[acb-hsp] video I saw on NY Times

[Karen Rose]

This video and the ideas it portrays is very, very dangerous.  I, for one, 
went to a private graduate school and incurred a great deal of student debt 
which I subsequently defaulted on and later repaid.  As someone born totally 
blind, I knew full well that I would have difficulty finding internships 
required for licensure as a therapist when I first took the loans, but did 
it anyway, as my goal was definitely to become a psychotherapist, not a 
computer programmer as rehab wanted me to become.  (And me, who can't do 
math to save my life.(LOL)  That being said however, I am very, very glad I 
took those loans, and I am now a successful therapist earning a six-figure 
income in private practice after having served on faculties at two 
universities.  Without those loans, I would never have had those 
opportunities in the long run.  My great fear is that ideas such as those 
expressed in this video could easily lead to the loan agencies, (now 
fortunately no longer banks), requiring sight as a condition for being 
allowed to borrow student loans or, for that matter, simply eliminating all 
people with disabilities from being allowed to borrow for school.  This 
would be highly dangerous and restrictive were it to happen.


Karen Rose, MFT
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Abels, Arnold V." <abelsa at umkc.edu>
To: "Discussion list for ACB human service professionals" <acb-hsp at acb.org>
Sent: Saturday, September 01, 2012 10:07 AM
Subject: [acb-hsp] video I saw on NY Times


> HI all
> I looked at this video and wanted to share it as I found  the message 
> about vision loss and blindness disheartening. While it portrays 
> (economic, transportation, societal,, etc.) challenges that many 
> individuals with vision loss face each day, including the sigma, 
> discrimination, access barriers, etc. it left it at "hopeless". While I 
> appreciate the realities that some individuals with disabilities cannot 
> work FT and a few cannot work at all, I was left disheartened by the 
> incomplete message of hopelessness. It was sad that none of the resources 
> available to the blind were highlighted, the initiatives and benefits of 
> having a diverse workforce, planting seeds that there is hope, options, 
> even in the midst of the realities of very real challenges was a message 
> that was hard to hear and that continues in the battle for inclusion. It 
> was striking how the connection of the student debt was tied exclusively 
> to vision loss as a primary reason, most sadly by the man himself and the
> hopelessness he acknowledges. If you are interested in looking at it I 
> Hope the video plays and streams to the start of the story as there are 
> other news segments on the link as well.
>
> Perhaps I am just ironically reflecting on the Labor Day holiday.
>
> May we all know we have great things to offer the world.
> Yours,
> Arnie
>
>
> Video: Certainty of Hopelessness
> One of the only ways to shed student loan debt, even in bankruptcy, is to 
> be found "hopeless" by the court. Doug Wallace, who is now legally blind 
> and owes $89,000, is awaiting a ruling.
> http://video.nytimes.com/video/2012/08/31/business/100000001727793/certainty-of-hopelessness.html?nl=todaysheadlines&emc=thab1_20120901
>
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