI
|
|||
|
|
facilitates speed and versatility; for the blind user without
|
|||
|
|
programmer-level training and experience and without support in
|
|||
|
|
this specific context, the GUI can still close out access to the
|
|||
|
|
computer. This includes most of us.
|
|||
|
|
Here is the point that I really want to make. While nothing
|
|||
|
|
that Chris says is inaccurate, he needs to take into account the
|
|||
|
|
larger perspective. I am a good example. I am a DOS user, not a
|
|||
|
|
GUI user. I can understand the concept of a screen that is
|
|||
|
|
twenty-five lines high by eighty characters wide. I can
|
|||
|
|
understand enough about DOS to get the job done, and I can
|
|||
|
|
understand what information needs to be conveyed by a screen-
|
|||
|
|
reading program so that a blind person can use the computer
|
|||
|
|
without sighted assistance. I do not need or want the added
|
|||
|
|
complexity that use of the GUI would bring. In a small office I
|
|||
|
|
need quick results. I need to be able to troubleshoot problems
|
|||
|
|
immediately without having to call upon more technically
|
|||
|
|
sophisticated computer people for assistance. I have to get the
|
|||
|
|
work out now. I can't afford to allow GUI on the premises because
|
|||
|
|
it would immediately throw us into a minimum of several weeks of
|
|||
|
|
training for all staff (if you took one week, we would need much
|
|||
|
|
more). And the software glitches for us would probably never end
|
|||
|
|
since we don't have the time to learn all that we need to know to
|
|||
|
|
assure us of competence before use. The responsibility for
|
|||
|
|
running the system is mine, not that of my employees. I would
|
|||
|
|
guess that a sighted user in my position with my knowledge and
|
|||
|
|
ability could switch to GUI without difficulty--and most have.
|
|||
|
|
That's the real problem.
|
|||
|
|
Chris says that any blind user who wants to learn the added
|
|||
|
|
complexities can increase productivity and efficiency. Yes, but.
|
|||
|
|
. . . He misses two things. First, his statement is not true
|
|||
|
|
unless the blind user is working in a limited set of
|
|||
|
|
environments, all of which are accessible in the way Chris
|
|||
|
|
describes. And this assumes that new, inaccessible applications
|
|||
|
|
are not introduced at the blind employee's work site (usually an
|
|||
|
|
invalid assumption since new applications are released all the
|
|||
|
|
time, and many of these may not be accessible). Second and more
|
|||
|
|
important, the added complexity for us is now greater than for
|
|||
|
|
sighted users. The gap in knowledge has widened. While the GUI
|
|||
|
|
has made the lives of sighted computer users easier, it has made
|
|||
|
|
ours a lot more complicated. Until someone figures out a way for
|
|||
|
|
GUI-access technology to run everywhere and in as standardized a
|
|||
|
|
way for blind users as for sighted users, then your "realism" is
|
|||
|
|
the more accurate analysis. It can't be just one company or just
|
|||
|
|
one application, and it can't be truly available without being as
|
|||
|
|
readily available to us as it is to the sighted.
|
|||
|
|
Another way of making the same point involves the overall
|
|||
|
|
job market today. For many, many entry-level jobs these days, a
|
|||
|
|
successful applicant must be able to demonstrate that he or she
|
|||
|
|
is familiar with and adept at using Windows, one of the most
|
|||
|
|
widely-used GUI applications. Employers can be choosy and are.
|
|||
|
|
They just don't hire anyone but able Windows users. That excludes
|
|||
|
|
most blind applicants, not on the ground of blindness, but on the
|
|||
|
|
ground of inaccessible software. We can't say in response to this
|
|||
|
|
situation that any blind person who wants to can become adept.
|
|||
|
|
That's just not the case right now. And pretending otherwise is
|
|||
|
|
very much placing one's head firmly in the sand and piling more
|
|||
|
|
on top.
|
|||
|
|
I knew that Chris was an early user of GUI prototypes, and I
|
|||
|
|
was glad to know that competent blind users were in the testing
|
|||
|
|
pattern. But happy and trouble-free use of software by Chris
|
|||
|
|
doesn't make it readily usable by me. We need to solve the
|
|||
|
|
problem for users like me before we have achieved the goal of
|
|||
|
|
true access to the GUI. Despite IBM's stellar work, we haven't
|
|||
|
|
reached that point. Partly that is inherent in the GUI itself;
|
|||
|
|
partly it is because IBM is not the only company with a GUI
|
|||
|
|
system. Let's keep at it.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Sincerely,
|
|||
|
|
Peggy Pinder Elliott
|
|||
|
|
____________________
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
TROUBLE AGAIN WITH CRUISE LINES
|
|||
|
|
by Sheila Hall-Ritchhart
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
From the Editor: How do you go about persuading people who
|
|||
|
|
are used to providing services to the public that you do not
|
|||
|
|
require extraordinary assistance and that the people around you
|
|||
|
|
do not need protection from social contact with you just because
|
|||
|
|
you are blind? Airline personnel are often afflicted with these
|
|||
|
|
bizarre impulses, and so are maitres-d'hotel in exclusive
|
|||
|
|
restaurants and many nurses, particularly those with bossy
|
|||
|
|
dispositions. A cog slips somewhere, and suddenly considerateness
|
|||
|
|
and concern are transformed into overblown fear for your safety
|
|||
|
|
and anxiety lest bystanders be offended by contact with you or
|
|||
|
|
the individual's employer be sued when you inevitably tumble down
|
|||
|
|
the stairs or fall over an obstacle.
|
|||
|
|
Once such behavior has begun, there simply isn't any
|
|||
|
|
reliable way of getting it stopped. A liberal application of cool
|
|||
|
|
composure chilling to icy self-control is the only technique I
|
|||
|
|
have found at all effective in restraining such exuberance. And
|
|||
|
|
that works best when the encounter is short-lived. What is one to
|
|||
|
|
do on a cruise ship for several days? What happens when it is
|
|||
|
|
your honeymoon, and the crew harasses you with inappropriate
|
|||
|
|
limitations on your movements and offers to help every time you
|
|||
|
|
set out for any destination? Well, you can laugh with your
|
|||
|
|
spouse, and you can maintain your integrity and independence, and
|
|||
|
|
you can fantasize about or even seriously investigate the
|
|||
|
|
possibility of undertaking some future action that would compel
|
|||
|
|
these people to abandon their preconceptions and learn to respect
|
|||
|
|
disabled people simply as human beings.
|
|||
|
|
Recently William and Sheila Hall-Ritchhart had such an
|
|||
|
|
experience. Sheila is the President of the Student Division of
|
|||
|
|
the NFB of Indiana, and she has had some experience with
|
|||
|
|
university officials who are apparently incapable of treating a
|
|||
|
|
blind person with innate and straightforward respect. (See the
|
|||
|
|
July, 1993, issue of the Braille Monitor.) The following letter
|
|||
|
|
recounts Sheila and William's most recent adventure. Here it is:
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Indianapolis, Indiana
|
|||
|
|
April 11, 1994
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Dear President Maurer:
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
My husband William and I were married on March 12, and on
|
|||
|
|
March 14 we took a cruise on the MS Southward for our honeymoon.
|
|||
|
|
The discrimination and segregation that we experienced have
|
|||
|
|
prompted me to write this letter.
|
|||
|
|
Our trouble began at the ship terminal in San Pedro Harbor,
|
|||
|
|
Los Angeles. We were told that they planned to pre-board us so we
|
|||
|
|
would not have to stand in line with the other passengers. We
|
|||
|
|
refused this special treatment. We simply asked if they would
|
|||
|
|
show us where we were to wait for boarding. The cruise official
|
|||
|
|
agreed to our request but pre-boarded us anyway.
|
|||
|
|
The crew on board the MS Southward made our honeymoon almost
|
|||
|
|
unbearable. Each and every time we left our cabin, used the
|
|||
|
|
elevator, went up a flight of stairs, or rounded a corner, we
|
|||
|
|
were stopped by one of the ship's staff. "What do you need?"
|
|||
|
|
"Where are you going?" "Just let me take you there," they would
|
|||
|
|
insist.
|
|||
|
|
We always refused their assistance. Both of us stressed to
|
|||
|
|
the staff that, if and when we needed help, we would approach
|
|||
|
|
them. Following our refusal, they always asked for our cabin
|
|||
|
|
number and then walked away. It became a joke between my husband
|
|||
|
|
and me that they were going to tell on us.
|
|||
|
|
Just minutes before a life boat drill our cabin steward came
|
|||
|
|
to our cabin with a liability waiver for us to sign. We refused
|
|||
|
|
to do so. He insisted that "people like you" had to sign. We
|
|||
|
|
firmly refused, and we're proud to say that we completed the life
|
|||
|
|
boat drill successfully on our own.
|
|||
|
|
On these cruises your life boat station is your dining room
|
|||
|
|
seating assignment for dinner as well. At drill practice we were
|
|||
|
|
at a table with two other couples in the center of the dining
|
|||
|
|
room. When we went to dine that evening, we were seated at a
|
|||
|
|
table for two just off the entrance to the room. We were the only
|
|||
|
|
table for two in the entire room.
|
|||
|
|
At other functions, such as the captain's party, we were
|
|||
|
|
also seated by ourselves. Meanwhile, other tables were being
|
|||
|
|
filled with two and three sets of couples. There was no self-
|
|||
|
|
seating. At first we thought that we had been seated alone
|
|||
|
|
because we were honeymooners. At a party given for the twenty-
|
|||
|
|
seven honeymoon couples sailing on the Southward, however, we
|
|||
|
|
found out that we were the odd couple. Yes, we had the only table
|
|||
|
|
for two.
|
|||
|
|
In spite of the fact that this ship did not appear to meet
|
|||
|
|
any of the ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) standards, we
|
|||
|
|
got around just fine on our own. We dressed nicely and
|
|||
|
|
appropriately, were courteous and kind, and used good table
|
|||
|
|
manners. Blind people are not all slobs--just as sighted people
|
|||
|
|
are not all great dressers. We are just as civilized or
|
|||
|
|
uncivilized as any sighted person. We walked along the beach in
|
|||
|
|
Catalina, went on a three-mile fitness walk in San Diego, and
|
|||
|
|
went shopping in Ensa<73>ada, Mexico. While on board the Southward,
|
|||
|
|
we went to shows, danced, and even gambled in the casino. Blind
|
|||
|
|
people are just as romantic, just as fit, just as greedy, and
|
|||
|
|
just as fun-loving as any sighted person.
|
|||
|
|
I'm quite certain that being blind is not an ingredient in
|
|||
|
|
making lousy dinner companions. Table sixty-two in the center of
|
|||
|
|
the room must have been boring without us.
|
|||
|
|
My husband and I really want to do something to educate the
|
|||
|
|
crew of the MS Southward. We have a great idea. We want to book a
|
|||
|
|
cruise on the MS Southward with as many Federationists as
|
|||
|
|
possible. My husband and I are willing to do most of the
|
|||
|
|
organizing to make this work. But we would like help and support
|
|||
|
|
from the Federation in recruiting people to go on the cruise.
|
|||
|
|
When we went aboard the Southward, they thought of us as
|
|||
|
|
helpless and ignorant. The day we left to go home, they told us
|
|||
|
|
we were amazing, exceptional, and simply inspirational. This
|
|||
|
|
really bothered us, because words like "amazing" and
|
|||
|
|
"exceptional" are defined as "out of the ordinary or apart or
|
|||
|
|
aside from the norm." We believe that being independent and self-
|
|||
|
|
sufficient are normal characteristics of blind people.
|
|||
|
|
It is hard to express how angry we felt every time we were
|
|||
|
|
called amazing, but it is important to remember that people who
|
|||
|
|
are patronizing towards the blind usually are so because of lack
|
|||
|
|
of education. This conviction kept us more or less calm and
|
|||
|
|
always civil. Perhaps, after sailing with the National Federation
|
|||
|
|
of the Blind, the crew will exchange its pity for genuine and
|
|||
|
|
appropriate respect.
|
|||
|
|
Since the beginning of our relationship, I have talked to
|
|||
|
|
William about joining the Federation. He said that he was not
|
|||
|
|
much of a joiner but would be supportive of my involvement. As a
|
|||
|
|
result of our experiences, however, he is now ready to join. He
|
|||
|
|
will attend his first convention this coming July.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Sincerely yours,
|
|||
|
|
Sheila and William Ritchhart
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
__________
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
What follows is the relevant information about the Norwegian
|
|||
|
|
Cruise Line's policies concerning disabled people, taken from the
|
|||
|
|
material that Sheila Hall-Ritchhart sent to President Maurer:
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
What if I have a medical condition or physical disability?
|
|||
|
|
Some ships have staterooms designed for people with physical
|
|||
|
|
disabilities. Please check ship deck plans for details.
|
|||
|
|
Any medical condition or physical disability that may
|
|||
|
|
require special attention or treatment must be reported to our
|
|||
|
|
Passenger Courtesy Department when your reservation is made.
|
|||
|
|
NCL has the right to revoke passage to anyone who, in its
|
|||
|
|
judgment, is in physical or mental condition unfit for travel or
|
|||
|
|
who may require care beyond that which NCL can provide. Whenever
|
|||
|
|
possible, though, special arrangements will be made.
|
|||
|
|
NCL reserves the right to deny participation in certain
|
|||
|
|
activities such as dive-in snorkeling, paddle boats, sailboats,
|
|||
|
|
and the like, based on past or present medical conditions. For
|
|||
|
|
questions about eligibility, please contact our Passenger
|
|||
|
|
Courtesy Department.
|
|||
|
|
All passengers with a disability must be self-sufficient and
|
|||
|
|
should travel with a passenger who will provide any assistance
|
|||
|
|
needed during the cruise and in the event of an emergency.
|
|||
|
|
Physically impaired passengers and their companions must
|
|||
|
|
sign a statement releasing NCL of any and all responsibility
|
|||
|
|
associated with their disability relative to their ability to use
|
|||
|
|
shipboard facilities and in the event of any emergency.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
There is nothing in these policies to suggest that the
|
|||
|
|
Ritchharts should have expected the treatment they received. As
|
|||
|
|
Sheila said in her letter to President Maurer, they would like to
|
|||
|
|
explore the possibility of organizing a group of blind people to
|
|||
|
|
travel on this ship to demonstrate that the Ritchharts are not
|
|||
|
|
the only competent and independent blind people in the country
|
|||
|
|
and to educate the crew in ordinary courtesy to blind passengers.
|
|||
|
|
If you are interested in joining the Ritchharts in this enjoyable
|
|||
|
|
exercise in public education, contact them at 1523 N. Linwood
|
|||
|
|
Avenue, Indianapolis, Indiana 46202; or call (317) 322-9979.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
____________________
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
BEING BLIND IS NOT THE END OF THE WORLD
|
|||
|
|
by Stephen Laughrey
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
From the Editor: Stephen Laughrey is the Executive Director
|
|||
|
|
of the Braille Service Center in Louisville, Kentucky. He is also
|
|||
|
|
First Vice President of the Louisville Chapter of the National
|
|||
|
|
Federation of the Blind of Kentucky and Diabetic Coordinator for
|
|||
|
|
the affiliate. But three years ago he thought his world had come
|
|||
|
|
to an end. Because of his sudden blindness, he had lost his well-
|
|||
|
|
paid job, and he was convinced that there was nothing more for
|
|||
|
|
him to do with the remainder of his life. Here is his story as he
|
|||
|
|
tells it:
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
After a long battle which began in 1983, I finally became
|
|||
|
|
blind on February 21, 1991. In 1983 I was diagnosed as having
|
|||
|
|
contracted a disease called Histoplasmosis, which affects either
|
|||
|
|
the small blood vessels in the eyes or the respiratory system. In
|
|||
|
|
my case it affected my eyes. About a year later I was diagnosed
|
|||
|
|
as having diabetic retinopathy. The combination was the
|
|||
|
|
equivalent of an atom bomb waiting to explode. I went through a
|
|||
|
|
series of operations and laser treatments until finally there was
|
|||
|
|
nothing else to do to stop the inevitable outcome.
|
|||
|
|
After finally becoming blind, I spent some time engaging in
|
|||
|
|
pity parties, wondering why I had been chosen to be blind. I soon
|
|||
|
|
realized that my situation wasn't going to change and that I had
|
|||
|
|
two choices: I could continue feeling sorry for myself and being
|
|||
|
|
unproductive, or I could get up, brush myself off, and get the
|
|||
|
|
training I needed in order to live a full, enjoyable, and
|
|||
|
|
productive life. That last is exactly what I decided to do, and
|
|||
|
|
it was certainly the correct decision.
|
|||
|
|
Prior to becoming blind, I was a very determined and
|
|||
|
|
productive person. I was successful in my position with a
|
|||
|
|
building materials company in Fort Myers, Florida. I was involved
|
|||
|
|
in marketing and contractor sales. The year I started with the
|
|||
|
|
company our annual sales were nine million dollars. Twelve years
|
|||
|
|
later, when I left because of my blindness, our annual sales
|
|||
|
|
were thirty-five million. I was proud to know that I had played a
|
|||
|
|
major part in the success of the company, not to mention the
|
|||
|
|
monetary rewards I received along the way. I wanted what I had
|
|||
|
|
lost to become a part of my life once again. I didn't know how I
|
|||
|
|
was going to accomplish this task, but I knew I was willing to
|
|||
|
|
work hard to find a purpose in life and to learn to function as a
|
|||
|
|
competent blind person. Once I had accepted the fact of my
|
|||
|
|
blindness, I found that I had defeated the major obstacle in my
|
|||
|
|
path to an independent life. Thus began my quest. I was willing
|
|||
|
|
to face each challenge that came, knowing that it would not be
|
|||
|
|
easy.
|
|||
|
|
Now came the task of finding the right educational program
|
|||
|
|
to rehabilitate me. I started contacting rehabilitative service
|
|||
|
|
centers and making appointments to visit them. The ones I saw had
|
|||
|
|
a hospital atmosphere that I wanted no part of. I became
|
|||
|
|
frustrated because I had hoped to find a center that did not
|
|||
|
|
subscribe to the sympathetic, hand-holding style of ministering
|
|||
|
|
to poor, helpless blind people. There was no room in my life for
|
|||
|
|
such ideas.
|
|||
|
|
Living in Florida at the time, I had not met any blind
|
|||
|
|
people except those at the centers I had visited. I needed to
|
|||
|
|
find a place to buy a timepiece. I had heard that talking watches
|
|||
|
|
were on the market, and I was getting tired of asking other
|
|||
|
|
people for the time. My sister was looking through the phone book
|
|||
|
|
for places to call and came upon the listing for the Citrus
|
|||
|
|
Center for the Blind. She immediately called and asked where I
|
|||
|
|
could make my purchase. They directed her to the proper place and
|
|||
|
|
at the same time told her that they would like to meet me
|
|||
|
|
whenever I was available.
|
|||
|
|
Two days later I found myself at the Center, where I had the
|
|||
|
|
opportunity to tour the facility. First I was given a white cane
|
|||
|
|
and then introduced to different types of technology. This
|
|||
|
|
excited me, and I wanted to see more. It was a teaching facility
|
|||
|
|
with classes in reading and writing Braille, mobility, computer
|
|||
|
|
literacy, and daily-living skills. I was like a kid in a candy
|
|||
|
|
shop. I recognized immediately that this Center was where I
|
|||
|
|
wanted to spend the free time I had acquired since becoming
|
|||
|
|
blind. After attending the Center for about two weeks, I was
|
|||
|
|
approached by the Director, who explained that the Center was too
|
|||
|
|
small and my hunger for knowledge and independence were too great
|
|||
|
|
for this small facility to give me the proper training. I was
|
|||
|
|
then told about the Louisiana Center for the Blind. Joanne Wilson
|
|||
|
|
was the director. As soon as I got home that afternoon, I called
|
|||
|
|
Joanne. She told me how to become a student at the Louisiana
|
|||
|
|
Center for the Blind.
|
|||
|
|
In September of 1991 I became a student at the Louisiana
|
|||
|
|
Center. We learned social skills, cane travel, Braille, typing,
|
|||
|
|
and daily-living skills. Students maintained their two-bedroom
|
|||
|
|
apartments, did grocery shopping and laundry, and prepared meals.
|
|||
|
|
Classes lasted from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Monday through
|
|||
|
|
Friday. While at the Center I also had the opportunity to
|
|||
|
|
participate in mountain climbing, rock climbing, white water
|
|||
|
|
rafting, water skiing, canoeing, swimming, and fishing. These may
|
|||
|
|
sound like pretty demanding activities, but to me they were the
|
|||
|
|
greatest confidence-builders I could have hoped to receive. Each
|
|||
|
|
weekend there was a new experience, such as going to Texas to the
|
|||
|
|
largest flea market in the United States. One of the most
|
|||
|
|
memorable experiences was attending Mardi Gras in New Orleans. I
|
|||
|
|
assure you that, if you can travel in that chaos, you can travel
|
|||
|
|
anywhere! Learning that truth was the whole purpose of the trip.
|
|||
|
|
I truly believe that on that trip I gained more confidence in my
|
|||
|
|
ability to travel using a white cane than at any other time
|
|||
|
|
during my months at the Center. I am proud to say that I am a
|
|||
|
|
graduate of the Louisiana Center for the Blind.
|
|||
|
|
I remember the first day I walked into Miss Ruth's kitchen
|
|||
|
|
at the Center, saying to myself, "What in the world am I doing
|
|||
|
|
here? I can't even boil water." But before leaving the Center, I
|
|||
|
|
successfully prepared an entire meal for forty and served it to
|
|||
|
|
the staff and students.
|
|||
|
|
One day during travel class we went on a bus drop in
|
|||
|
|
Alexandria. It was a cold, rainy day, and I was the first one out
|
|||
|
|
of the van. I began looking for a bus stop. We did not know that
|
|||
|
|
the staff had been given incorrect information about bus routes.
|
|||
|
|
I soon became lost because I was on a street that had no buses
|
|||
|
|
going to the mall. It was a great experience! I had to use every
|
|||
|
|
technique that I had ever learned in order to get to my final
|
|||
|
|
destination. Getting lost often makes you a better traveler. I
|
|||
|
|
have had similar experiences since leaving the Center, and I am
|
|||
|
|
now certain that I will forever remain a confident and
|
|||
|
|
independent cane traveler.
|
|||
|
|
I can't tell you how important it was for me to learn how to
|
|||
|
|
read and write Braille. Not only do I use Braille in my daily
|
|||
|
|
work, but I also set aside an hour a day for leisure reading.
|
|||
|
|
This helps me to increase speed and comprehension. I will never
|
|||
|
|
forget the first time I was able to read a story from the McDuffy
|
|||
|
|
Reader. It was quite emotional. If I had not been a proficient
|
|||
|
|
Braille reader when I graduated from the Center, I doubt that I
|
|||
|
|
would have the job I have today.
|
|||
|
|
I shudder to think what my life would be like had I not had
|
|||
|
|
the good fortune to attend the Louisiana Center for the Blind.
|
|||
|
|
While attending the Center, I was introduced to the National
|
|||
|
|
Federation of the Blind, and I am proud to be a dedicated
|
|||
|
|
Federationist. I have had the opportunity to meet and make many
|
|||
|
|
new blind friends.
|
|||
|
|
When I first went to the Center, I was full of indecision,
|
|||
|
|
wondering what the future held for me as a blind person. I wanted
|
|||
|
|
to get back into the work place in order to serve the blind and
|
|||
|
|
educate the sighted. Today all of my hopes and dreams have come
|
|||
|
|
true. I am now employed as Executive Director of the Braille
|
|||
|
|
Service Center in Louisville, Kentucky, and I have many
|
|||
|
|
opportunities to speak about the abilities of blind people.
|
|||
|
|
Achieving what I have has taken a lot of hard work and
|
|||
|
|
determination on my part, but it also took commitment from those
|
|||
|
|
who believe in equality and the right of blind people to live a
|
|||
|
|
normal, productive life in today's society, full of confidence,
|
|||
|
|
pride, and independence.
|
|||
|
|
Not a day goes by that I don't pick up the freedom bell I
|
|||
|
|
was given when I graduated and remember the time that I spent at
|
|||
|
|
the Louisiana Center for the Blind. Being blind is not the end of
|
|||
|
|
the world. For me in many ways it was the beginning. My life is
|
|||
|
|
full of meaning and purpose, serving the blind and educating the
|
|||
|
|
sighted. The Louisiana Center for the Blind will always have a
|
|||
|
|
special place in my heart. In many ways my life began in
|
|||
|
|
September of 1991 when I enrolled at the Louisiana Center. The
|
|||
|
|
gift that I received there is being given to students today in
|
|||
|
|
the NFB centers in California, Colorado, Minnesota, and a small
|
|||
|
|
handful of other adult rehabilitation facilities which are
|
|||
|
|
conducted in accord with the philosophy of the National
|
|||
|
|
Federation of the Blind. We can all be grateful for the work of
|
|||
|
|
the instructors in these excellent programs.
|
|||
|
|
____________________
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
[PHOTO: Portrait. CAPTION: Lauren Eckery.]
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
THE BIRTHDAY PARTY
|
|||
|
|
by Lauren L. Eckery
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
From the Editor: The following article first appeared in The
|
|||
|
|
Freedom Bell, the second in the Kernel series of paperback books
|
|||
|
|
published by the National Federation of the Blind. It begins with
|
|||
|
|
Dr. Jernigan's introductory note. Here it is:
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
What happens when a small sighted child is constantly told
|
|||
|
|
by her preschool teachers and the parents of other children that
|
|||
|
|
her blind mother and father are not capable of functioning as
|
|||
|
|
competently as other parents? How does she resolve the conflict
|
|||
|
|
of seeing her mother and father living normal lives on a daily
|
|||
|
|
basis and then having others tell her (both by word and act) that
|
|||
|
|
it isn't so? These are the issues raised in the following article
|
|||
|
|
by Laurie Eckery. Here is how she tells it:
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
When my daughter Lynden was two years old, I was pleased
|
|||
|
|
with the child care setting she was in. Since I spent weekly two-
|
|||
|
|
hour sessions at the preschool, the other children had a chance
|
|||
|
|
to see me, Lynden's mother, as an ordinary adult who happened to
|
|||
|
|
be blind.
|
|||
|
|
The director had become a good friend and was happy to have
|
|||
|
|
me at the preschool--not just to sing with the children but also
|
|||
|
|
to give them an education about blindness. I trusted that Lynden
|
|||
|
|
was in good hands. I trusted a friend who knew and understood
|
|||
|
|
about blindness from my example.
|
|||
|
|
When Lynden was two, I did not take her to preschool on a
|
|||
|
|
regular basis. If she missed out on some of the activities at
|
|||
|
|
school, it was purely due to her sporadic attendance--or was it?
|
|||
|
|
She was too young to know or care that the rest of the children,
|
|||
|
|
on a certain day, were dressed in western outfits or that the
|
|||
|
|
rest of the children had brought paper valentines to pass out--
|
|||
|
|
everyone but Lynden. I let it pass; she was too young. I
|
|||
|
|
suspected a problem but didn't want to be labeled as "paranoid,"
|
|||
|
|
and I reasonably expected that Lynden would eventually tell me
|
|||
|
|
about special occasions coming up at school. No problem.
|
|||
|
|
Last fall, when Lynden was four and a half and "River City
|
|||
|
|
Roundup" was happening all around Omaha, we bought her a western
|
|||
|
|
outfit that could double as a Halloween costume. It was pretty
|
|||
|
|
enough to be worn anytime. When I asked which day the children
|
|||
|
|
would be dressing up for "River City Roundup," the director
|
|||
|
|
informed me that she hadn't decided--that she would let me know.
|
|||
|
|
One day Lynden came home in tears. "Mommy, the other kids
|
|||
|
|
weared western clothes, and you didn't let me wear mine." I told
|
|||
|
|
her that no one had informed me that this was the day for such
|
|||
|
|
clothing to be worn. She was angry because she was convinced that
|
|||
|
|
I "should have known." Could she trust me as much after that?
|
|||
|
|
When Valentine's Day rolled around, once again I asked to be
|
|||
|
|
informed as to when the children would be exchanging cards.
|
|||
|
|
Lynden piped up, "I'll tell you, Mommy." The director assured me
|
|||
|
|
that she would tell me. I bought cards, typed them up, and had
|
|||
|
|
them ready in early February. The night before the day, Lynden
|
|||
|
|
announced that she would be taking the cards tomorrow. Only
|
|||
|
|
because I was beginning to understand that the preschool
|
|||
|
|
director, my friend, "was a little scatter-brained" was I able to
|
|||
|
|
stay on top of this situation. Still, I was not particularly
|
|||
|
|
angry.
|
|||
|
|
In March Lynden had a birthday--her fifth. She wanted to
|
|||
|
|
have Amanda, her best friend--the preschool director's soon-to-be
|
|||
|
|
adopted child--over for the birthday celebration at Showbiz Pizza
|
|||
|
|
Place. We invited her. Three days before the party, when we had
|
|||
|
|
not been given a definite answer, I made one of the most
|
|||
|
|
frightening but also one of the most real phone calls of my life.
|
|||
|
|
The director's reason for not answering the request was that
|
|||
|
|
she didn't know if the girls would behave in such a noisy place.
|
|||
|
|
She stated in no uncertain terms that the only way that Amanda
|
|||
|
|
could come was if they dropped her off at Showbiz and one of them
|
|||
|
|
stayed. Suddenly it was apparent to me that I was expected to be
|
|||
|
|
as obedient and as much under her control as the preschool
|
|||
|
|
children she supervised each week. I was at a turning point at
|
|||
|
|
which I could either choose to back off and say, "That would be
|
|||
|
|
fine," or to do as I did.
|
|||
|
|
I asked if they were worried about our blindness. At first
|
|||
|
|
there was total denial. When it came down to the details, though,
|
|||
|
|
she was afraid to have us walk the children home for fear that
|
|||
|
|
Amanda, who was not "trained to obey us like Lynden is," would
|
|||
|
|
run off; that she might dart into the street while we waited for
|
|||
|
|
the bus, and we wouldn't see it happening; that we might lose the
|
|||
|
|
girls on the way from the bus to Showbiz, and "How could you keep
|
|||
|
|
track of them in that noisy place?"
|
|||
|
|
When I explained, she stated that I was being defensive, not
|
|||
|
|
caring about the concerns of other people and risking the
|
|||
|
|
children's safety just to make a point. I said that I had a right
|
|||
|
|
to <20>defend<6E> our position and that she could choose whether that
|
|||
|
|
was really behaving defensively or not.
|
|||
|
|
She said that she had no idea that I was so "angry about
|
|||
|
|
being blind," that she had been so proud of me for the way "I
|
|||
|
|
handled it with the kids." She eventually stated that she thought
|
|||
|
|
Jerry and I should learn our limitations, just as everyone else
|
|||
|
|
does, for Lynden's sake if not for our own; that we were deluding
|
|||
|
|
ourselves if we thought we could function as independently as
|
|||
|
|
sighted people. I was horrified to hear her say, "And you know
|
|||
|
|
that Lynden is going to know the difference. She's going to
|
|||
|
|
understand that she can't have friends over without parental
|
|||
|
|
supervision like other children do because of your limitations.
|
|||
|
|
She won't be angry about it, because she will understand." I
|
|||
|
|
answered that Lynden would be puzzled and indeed angry when other
|
|||
|
|
people (teachers, other children's parents, etc.) decide for us
|
|||
|
|
that she and/or her blind parents "have to do things
|
|||
|
|
differently," when she is going to know from living with us daily
|
|||
|
|
for all the years of her childhood that such limitations are
|
|||
|
|
unnecessary. She may even begin to think that there is something
|
|||
|
|
wrong with her because she's being consistently left out of
|
|||
|
|
normal activities.
|
|||
|
|
At length I told her that I thought the whole situation
|
|||
|
|
boiled down to a matter of trust, to which she immediately
|
|||
|
|
replied, "Laurie, I trust you implicitly!" She explained that she
|
|||
|
|
could tell when children came from less than desirable parenting
|
|||
|
|
and that she would hold me up as an example of one of the best
|
|||
|
|
parents in the neighborhood; that she was proud of the way that
|
|||
|
|
Jerry and I were carefully teaching Lynden, taking her places,
|
|||
|
|
keeping her dressed neatly, and so forth; and that she knew we
|
|||
|
|
loved her.
|
|||
|
|
It was difficult for me to believe that I really could not
|
|||
|
|
trust this "friend," and she could not believe that I thought she
|
|||
|
|
did not trust me. I said, "When someone says to me on the one
|
|||
|
|
hand that they trust me implicitly but on the other hand will not
|
|||
|
|
allow their child to be with us without sighted supervision,
|
|||
|
|
something doesn't fit."
|
|||
|
|
My stomach turned at the thought of how I, with my unusual
|
|||
|
|
amount of assertiveness, had probably changed the direction of
|
|||
|
|
our relationship forever. I would probably lose a good friend; I
|
|||
|
|
had "caused" trouble between Lynden and her best friend. Would I
|
|||
|
|
be forced to put Lynden in another preschool? I realized quickly
|
|||
|
|
through my panic that the problem wouldn't be solved in this way.
|
|||
|
|
It was more likely that this same kind of situation would occur
|
|||
|
|
again and again. I could not trust as implicitly as I had trusted
|
|||
|
|
previously, but Lynden's education at this preschool had, up to
|
|||
|
|
now, been excellent. But if the director couldn't see blindness
|
|||
|
|
for what it really is any more clearly even after observing it,
|
|||
|
|
what other blind spots might there be in Lynden's education
|
|||
|
|
there?
|
|||
|
|
Much as I might have wished for it, there is no such thing
|
|||
|
|
as the perfect school setting for Lynden or for any other child.
|
|||
|
|
I knew, therefore, that I had to solve the problem. I decided
|
|||
|
|
that the next time Lynden is asked to Amanda's, she will be
|
|||
|
|
allowed to go only if I or her father goes along. Will the
|
|||
|
|
director and her husband squirm? Will they be angry? Time will
|
|||
|
|
tell.
|
|||
|
|
We thought things had blown over by the time Lynden enrolled
|
|||
|
|
in dance class with several other children. However, on one
|
|||
|
|
occasion she was kept from going to dance class because she had a
|
|||
|
|
rash. Although we had paid for this class, we were not consulted
|
|||
|
|
about this decision. Later Lynden did not inform us of her
|
|||
|
|
recital. Neither did the preschool.
|
|||
|
|
The night before the recital, at 9:30 p.m. with no chance
|
|||
|
|
for us to invite friends along, the director called us, realizing
|
|||
|
|
that "we might not know about it." The children were to have
|
|||
|
|
brought a letter home from the dance class. We did not get
|
|||
|
|
Lynden's letter. Thinking that Lynden had accidentally forgotten
|
|||
|
|
it, I asked her about the letter. I was informed that the letters
|
|||
|
|
had all been taken away from them at preschool and given to the
|
|||
|
|
parents later. We attended the recital, knew very little about
|
|||
|
|
Lynden's dancing, and I really began to wonder if I was being
|
|||
|
|
deprived because of my blindness. At home I cried about what I
|
|||
|
|
had missed.
|
|||
|
|
The next day when I asked Lynden why she didn't tell us more
|
|||
|
|
about her dancing, she said, "You can't see." Suddenly I realized
|
|||
|
|
that lately she had begun to play tricks on us and to get very
|
|||
|
|
angry. I realized that she was angry about our blindness. She was
|
|||
|
|
also feeling that we missed out on her dance. We learn from our
|
|||
|
|
mistakes. When I mentioned this last situation to a friend in the
|
|||
|
|
National Federation of the Blind, he cleared up my own doubts
|
|||
|
|
about my blindness by asking, "Did you have Lynden show you what
|
|||
|
|
she was learning?" No, we had not gotten down on the floor to
|
|||
|
|
have her show us.
|
|||
|
|
When I explained to Lynden that we missed out on her dance,
|
|||
|
|
not because we couldn't see, but because we had not asked her to
|
|||
|
|
show us what she was doing, she was immediately relieved. She
|
|||
|
|
gleefully showed us the entire dance routine, taking on the role
|
|||
|
|
of the dance instructor. It was hilarious, entertaining, and
|
|||
|
|
enlightening. Suddenly it appeared that she understood that we
|
|||
|
|
could be trusted, that we didn't necessarily not know what was
|
|||
|
|
going on just because we can't see. Her general behavior was back
|
|||
|
|
to normal.
|
|||
|
|
I know that we will have to deal with other situations
|
|||
|
|
similar to these. I know that I must be wiser than to trust even
|
|||
|
|
good friends when it comes to dealing with issues of blindness,
|
|||
|
|
and I know that I must trust my own knowledge and stand by it. I
|
|||
|
|
know that Lynden will be confused for some time, but I hope that
|
|||
|
|
someday she will read what I have written and will be reminded of
|
|||
|
|
what she said to me when she was not quite five years old:
|
|||
|
|
"Mommy, I wish you could see."
|
|||
|
|
Oh, dear, I thought. Not a pity party from my own kid!
|
|||
|
|
"Lynden, what would be different if I could see?" I inquired.
|
|||
|
|
"'Cause then, Mommy, people wouldn't talk to you like you were a
|
|||
|
|
kid."
|
|||
|
|
____________________
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
[PHOTO: Michael Gosse stands at NFB National Convention podium microphone.
|
|||
|
|
CAPTION: Dr. Michael Gosse.]
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
REFLECTIONS OF AN ELECTRICAL ENGINEER
|
|||
|
|
by Michael Gosse
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
From the Editor: Dr. Michael Gosse has been a committed
|
|||
|
|
Federationist since he received an NFB scholarship in 1985. He
|
|||
|
|
served as President of the Connecticut affiliate for several
|
|||
|
|
years, but last year, after completing his Ph.D. in electrical
|
|||
|
|
engineering at Lehigh University in Pennsylvania, he accepted a
|
|||
|
|
job in Maryland with Atlantic Aerospace Electronics Corporation.
|
|||
|
|
At the 1993 Convention of the National Federation of the Blind he
|
|||
|
|
described the way in which he got his job and a little of what he
|
|||
|
|
does. This is what he had to say:
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Earlier in the week my voice started to go a little bit, and
|
|||
|
|
I was concerned that I wasn't going to be able to speak this
|
|||
|
|
afternoon. The reason I was having trouble with my voice was that
|
|||
|
|
every time somebody mentions Pennsylvania, Connecticut, or
|
|||
|
|
Maryland, of course I have to cheer.
|
|||
|
|
I am a computational electromagnetics scientist, whatever
|
|||
|
|
that means. Hopefully, by the end of this talk, you'll at least
|
|||
|
|
understand that probably you don't want to be one too. The man
|
|||
|
|
who started this science a number of years ago--in fact it was
|
|||
|
|
1875--was James Clerk Maxwell. In that year he published his
|
|||
|
|
treatise on electricity and magnetism. I'm going to read to you
|
|||
|
|
the first two sentences of his preface. "The fact that certain
|
|||
|
|
bodies, when rubbed, tend to attract other bodies was known to
|
|||
|
|
the ancients. In modern times a great variety of other phenomena
|
|||
|
|
have been observed and are related to the phenomenon of
|
|||
|
|
attraction." I wonder how many copies of that book he sold to
|
|||
|
|
people who didn't read past that point.
|
|||
|
|
In our company we work in general on electronic warfare.
|
|||
|
|
What that means is that you're a lot better off in the Army or
|
|||
|
|
the Air Force or the Navy or the Marines if the enemy cannot find
|
|||
|
|
you or communicate amongst themselves. Being good at electronic
|
|||
|
|
warfare means you save the lives of not only your own people, but
|
|||
|
|
also those of the enemy. I consider this to be a good thing, and
|
|||
|
|
it is how I justify my job.
|
|||
|
|
I started out in electrical engineering at the age of six. I
|
|||
|
|
had an odd father. I don't know whether he ever learned a bedtime
|
|||
|
|
story or not, but when he would come up to tuck me in to bed, he
|
|||
|
|
would say, "Now Michael, you have a five-volt source and a five-
|
|||
|
|
ohm resistor. The current times the resistance is equal to the
|
|||
|
|
voltage; what's the current?" And I would guess, of course. The
|
|||
|
|
only number I knew was one, and it was the correct answer. The
|
|||
|
|
problems progressed until I was through high school. They kicked
|
|||
|
|
me out of electronics class my sophomore year because I had
|
|||
|
|
already mastered all of the material through senior year. When
|
|||
|
|
you start at the age of six, you have a bit of a jump.
|
|||
|
|
In college I tried to be something other than an electrical
|
|||
|
|
engineer. I tried to study chemical engineering and go on to
|
|||
|
|
physics for a Ph.D., but the bias was just too strong. I ended up
|
|||
|
|
in electrical engineering. And since I wanted to get a Ph.D., in
|
|||
|
|
May [of 1992] I actually received the degree. Then I proceeded to
|
|||
|
|
look for a job in the worst economy that we have seen in a long
|
|||
|
|
time. In ten years of post-secondary school I couldn't have
|
|||
|
|
picked a worse time to graduate. The nine-month period that I
|
|||
|
|
looked for a job was challenging and interesting. I interviewed
|
|||
|
|
for a number of positions.
|
|||
|
|
I'd like to tell you how I landed this position. I was at
|
|||
|
|
the 1993 Washington Seminar and got a call on my answering
|
|||
|
|
machine in Pennsylvania from Atlantic Aerospace, and I
|
|||
|
|
immediately called them back, and we chatted about some technical
|
|||
|
|
things--can you use a computer? I said I preferred not to. I told
|
|||
|
|
them I was down in the Washington area, which is where the
|
|||
|
|
company is located, and I'd be glad to stop by and talk with
|
|||
|
|
them. They were a little busy. They had a trip to Advanced
|
|||
|
|
Research Projects Administration (ARPA) planned. I said, "I'm
|
|||
|
|
down here with the National Federation of the Blind, and we're
|
|||
|
|
meeting with Congressmen this week, talking about legislative
|
|||
|
|
issues. I'll be here through Wednesday." We tried to schedule an
|
|||
|
|
interview for Wednesday afternoon, but of course a number of us
|
|||
|
|
were planning to go to New York for the hearing in the New York
|
|||
|
|
law suit, and I wanted to be a part of that. I told them that I
|
|||
|
|
would be leaving for the National Center on Wednesday afternoon.
|
|||
|
|
They said "Call us sometime on Thursday, and maybe we can
|
|||
|
|
work something out for Friday." So on the road to New York, I
|
|||
|
|
went to a pay phone and called and heard, "No, we can't schedule
|
|||
|
|
anything. We'll be in touch with you."
|
|||
|
|
I said, "We're in New York for this hearing for the National
|
|||
|
|
Federation of the Blind, and I'll be going to New Hampshire after
|
|||
|
|
that." When I got there, I called them again. I said that I was
|
|||
|
|
now in New Hampshire. We had a long, technical interview this
|
|||
|
|
time. We talked about the finite element technique for solving
|
|||
|
|
magnetic problems. I told them that I'd done it before; then I
|
|||
|
|
went and looked it up. Towards the end of the conversation he
|
|||
|
|
said, "You know, you keep mentioning that you've been doing
|
|||
|
|
activities with the National Federation of the Blind; are you
|
|||
|
|
involved in that organization?"
|
|||
|
|
I said, "You could say that. I am the Connecticut affiliate
|
|||
|
|
president." (Of course, I hadn't spent any of this time in
|
|||
|
|
Connecticut.)
|
|||
|
|
Then he said, "Do you have a dog or a cane?"
|
|||
|
|
I said, "Yes, I have a cane."
|
|||
|
|
He said, "Well I suppose you wouldn't have to go to any
|
|||
|
|
conferences on your own."
|
|||
|
|
And I said, "Hold on a second here. I called you in
|
|||
|
|
Washington, D.C.; I talked to you when I was on my way to New
|
|||
|
|
York City; now I'm in New Hampshire. How do you think that I got
|
|||
|
|
to all these places?"
|
|||
|
|
I was on the plane for an on-site interview the next week. I
|
|||
|
|
had my worst interview ever because I was sick at the time. I
|
|||
|
|
just kept telling them that I was sick and that I really wasn't
|
|||
|
|
thinking straight, but it was apparently a successful interview.
|
|||
|
|
They contacted my advisor, and he said that I had done all this
|
|||
|
|
stuff in computational electromagnetics before, backing me up on
|
|||
|
|
that one. I appreciated that. I ended up getting snowed in in
|
|||
|
|
Baltimore, and you can imagine how much of a tragedy it was,
|
|||
|
|
having to spend time with my friends around Baltimore! Before I
|
|||
|
|
got home, I had a job offer. [applause]
|
|||
|
|
They wanted me right away, so I took a week to wrap up some
|
|||
|
|
business for the Connecticut affiliate and headed to the
|
|||
|
|
Washington area.
|
|||
|
|
The job I ended up working on at Atlantic Aerospace is the
|
|||
|
|
computation of the radar cross section of a radome. I am in the
|
|||
|
|
antenna design group. Antennas come in all shapes and sizes. If
|
|||
|
|
you stick an antenna on an aircraft and you don't cover it with
|
|||
|
|
something and you go Mach II, that antenna is going to be left
|
|||
|
|
somewhere behind you because it will just get blown right off the
|
|||
|
|
aircraft. Additionally, antennas are good at picking
|
|||
|
|
electromagnetic waves out of the air. Light is made up of
|
|||
|
|
electromagnetic waves. They come in a great variety of
|
|||
|
|
frequencies, like color. An antenna picks these electromagnetic
|
|||
|
|
waves out of the air. It also has the job of transmitting them
|
|||
|
|
into the air. As a result of these two processes, if you send an
|
|||
|
|
electromagnetic wave at an antenna, it reflects a larger
|
|||
|
|
electromagnetic wave, which means that, if you're the enemy, you
|
|||
|
|
can find an antenna very easily--it has a large radar cross-
|
|||
|
|
section. So you have two reasons why you want to hide this
|
|||
|
|
antenna: one is that it will blow off the aircraft, and the other
|
|||
|
|
is that it appears very large on a radar screen. So you put a
|
|||
|
|
plastic bubble over it. But the plastic bubble also has a large
|
|||
|
|
radar cross section, and nobody really understands--it's all
|
|||
|
|
Maxwell's fault. Nobody really understands how to design radomes
|
|||
|
|
very well. It's a black art.
|
|||
|
|
So they said, "Mike, we need a computer program to analyze
|
|||
|
|
these electromagnetic waves that scatter from a radome." I worked
|
|||
|
|
for a couple of weeks on some theories and did some computations
|
|||
|
|
on how long it would take a computer to solve this problem. For
|
|||
|
|
example, it would take a Cray computer, which is very fast, let's
|
|||
|
|
say one gigaflop (one billion floating point operations per
|
|||
|
|
second), about one year to solve any problem of interest. I was
|
|||
|
|
beginning to fear for my job! I thought nobody would want to
|
|||
|
|
invest that much time in such a project. But since I've been
|
|||
|
|
working on this problem, through some mathematical tricks I have
|
|||
|
|
gotten the problem down to one that would maybe take a week to
|
|||
|
|
do. Somebody might be willing to wait around a week for the
|
|||
|
|
answer, so I feel that my job is safe for now. I am not certain,
|
|||
|
|
however, that it will last all that long. We need faster
|
|||
|
|
computers. That's all there is to it. But my job is safe for now.
|
|||
|
|
I hope to get a couple of publications out of it. And, of course,
|
|||
|
|
once I have a few publications to show for my work, what do you
|
|||
|
|
think I'm going to do? Go back to school--hopefully as a teacher
|
|||
|
|
this time. So it's a pleasure being in Maryland now, and I thank
|
|||
|
|
you for your attention.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
____________________
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
[PHOTO: Carla McQuillan sits on the floor with her hands on number flash
|
|||
|
|
cards, teaching a little girl. CAPTION: Carla McQuillan, President of the
|
|||
|
|
National Federation of the Blind of Oregon, takes a hands-on approach to
|
|||
|
|
teaching.]
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
EDUCATION WITH VISION
|
|||
|
|
by Annie Capestany
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
From the Editor: Carla McQuillan is the President of the
|
|||
|
|
National Federation of the Blind of Oregon. Those who attend NFB
|
|||
|
|
conventions know she also sings Irish ballads and other folk
|
|||
|
|
songs, accompanied by her guitar. They may not know that she is a
|
|||
|
|
Montessori teacher who operates her own business in Springfield,
|
|||
|
|
Oregon. The following is a story that appeared in the Springfield
|
|||
|
|
News, April 13, 1994. It speaks for itself; here it is:
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Carla McQuillan is not just a preschool teacher. She is a
|
|||
|
|
spellbinder.
|
|||
|
|
McQuillan holds a bachelor's degree in teaching children
|
|||
|
|
through the art of storytelling. To some traditionalists her
|
|||
|
|
skills may sound about as central to basic education as a course
|
|||
|
|
in Navaho basket weaving.
|
|||
|
|
Stories are a great teaching tool, McQuillan argues. But
|
|||
|
|
that wasn't her only motivation in studying them.
|
|||
|
|
McQuillan is legally blind.
|
|||
|
|
Most people don't believe McQuillan is vision-impaired. Her
|
|||
|
|
blue eyes are bright and clear, and they seem to look right at
|
|||
|
|
the person who is speaking to her.
|
|||
|
|
The object of McQuillan's gaze appears only as a big blind
|
|||
|
|
spot to her. Her only vision is peripheral. At its best it's only
|
|||
|
|
20/200, compared to the 20/20 ideal.
|
|||
|
|
"I don't stumble over things," McQuillan says. "But I can't
|
|||
|
|
read print."
|
|||
|
|
Despite her blindness McQuillan owns and operates
|
|||
|
|
Springfield's only Montessori school, Children's Choice, which
|
|||
|
|
opened on Main Street last September.
|
|||
|
|
One side of the schoolroom is filled with Montessori
|
|||
|
|
materials: sorting games; carrots for peeling; number rods and
|
|||
|
|
counting beads; bright blue, three-dimensional geometric shapes;
|
|||
|
|
and even the school's binomial and trinomial cubes.
|
|||
|
|
The brightly colored cubes are a "concrete representation of
|
|||
|
|
an algebraic expression," McQuillan explains. "Now we don't tell
|
|||
|
|
the children that."
|
|||
|
|
Instead the preschoolers match colors and shapes to
|
|||
|
|
reconstruct the cubes. In that way grade-school children can
|
|||
|
|
absorb the abstract math formulas the cube represents.
|
|||
|
|
The other half of McQuillan's classroom is filled with more
|
|||
|
|
typical preschool toys and a computer. An indoor play area takes
|
|||
|
|
up part of the back of the building, and a grassy lawn is
|
|||
|
|
available for sunny days.
|
|||
|
|
Although McQuillan works with an aide, she seems perfectly
|
|||
|
|
capable of maintaining control on her own.
|
|||
|
|
"I know all the sounds of the materials in the classroom,"
|
|||
|
|
she says. "I know when the kids are doing what they should be
|
|||
|
|
doing and when they aren't.
|
|||
|
|
"There is a very different sound when something falls down
|
|||
|
|
and when something is knocked down, believe me."
|
|||
|
|
While she cannot see the children's faces, McQuillan knows
|
|||
|
|
their voices--and their cries.
|
|||
|
|
"I know from upstairs which kid is crying," she says.
|
|||
|
|
The school is built on the philosophy Maria Montessori first
|
|||
|
|
developed in Italy. Learning is individualized, McQuillan says.
|
|||
|
|
She strives to find just what each child needs in the way of
|
|||
|
|
social, mental, and practical skills.
|
|||
|
|
"We want to teach the children how to think," she says, "how
|
|||
|
|
to get from point A to point C, even if we don't tell them where
|
|||
|
|
point B is."
|
|||
|
|
Montessori also taught that children are receptive to
|
|||
|
|
learning certain skills at certain periods in their lives. For
|
|||
|
|
example, she believed most children are best able to learn to
|
|||
|
|
read between the ages of three and six.
|
|||
|
|
McQuillan says children in Montessori classrooms aren't
|
|||
|
|
forced to learn. Rather they are invited and encouraged to learn
|
|||
|
|
when they are ready.
|
|||
|
|
When learning does occur, it takes place on all sensory
|
|||
|
|
levels, building from the concrete to the abstract.
|
|||
|
|
"The more senses you incorporate," she says, "the more
|
|||
|
|
effective the learning is and the higher the retention level."
|
|||
|
|
Traditional schools rely on visual learning eighty percent
|
|||
|
|
of the time, McQuillan says. Obviously that doesn't work for her,
|
|||
|
|
and she believes it also is less effective for most children.
|
|||
|
|
Students in her classroom use many methods, including
|
|||
|
|
sandpaper letters, to learn the alphabet. During a recent lesson
|
|||
|
|
on soil and the earth, the children all went out and made mud
|
|||
|
|
pies.
|
|||
|
|
And when it's time for a story, the children gather around
|
|||
|
|
McQuillan in the reading corner, next to the bookshelf, where she
|
|||
|
|
spins a tale of fun and fantasy, drawn from her imagination.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
____________________
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
[PHOTO: Jim Burton sits at his computer terminal. CAPTION: Jim Burton.]
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
HELPING SOCIETY SEE
|
|||
|
|
by Kathy Berry
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
From the Editor: Jim Burton is an active member of the
|
|||
|
|
National Federation of the Blind of Alaska. The following article
|
|||
|
|
appeared in the Fall, 1993, issue of the Geophysical Institute
|
|||
|
|
Quarterly, a publication of the University of Alaska at
|
|||
|
|
Fairbanks:
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Although his vision is impaired, Jim Burton has developed
|
|||
|
|
great insight into the hearts of people, especially those with
|
|||
|
|
disabilities.
|
|||
|
|
As a man who once lived in a healthy body and is now dealing
|
|||
|
|
with Usher Syndrome, Burton has overcome handicaps in all areas
|
|||
|
|
of his life. As a result of the progressive disease, he's losing
|
|||
|
|
his hearing and eyesight, but not his passion for helping others.
|
|||
|
|
Burton has been an active participant in federal and
|
|||
|
|
statewide service organizations for years. He's a member of the
|
|||
|
|
Board of Directors of the National Federation of the Blind of
|
|||
|
|
Alaska, and he served on an Alaska committee to implement the
|
|||
|
|
1973 Rehabilitation Act.
|
|||
|
|
Recently he was appointed by Governor Walter Hickel to a
|
|||
|
|
two-year term on Alaska's Statewide Independent Living Council, a
|
|||
|
|
group charged with setting up guidelines to govern the operation
|
|||
|
|
and funding of independent living centers, organizations that
|
|||
|
|
provide services for disabled people.
|
|||
|
|
"In broad terms, the centers work to help remove physical
|
|||
|
|
barriers to transportation and access, and they help remove
|
|||
|
|
mental barriers with education," Burton said.
|
|||
|
|
Although he wears hearing aids in both ears, is considered
|
|||
|
|
legally blind, and walks with a white cane at night, Burton is
|
|||
|
|
still able to volunteer in the local community. He has coached
|
|||
|
|
youth football teams in Fairbanks since 1981 and serves on the
|
|||
|
|
board of directors for the Fairbanks Youth Center.
|
|||
|
|
In his spare time he teaches classes at UAF's Downtown
|
|||
|
|
Center, and he's writing a proposal to secure funds to train
|
|||
|
|
disabled people in computer-aided design drafting, his line of
|
|||
|
|
work. His aim is to help the newly disabled person get back into
|
|||
|
|
a job as quickly as possible.
|
|||
|
|
As a computer drafting specialist with the Photo-Graphics
|
|||
|
|
Service Center at the Geophysical Institute, Burton uses software
|
|||
|
|
to help researchers draft and design tools associated with their
|
|||
|
|
projects.
|
|||
|
|
"I work with anyone who has an idea," Burton said, "whether
|
|||
|
|
they want to design instruments the size of a briefcase or as
|
|||
|
|
large as a building."
|
|||
|
|
Since he started work at the institute in 1973, Burton has
|
|||
|
|
helped professors design heavy equipment, an array of antennas,
|
|||
|
|
special tools for cutting ice, and even a rail system for a
|
|||
|
|
rocket launch at Poker Flat Research Range. He's reshaped
|
|||
|
|
architectural drawings to conform to requests, and he's worked
|
|||
|
|
with the institute machine shop to create models and true-sized
|
|||
|
|
replicas of instruments needed for specific purposes. He's also
|
|||
|
|
created maps, graphs, and line drawings of existing structures
|
|||
|
|
for publication; he's currently producing a set of drawings of
|
|||
|
|
the observatory in Kaktovik so rocket scientists visiting Poker
|
|||
|
|
Flat can plan where to place their instruments without first
|
|||
|
|
visiting the remote site.
|
|||
|
|
Burton works on the projects from a bank of computers in his
|
|||
|
|
shared office, which is unusually dark to accommodate his
|
|||
|
|
sensitivity to light and contains a clock that regularly
|
|||
|
|
broadcasts the time. Since his disease was diagnosed in 1987, his
|
|||
|
|
co-workers have made adjustments along with him.
|
|||
|
|
"I've been lucky concerning the support I've received," he
|
|||
|
|
said. "Without the employer trying to make an effort, a newly
|
|||
|
|
disabled employee doesn't have a chance."
|
|||
|
|
Nearly deaf since birth, he realized he also was losing his
|
|||
|
|
eyesight only six years ago. His family, which includes Hanne,
|
|||
|
|
his wife of twenty years, and his two sons, who are now college-
|
|||
|
|
bound, helped him deal with the discovery. "When people become
|
|||
|
|
newly disabled, the whole family has to change its way of life,"
|
|||
|
|
Burton said.
|
|||
|
|
In learning to accept the things he's had to give up, Burton
|
|||
|
|
has gained the respect and admiration of hundreds of people whose
|
|||
|
|
lives he's touched.
|
|||
|
|
His life is a testimony to his passion. "The main thing is
|
|||
|
|
to help all people, regardless of age or health, function fully
|
|||
|
|
in society as freely as possible," he said.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
____________________
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
[PHOTOS: Portraits. CAPTIONS: 1) Gail Bryant. 2) Billie Weaver. 3) Carolyn
|
|||
|
|
Scharkey. 4) Betty Walker.]
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
RECIPES
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
This month's recipes come from the National Federation of
|
|||
|
|
the Blind of Missouri.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
MR. DELL'S POTATO CASSEROLE
|
|||
|
|
by Rhoda Dower
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Gary Wunder, President of the NFB of Missouri, says of Rhoda
|
|||
|
|
Dower: "She is the spiritual first lady of our Missouri affiliate
|
|||
|
|
and one of our most outstanding fund raisers, hostesses, and
|
|||
|
|
cooks. It is with gratitude and firsthand knowledge that many of
|
|||
|
|
us can testify to her skill in the kitchen and her warmth as a
|
|||
|
|
Federationist."
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Ingredients:
|
|||
|
|
2-pound bag frozen hash brown potatoes
|
|||
|
|
1/2 cup butter
|
|||
|
|
1 can cream of chicken soup, undiluted
|
|||
|
|
1/2 cup milk
|
|||
|
|
1 pint sour cream
|
|||
|
|
1/2 cup chopped onion
|
|||
|
|
1/2 chopped green pepper
|
|||
|
|
2 cups cheddar cheese, shredded
|
|||
|
|
2 cups cooked chicken breast
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Method: In a large bowl mix soup, milk, sour cream, green
|
|||
|
|
pepper, and onions, adding salt and pepper to taste. Melt butter
|
|||
|
|
in a 9-by-13-inch pan or dish. Spread one-half of the hash brown
|
|||
|
|
potatoes in a layer across the pan, then add the chicken. Pour
|
|||
|
|
one-half of the liquid mixture over the chicken and add half the
|
|||
|
|
cheese. Top with a final layer of potatoes and the remaining
|
|||
|
|
liquid. Sprinkle the remaining cheese over all. Bake at 350
|
|||
|
|
degrees for 45 minutes. Serves 12. This recipe usually requires 5
|
|||
|
|
or 6 boneless and skinless chicken filets.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
LOW-CHOLESTEROL, LOW-FAT MEAT LOAF
|
|||
|
|
by Gail Bryant
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Gail Bryant is a long-time member of the Columbia Chapter of
|
|||
|
|
the NFB of Missouri and, according to Gary Wunder, has probably
|
|||
|
|
served as president of the Chapter longer than any other member.
|
|||
|
|
"Gail is a tremendous cook, and her marriage to Ed has resulted
|
|||
|
|
in the development of some excellent recipes which diabetics can
|
|||
|
|
enjoy. Gail uses her knowledge of cooking and her Braille
|
|||
|
|
cookbooks to help many of us find that special recipe." Her
|
|||
|
|
husband Ed is the Editor of the Voice of the Diabetic:
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Ingredients:
|
|||
|
|
3/4 pound ground round
|
|||
|
|
3/4 pound ground turkey
|
|||
|
|
1/2 cup regular oats
|
|||
|
|
1 8-ounce can tomato puree
|
|||
|
|
1/4 cup chopped onion
|
|||
|
|
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
|
|||
|
|
1/2 teaspoon Italian seasoning
|
|||
|
|
1/2 teaspoon salt (optional)
|
|||
|
|
1/2 teaspoon black or lemon pepper (I prefer lemon)
|
|||
|
|
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Method: Heat oven to 350 degrees. Mix all ingredients well.
|
|||
|
|
Press mixture evenly into ungreased loaf pan, or use a 9-by-13-
|
|||
|
|
inch pan, and shape into loaf. Cook uncovered 1 1/4 to 1<> hours,
|
|||
|
|
or until center is no longer pink. Makes 8 servings. Exchange per
|
|||
|
|
serving: 145 calories, 18 grams protein, 3 grams carbohydrates, 6
|
|||
|
|
grams fat, 2 grams unsaturated fat, 4 grams saturated fat, 60
|
|||
|
|
milligrams cholesterol, and 250 milligrams sodium. Great with a
|
|||
|
|
salad and steamed vegetables.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
LIVERWURST BALL
|
|||
|
|
by Cletus Hentges
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Cletus Hentges is a long-time member of the Columbia Chapter
|
|||
|
|
of the Missouri affiliate and was the husband of the late Mary
|
|||
|
|
Lou Hentges. He has continued to be active in the Federation
|
|||
|
|
since Mary Lou's death. Cletus has endowed a state scholarship in
|
|||
|
|
her memory and is always helpful in getting members to meetings
|
|||
|
|
and to speaking engagements featuring the Federation.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Ingredients:
|
|||
|
|
2 pounds liverwurst
|
|||
|
|
2 8-ounce packages cream cheese
|
|||
|
|
1 teaspoon curry powder
|
|||
|
|
1 envelope onion soup
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Method: Mix all ingredients together with hands and shape
|
|||
|
|
into ball. Wrap tightly and refrigerate until time to use.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
SWEET POTATO SOUFFLE
|
|||
|
|
by Billie Weaver
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Billie Weaver is a psychologist, a long-time leader in the
|
|||
|
|
Springfield Chapter, a former President of the National
|
|||
|
|
Federation of the Blind of Missouri, and one of the most
|
|||
|
|
respected members in the affiliate.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Ingredients:
|
|||
|
|
3 cups cooked, mashed sweet potatoes
|
|||
|
|
1 cup sugar
|
|||
|
|
3 eggs
|
|||
|
|
1/2 cup milk
|
|||
|
|
4 tablespoons butter
|
|||
|
|
1<EFBFBD> teaspoons vanilla
|
|||
|
|
1 stick butter
|
|||
|
|
1 cup brown sugar
|
|||
|
|
1 cup chopped pecans
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Method: Combine first six ingredients and pour into a
|
|||
|
|
buttered pan or oven-proof dish of appropriate size. For topping,
|
|||
|
|
cream butter and brown sugar together, then fold in nuts. Spread
|
|||
|
|
over the sweet potato mixture and bake for 20 minutes in a 350-
|
|||
|
|
degree oven.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
CAROLYN'S CREATION
|
|||
|
|
by Carolyn Scharkey
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Carolyn Scharkey is the President of the NFB of Missouri's
|
|||
|
|
Student Division, a member of the Mississippi Triangle Chapter,
|
|||
|
|
and the recipient of both state and national NFB scholarships.
|
|||
|
|
She is also a mother and a wonderful cook.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Ingredients:
|
|||
|
|
3 cups cubed cooked ham
|
|||
|
|
6 cups peeled cubed potatoes
|
|||
|
|
1 cup peeled diced onions
|
|||
|
|
1 cup finely chopped celery
|
|||
|
|
1 cup peeled cubed apples
|
|||
|
|
1 can cream of mushroom soup
|
|||
|
|
1 8-ounce container sour cream
|
|||
|
|
1/2 cup milk
|
|||
|
|
6 slices American cheese
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Method: Lightly grease bottom and sides of 9-by-13-inch pan.
|
|||
|
|
Mix together ham, potatoes, onions, celery, and apple. Combine
|
|||
|
|
soup, sour cream, and milk and pour over the ham mixture in the
|
|||
|
|
pan. Top with American cheese, cover with foil, and bake at 350
|
|||
|
|
degrees for 45 minutes. Remove cover and brown for 15 minutes.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
DUDLEY'S DOGGIE DONUTS
|
|||
|
|
by Betty Walker
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Betty and David Walker are active members of the Jefferson
|
|||
|
|
City Chapter of the NFB of Missouri. Undoubtedly more
|
|||
|
|
Federationists attended their wedding than have ever attended any
|
|||
|
|
other because it took place at the close of the Wednesday session
|
|||
|
|
of the 1982 Convention in Minneapolis. They report that Dudley,
|
|||
|
|
who is an American Water Spaniel, is indeed fond of these treats.
|
|||
|
|
When he hears them mentioned, he runs to the kitchen and gazes
|
|||
|
|
hopefully at the tin in which they are kept.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Ingredients:
|
|||
|
|
2 cups whole wheat flour
|
|||
|
|
3 tablespoons oatmeal
|
|||
|
|
1 teaspoon garlic powder
|
|||
|
|
1 egg, slightly beaten
|
|||
|
|
2/3 cup boiling water
|
|||
|
|
1 bouillon cube, any flavor
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Method: Dissolve bouillon cube in boiling water; set aside.
|
|||
|
|
Mix together dry ingredients and stir in egg. Stir in bouillon
|
|||
|
|
with fork until dough forms a ball. Turn dough onto lightly
|
|||
|
|
floured surface; roll or press to about 1/4-inch thickness. Cut
|
|||
|
|
with donut cutter. Gather together donut holes and scraps,
|
|||
|
|
flatten again and cut more donuts. Place in microwaveable baking
|
|||
|
|
dish, cook on high for 10 minutes. Donuts will harden as they
|
|||
|
|
cool. Makes twenty donuts. If all donuts will not fit in baking
|
|||
|
|
dish, place half in dish and microwave on high for seven minutes;
|
|||
|
|
repeat with remaining half.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
******************************
|
|||
|
|
If you or a friend would like to remember the National
|
|||
|
|
Federation of the Blind in your will, you can do so by employing
|
|||
|
|
the following language:
|
|||
|
|
"I give, devise, and bequeath unto National Federation of
|
|||
|
|
the Blind, 1800 Johnson Street, Baltimore, Maryland 21230, a
|
|||
|
|
District of Columbia nonprofit corporation, the sum of $_____ (or
|
|||
|
|
"_____ percent of my net estate" or "The following stocks and
|
|||
|
|
bonds: _____") to be used for its worthy purposes on behalf of
|
|||
|
|
blind persons."
|
|||
|
|
******************************
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
** ** MONITOR MINIATURES ** **
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
** What's New in the Car Rental Business?:
|
|||
|
|
In the June, 1993, issue of the Braille Monitor, Ed and Toni
|
|||
|
|
Eames described some problems they were having with car rental
|
|||
|
|
companies and the measures they have pursued to alleviate them.
|
|||
|
|
They recently sent us the following update on the situation:
|
|||
|
|
The issue was simple. As blind consumers with a valid credit
|
|||
|
|
card, we wanted the same right as sighted people have to rent a
|
|||
|
|
car. Some companies required a driver's license as the only
|
|||
|
|
acceptable means of identification for car rental. Therefore,
|
|||
|
|
they would not accept our California non-driver identification
|
|||
|
|
cards. This clearly smacked of discrimination and violated state
|
|||
|
|
and federal law.
|
|||
|
|
We filed two separate complaints under Title Three of the
|
|||
|
|
Americans With Disabilities Act against Dollar and Enterprise car
|
|||
|
|
rental companies. The Department of Justice has been
|
|||
|
|
investigating these complaints and working with the companies to
|
|||
|
|
change their policies and practices. Currently both companies say
|
|||
|
|
they have changed their practices, permitting us to rent cars
|
|||
|
|
using non-driver identification cards, and that they are working
|
|||
|
|
toward a change in policy. The Department of Justice
|
|||
|
|
investigating attorneys have asked us to notify them of any
|
|||
|
|
recent denials of the right to rent cars from these two
|
|||
|
|
companies. If you have had a problem with Dollar, please contact
|
|||
|
|
Maggie Prieto. If you have had a problem with Enterprise, please
|
|||
|
|
write to Mary Lou Mobley. Both can be contacted at Civil Rights
|
|||
|
|
Division, Public Access Section, U.S. Department of Justice, P.O.
|
|||
|
|
Box 66738, Washington, D.C. 20035-6738. If you have had a problem
|
|||
|
|
and write to either attorney, please send us a copy. Toni and Ed
|
|||
|
|
Eames can be contacted at 3376 North Wishon, Fresno, California
|
|||
|
|
93704; or call (209) 224-0544.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
[PHOTO: Tom Bickford stands with his hand on that of Elijah Cummings, who is
|
|||
|
|
under sleep shades, instructing Mr. Cummings how to use the white cane.
|
|||
|
|
CAPTION: Tom Bickford teaches Maryland Delegate Elijah Cummings the proper way
|
|||
|
|
to hold a long white cane.]
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
** Book on Cane Travel Now Available from NLS:
|
|||
|
|
Care and Feeding of the Long White Cane: Instructions in
|
|||
|
|
Cane Travel for Blind People by Thomas Bickford, published by the
|
|||
|
|
National Federation of the Blind, is now available from your
|
|||
|
|
cooperating NLS network library as BR9342, one volume, and
|
|||
|
|
RC37053, one cassette.
|
|||
|
|
The Library of Congress annotation reads as follows: the
|
|||
|
|
author, blind himself, begins with instructions for novices in
|
|||
|
|
cane use and continues with step-by-step advice on walking within
|
|||
|
|
buildings, following traffic patterns, and using public
|
|||
|
|
transportation. Also discussed are recreational hiking and
|
|||
|
|
dealing with inclement weather.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
** For Sale:
|
|||
|
|
We have been asked to carry the following announcement:
|
|||
|
|
I have a slightly used Visual Tek for sale. It is in very
|
|||
|
|
good condition, and I am asking $850. For more information please
|
|||
|
|
call Nino Pesce at (215) 322-4447, or write to him at 4356 Pine
|
|||
|
|
St., Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19053.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
** Hoping To Find:
|
|||
|
|
We have been asked to carry the following request:
|
|||
|
|
I am seeking to purchase a 4-volume map set of the United
|
|||
|
|
States, which was available from the American Printing House for
|
|||
|
|
the Blind in the 1970's but is no longer available. If you have
|
|||
|
|
any information about where I might purchase this item, please
|
|||
|
|
write in Braille or on cassette to Les Seitz, 5415 North Sheridan
|
|||
|
|
Road, #4908, Chicago, Illinois 60640.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
[PHOTO: Portrait. CAPTION: Joe Ruffalo.]
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
** Elected:
|
|||
|
|
Joe Ruffalo, President of the National Federation of the
|
|||
|
|
Blind of New Jersey, reports that at the affiliate's May 1, 1994,
|
|||
|
|
convention the following officers were elected: Joseph Ruffalo,
|
|||
|
|
President; Ever Lee Dow, First Vice President; Tracey Hall,
|
|||
|
|
Second Vice President; Dr. Edwin Lewinson, Secretary; and Gloria
|
|||
|
|
Lewis, Treasurer. Kathleen Benjamin, Rose Bethea, Michelle
|
|||
|
|
Foster, and Jerilyn Higgins were elected to serve as board
|
|||
|
|
members.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
** Information Needed:
|
|||
|
|
We have been asked to carry the following announcement:
|
|||
|
|
I would like to get in touch with users of IBM-compatible
|
|||
|
|
computers who know of any games compatible with speech output
|
|||
|
|
other than those created by Richard DeSteno. I would also like to
|
|||
|
|
find documentation on Flipper and Accent. I have both programs on
|
|||
|
|
my PC but know very little about them. I would also like to get
|
|||
|
|
in touch with Braille 'n Speak 640 users. You can contact me in
|
|||
|
|
print, Braille, tape, or by phone. Contact Marie Lagerquist,
|
|||
|
|
12003 Green Mountain Street, Reno, Nevada 89506; or call (702)
|
|||
|
|
677-4258.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
** Perkins Brailler Repairs Available:
|
|||
|
|
Joseph Staniewski has asked us to report the following:
|
|||
|
|
The Selective Doctor, Inc., is a new repair service for all
|
|||
|
|
IBM typewriters and now Perkins Braille writers. Located in
|
|||
|
|
Baltimore, the service has done work for the Maryland School for
|
|||
|
|
the Blind and a number of other organizations in Maryland. They
|
|||
|
|
are now prepared to receive Perkins Braillers sent to them from
|
|||
|
|
around the country. They advertise top quality service at
|
|||
|
|
yesterday's prices. They also request a phone call before
|
|||
|
|
shipment of Braillers and ask that equipment be insured in the
|
|||
|
|
mails. For more information contact the Selective Doctor, Inc.,
|
|||
|
|
P.O. Box 28432, Baltimore, Maryland 21234; or call (410) 668-
|
|||
|
|
1143.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
** For Sale:
|
|||
|
|
Perkins large-cell brailler in excellent condition. If
|
|||
|
|
interested, please call Jo Nell Standefer anytime at (505) 274-
|
|||
|
|
6402.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
** Cruise Information Available:
|
|||
|
|
We have been asked to carry the following announcement:
|
|||
|
|
"Custom Cruise News" is a bi-weekly publication available in
|
|||
|
|
accessible format. It is a source of current cruise information
|
|||
|
|
and specials offered by cruise lines through Custom Cruises
|
|||
|
|
Unlimited, Inc. Subscription cost is $36 a year. Advertising is
|
|||
|
|
free to subscribers and should be submitted in Braille or on
|
|||
|
|
cassette. For more information write to Custom Cruises Unlimited,
|
|||
|
|
Inc., 8036 Congresswood Lane, Cincinnati, Ohio 45224; or call
|
|||
|
|
(513) 931-2234.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
** Book About CD-Rom Available:
|
|||
|
|
We have been asked to carry the following announcement:
|
|||
|
|
National Braille Press has just released a new book on CD-
|
|||
|
|
ROM technology called The CD-ROM Advantage. This book answers the
|
|||
|
|
most commonly-asked questions about CD-ROM technology and how it
|
|||
|
|
works with speech and Braille. The book has practical advice from
|
|||
|
|
blind CD-ROM users who talk about the advantages, and the
|
|||
|
|
pitfalls, of this exciting new technology. Profiles of blind
|
|||
|
|
users add a human element to an otherwise technical subject, and
|
|||
|
|
as an added feature the book lists over one-hundred CD-ROM titles
|
|||
|
|
that do work with speech and Braille. There's plenty of resource
|
|||
|
|
information, including where to go for help and support. The cost
|
|||
|
|
is $11.95 in Braille, disk, or print (add $3.50 for postage on
|
|||
|
|
the print edition).
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
** In Memoriam:
|
|||
|
|
Karen Mayry, President of the National Federation of the
|
|||
|
|
Blind of South Dakota, reports with sorrow the death last fall of
|
|||
|
|
Harold Pigsley, charter member of the Black Hills Chapter. She
|
|||
|
|
says, "Harold succumbed to complications of diabetes at the age
|
|||
|
|
of seventy-two. He had struggled many years with the disease but
|
|||
|
|
always held firm in his belief that blindness could be reduced to
|
|||
|
|
a mere nuisance. His dedication, support, and great sense of
|
|||
|
|
humor helped set the tone for the Black Hills Chapter. His
|
|||
|
|
business acumen, willingness always to do more than his share,
|
|||
|
|
and positive attitude helped the rest of us to do our part. He
|
|||
|
|
was loved by all and will be intensely missed."
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
** Pen Pals Wanted:
|
|||
|
|
We have been asked to carry the following announcement:
|
|||
|
|
I would like to correspond with Americans or Canadians
|
|||
|
|
between the ages of twenty and forty-five. I am totally blind and
|
|||
|
|
would like to exchange ideas with people who work in the fields
|
|||
|
|
of recreation, camp counseling, and children's camp
|
|||
|
|
administration. My interests are sports; radio (contemporary,
|
|||
|
|
Christian, southern, gospel, and country and western); blue
|
|||
|
|
grass, pop, and Latin music; blindness issues; the outdoors; and
|
|||
|
|
shortwave listening. Interested people should write in Braille,
|
|||
|
|
computer Braille, print, or cassette tape to Eric Calhoun, P.O.
|
|||
|
|
Box 1003, Inglewood, California 90308.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
** Perkins Brailler Needed:
|
|||
|
|
Incarcerated Braille transcribing student seeks to purchase
|
|||
|
|
a new or used Perkins Brailler. Please write (print or Braille):
|
|||
|
|
Michael Portzer #168686, CCA/SCCC 10A/B/205, P.O. Box 279,
|
|||
|
|
Clifton, Tennessee 38425-0279.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
** New Chapter:
|
|||
|
|
Karen Mayry, President of the National Federation of the
|
|||
|
|
Blind of South Dakota, writes as follows:
|
|||
|
|
The City of Yankton is the home of our newest National
|
|||
|
|
Federation of the Blind of South Dakota chapter. Affiliate Board
|
|||
|
|
members Noble Mellegard, Eileen Tscharner, and Karen Mayry held
|
|||
|
|
an organizing dinner in November, 1993. Attendees expressed
|
|||
|
|
interest in forming a chapter in Yankton. The first meeting,
|
|||
|
|
despite a horrendous snow storm, found a large group of people
|
|||
|
|
gathered at the public library to elect officers, listen to
|
|||
|
|
Denise Jones present her Washington Seminar report, and visit.
|
|||
|
|
Enthusiasm ran high that evening. With such interest and energy,
|
|||
|
|
Yankton members will help educate others about the respectability
|
|||
|
|
of blindness, the tools of independence, and the ways in which
|
|||
|
|
good training can lead to success. Elected officers include
|
|||
|
|
Denise Jones, President; Harley Evans, Vice President; and Peggy
|
|||
|
|
Klimisch, Secretary/Treasurer.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
** Disability Resource List Available:
|
|||
|
|
A two-90-minute-cassette package of disability resources has
|
|||
|
|
been compiled by Federationist Nancy Scott. It contains national
|
|||
|
|
agency, organization, and catalog information for people with
|
|||
|
|
vision, learning, and mobility impairments, as well as
|
|||
|
|
information for senior citizens and families of people in the
|
|||
|
|
above groups. The list features names, addresses, phone numbers,
|
|||
|
|
and brief descriptions of services plus some surprises put in
|
|||
|
|
just for fun.
|
|||
|
|
Cost for "Disability Resources" is $4 per copy. Cassettes
|
|||
|
|
can be played on any recorder. Make checks payable to Nancy
|
|||
|
|
Scott, and send to 1141 Washington St., Easton, Pennsylvania
|
|||
|
|
18042. Tapes will be mailed free matter.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
** Business Opportunity Available:
|
|||
|
|
We have been asked to carry the following announcement:
|
|||
|
|
Rapid growth in consumer electronics provides a part-time or
|
|||
|
|
full-time opportunity for you. International company needs highly
|
|||
|
|
motivated individuals in order to expand locally, nationally, and
|
|||
|
|
internationally. Sales and sales management opportunities as
|
|||
|
|
independent distributors available in every state, Canada, the
|
|||
|
|
United Kingdom, and soon the rest of Europe. Start your own
|
|||
|
|
business to sell security and home entertainment electronic
|
|||
|
|
products directly to consumers. Work from your home. Minimal
|
|||
|
|
investment. Please contact Federation member Leonard Shije at
|
|||
|
|
(505) 292-5088; or write him at 10400 Griffith Park Drive, N.E.,
|
|||
|
|
Albuquerque, New Mexico 87123.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
** Braille Machzor Available:
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
We have been asked to carry the following announcement:
|
|||
|
|
Jewish blind who are interested in obtaining Braille copies
|
|||
|
|
of the "Machzor" for the High Holy Days to participate in the
|
|||
|
|
services for Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur may obtain their
|
|||
|
|
complimentary copies by writing to JHB, P.O. Box 290336,
|
|||
|
|
Brooklyn, New York 11229; or sending a fax to (718) 338-0653.
|