Blindness is NOT a Tragedy!!!!!

When checking my e-mails this morning I found a very disturbing message forwarded to me about an effort by the Foundation Fighting Blindness to collect stories for a book.  The Foundation Fighting Blindness claims that their goals is to give comfort and support to people who are blind and their families, but in this message they are asking people to contribute stories to a book that will paint a picture of hopelessness and tragedy.  Through stories that make fun of or highlight inabilities or shortcomings that are most often experienced not because of blindness, but rather because of a lack of training or sometimes as a result of a mistake that could be made by individuals blind or sighted, the Foundation Fighting Blindness is portraying the outlook for the blind as one that is bleak and sad.  As a member of the National Federation of the Blind, I am here to tell you that blindness is NOT heartbreaking, sad, nor does it have any determination on the  bleakness of our future!!!

We of the National Federation of the Blind of Colorado like to support other agencies who are doing positive work the blind even when their missions and visions may differ from ours.  We can work in variety of capacities to bring about positive change.  However, WE DO NOT support making blind people look incompetent and or incapable through either humorous or heartbreaking stories about the poor pitiful blind. 

Here is an example of a story that was submitted BY one of the folks working to create the book!!!!  His name is John and he has RP.  He is an employee of the Foundation Fighting Blindness.

I was in a hotel recently, for a business trip, and it was the first time I'd gone solo. Well, I was doing fine walking the many corridors and going up and down escalators and elevators. The only exception was 

when I got in the elevator once and hit the wrong button. Instead of finding the "L" button for Lobby, I found the button that summoned the front desk!  I knew I was in trouble when, after I pushed the button again I heard the sound of a telephone ringing and then a voice saying, "Front desk, may I help you?" I said, "I'm sorry, just another one of your visually challenged guests trying to ride the elevator alone."   . . . When the elevator door opens to take me somewhere, and there is no one else on board . . . That dreadful silence means that I am on my own to my destination and, who knows, another chat with the front desk!

This story starts off okay.  John is taking charge with confidence by going on his first business trip alone.  It sounds like he is doing reasonably well navigating the hotel so there are no red flags here.  When he talks about pushing the wrong button we can see that he might need a little braille training, but still, who hasn't gotten in an elevator and pushed a wrong button at some point in time.  The REAL problem comes with his response to the front desk.  Instead of just saying "oh sorry, I pushed the wrong button" he has to make a big deal about blindness which is completely unnecessary!!!  The last sentence where he discusses the dread of being in the elevator alone knowing he is in charge of getting to his destination is the only part of the story that strikes me as funny.  I think it is funny because I know how ridiculous and untrue it is to believe that a blind person must feel fear and anxiety at the idea of being in an elevator without someone to "take them where they need to go." 

The story John tells does not lend a sense of hope to a person who is blind.  It tells them that life is difficult and sometimes seems impossible.  THIS IS NOT THE TRUTH ABOUT BLINDNESS!!!!!

BLIND PEOPLE CAN TRAVEL ALONE, USE ELEVATORS ALONE, GO TO WORK ALONE, GO SEEK OUT NEW PLACES ALONE, OR WHATEVER ELSE THEY WISH.  John sounds like he needs some serious blindness training.  John, if you are reading this go to www.coloradocenterfortheblind.org and get yourself some blindness training so that you start enjoying your life and stop looking at it as a tragedy that will only end when doctors have the ability to restore your sight!  With a good dose of confidence and blindness skills, you will be able to take charge of your future destination without fear of the empty elevator!

TO THE FOUNDATION FIGHTING BLINDNESS

While the National Federation of the Blind of Colorado respects your effort to conduct research to cure diseases that cause blindness, IN THE MEANTIME, you need to represent the abilities of the blind accurately.  With the proper tools and training, blindness can be reduced to a mere physical nuisance.  If you want to give people hope, tell them how to get training that will give them the skills and confidence to become successful and productive members of society.  THIS IS REAL HOPE, not the idea of sitting around for 10 years doing nothing while you wait on doctors to find a way to give you your sight.  

I hope that our readers can agree that blindness is NOT the tragedy.  The real tragedy is spreading the perception that the blind CAN'T when we the trained, competent, and confident blind are in society every day actively proving that we CAN and that we DO!!!