The Braille Forum Vol. XIX December, 1980 No. 7 Visually Impaired Secretary Wins Case Against U.S. Army Campaign '80 Impact on Programs for the Handicapped Published Monthly by the American Council of the Blind Mary T. Ballard, Editor ***** * National Office: Durward K. McDaniel National Representative 1211 Connecticut Avenue, N.W. Suite 506 Washington, DC 20036 (202) 833-1251 * Editor, The Braille Forum: Mary T. Ballard 190 Lattimore Road Rochester, NY 14620 (716) 244-8364 ** Contributing Editors George Card 605 South Few Street Madison, WI 53703 Elizabeth Lennon 1315 Greenwood Avenue Kalamazoo, MI 49007 ***** ** ACB Officers * President: Oral O. Miller 3701 Connecticut Avenue, N.W. Suite 236 Washington, DC 20008 * First Vice President: Delbert K. Aman 115 Fifth Avenue, S.E. Aberdeen, SD 57401 * Second Vice President: Dr. Robert T. McLean 2139 Joseph Street New Orleans, LA 70115 * Secretary: M. Helen Vargo 833 Oakley Street Topeka, KS 66606 * Treasurer: James R. Olsen 6211 Sheridan Avenue, S. Minneapolis, MN 55423 The Braille Forum seeks to promote the independence and dignity of all blind people; to stress responsibility of citizenship; to alert the public to the abilities and accomplishments of the blind. The Braille Forum carries official news of the American Council of the Blind and its programs. It is available for expression of views and concerns common to all blind persons. ***** ** Contents ACB Officers Report from the ACB President, Oral O. Miller Visually Impaired Secretary Wins Case Against U.S. Army Campaign '80: Paradise Lost?, by Kathy Megivern The Spirit of St. Louis, by Assunta Lilley NAC -- What It Is and Why It Is Important, by Dr. Otis Stephens The Aloha Council on Molokai, by Emogene Johnston The Electric Car Controversy From the Archives: A Californian's Point of View, by George Fogarty USABA to Conduct First National Blind Skiing Championships ACB Affiliate News: Connecticut Council Spring Convention South Carolina Convention Florida Council Workshops and Convention Here and There, by George Card Notice to Subscribers ***** ** Report from the ACB President, Oral O. Miller As we approach the Thanksgiving and Christmas seasons, I would like to devote much of this report to a few matters for which we in America should be thankful. It was my pleasure during October, 1980, to spend approximately a week in Russia as a member of the joint working group selected by the World Council for the Welfare of the Blind and the International Federation of the Blind for the purpose of exploring and developing means of greater cooperation internationally between organizations of the blind and organizations or agencies for the blind. My colleagues on the WCWB committee were from England and Russia, while the members of the IFB committee were from Pakistan, England, and America. The meeting was hosted by the All Russia Association of the Blind, the government agency which is primarily responsible for the employment of the blind throughout the USSR. The work sessions took place and the committee members were housed in the Ukrania Hotel, which, I understand, is the second largest hotel in Moscow and which, in my opinion, was similar in some respects to the Pantlind Hotel, in which the 1979 ACB national convention took place in Grand Rapids, Michigan. It is almost impossible to avoid drawing direct comparisons between conditions in America and other countries, so I hope many of my statements will not be interpreted as comparisons as much as hopefully objective and descriptive statements. Since there are readers of The Braille Forum in Russia, my statements are not intended to detract in any way from the warm hospitality which was shown to us by our host. Further, most of my opportunities for observation related to employment of the blind versus education, rehabilitation, social integration, etc. We were informed that most of the blind students in the USSR are educated in residential schools. From 80 o/o to 90% of the blind people of working age are employed in the various workshops, factories, or enterprises operated by the All Russia Association of the Blind. Although we did not see any of them, we were informed that the other blind people of working age are employed in various field, such as physiotherapists, teachers (mainly in the schools for the blind), and collective farm workers. The enterprise shops, which, of course, are completely owned by the government (as is all business in Russia), produce items which are channeled into the national distribution system, the same as items produced by regular factories employing non-handicapped workers. Although the law does not require it, very strong economic incentives encourage (almost compel) the enterprise shops to use more than 50% handicapped labor in the direct production of goods and services. This is to be contrasted with the legal requirement that at least 75% of the direct labor needed for producing goods and services in most of the sheltered workshops in America must be provided by handicapped workers. As a result of this difference, the Russian enterprise shops use many more able-bodied workers in their operations. We were informed that a desirable formula is 55% blind labor and 45% sighted labor. One result of this is that many of the enterprise shops in Russia produce somewhat more complicated products than do many of our American workshops. Our party spent one day observing the operations at the enterprise shop near the city of Dmitrof, a small city located approximately 50 miles northwest of Moscow. The factory, which assembled circuit boards for black-and-white television sets, was observed to be roomy, well lighted (both naturally and artificially), well ventilated, clean, well arranged, and not overly noisy. Most of the workers sat at desk-like work benches beside a small, slow-moving conveyor belt. Each worker performed a few simple, repetitive tasks, such as pressing metal pins into the printed circuit board by means of a hand or foot press, and then passed the board on to the next worker by means of the conveyor belt. Sighted workers performed critical and sensitive tasks such as soldering fine wires onto electronic components, sealing connections with chemicals, trimming exceptionally small wires, and electrically testing finished boards. All workers receive approximately the same monthly salary (equivalent to about $200), but the blind workers also receive a monthly pension (which may be as high as about $125 a month). (An idea concerning the cost of living can be gleaned from the fact that an average Russian worker must pay approximately two-thirds of one month's salary for a pair of shoes.) Most of the workers at the enterprise workshop we visited live in a large apartment building located approximately two hundred yards from the factory building. Some of the facilities which we saw at the factory include an employee cafeteria, a health unit or dispensary, a library (featuring a few Grade 1 braille books), an auditorium, and a small gymnasium. Most of the material in the library is on open-reel tape. We saw no cassettes, and we were informed that cassettes are not used by the blind in Russia. Although the management of the factory pointed out several times that the workers are free to go into town if they wish, we saw no evidence of any independent travel on the part of any blind workers. It appeared that blind workers wishing to go into town must rely upon sighted friends or relatives (most of whom do not have automobiles) or a bus operated by the factory. There is a small grocery store on the first floor of the apartment building, and we were informed that most of the workers buy their groceries there (when groceries are available). The employment system described above is one which seems to work adequately within the political and economic climate which exists in the USSR. It is obvious that most blind Americans would find it frustrating to live and work in the restricted environment described above, but it should be remembered that the same restricted environment applies to most Russian workers. I hope that in future issues of The Braille Forum I will have time to discuss such things as the almost complete censorship of news concerning events in the rest of the world, the dedication of the Russian economy toward the production of military and industrial equipment versus consumer goods and services, the military presence and small but frustrating restrictions on personal freedom. As implied at the beginning of this report, I left Russia feeling very fortunate to have been born and raised in the United States of America! Although the 1981 ACB national convention committee has already started making plans for the 1981 ACB national convention, to be held in St. Louis, Missouri, the week of July 4-11, we are asking for serious suggestions concerning topics, subjects or problems that would be suitable for treatment in seminars or workshops before or during Convention Week. Anyone who has a suggestion should send it to me. ***** ** Visually Impaired Secretary Wins Case Against U.S. Army In a significant administrative victory under Section 501, a visually impaired secretary has won her discrimination complaint against the U.S. Army. Florence G. Scott of Washington, D.C., had an outstanding record as a secretary with the Federal Government for eleven years when she began having difficulties with a new supervisor nearly three years ago. While Ms. Scott has a good deal of usable vision, she is blind in one eye and severely near-sighted in the other. The Army reclassified her job position from secretary/stenographer to secretary/typist, and she was told she would have to type from the handwritten drafts of her supervisors. While several of the people for whom she typed cooperated by writing clearly, the supervisor of the office refused to write like a "school child" just to please her. Ms. Scott sought counseling from the Army's Equal Employment Opportunity Office. Unsuccessful attempts were made to resolve the problem, and eventually Ms. Scott filed a formal complaint of discrimination based on handicap. After an investigation and further attempts at informal resolution, the Army issued a proposed disposition on March 14, 1979. The disposition contained a finding of discrimination, but denied the accommodations requested by Ms. Scott. Dissatisfied with the proposed disposition, Ms. Scott requested a hearing before an Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) complaints examiner. Less than two months after requesting a hearing, Ms. Scott was denied a within-grade pay increase, and a month later a supervisory evaluation was completed which ranked her as inadequate or marginal in nearly every category. She filed another complaint, this time claiming reprisal on the part of her supervisor. In August, 1979, Ms. Scott, frustrated by the long delay of the EEOC in scheduling a hearing and upset by the failure of her previous representative, James Gashel of the National Federation of the Blind, to continue efforts on her behalf, phoned the American Council of the Blind National Office seeking help. After a long interview with Staff Attorney Kathleen Megivern and National Representative Durward McDaniel, it was decided that Miss Megivern would undertake representation of Ms. Scott. In the months that followed, several meetings were held between Miss Megivern and supervisory Army personnel. The Army repeatedly refused the one accommodation being requested by Ms. Scott; that is, that her supervisors dictate their material. In addition, the Army kept insisting upon further medical examinations to determine whether Ms. Scott was "fit for duty." At one point before Ms. Scott sought ACB's help, the Army doctors had insisted that she buy a lens which her own long-time personal physician stated would not help. Afraid of losing her job, she bought the lens, and in fact it brought no improvement. Finally, the EEOC scheduled a hearing for May 30, 1980. The issues, as stated by the complaints examiner, were as follows: (1) Did the agency discriminate by failing to make reasonable accommodation? (2) Was the withholding of the within-grade pay raise an act of reprisal? The hearing lasted all day, as the Army brought in a long list of witnesses. Ms. Scott had no witnesses, and other than samples of her supervisor's handwriting, she had to rely upon only her own testimony and the cross-examination of Army witnesses. On October 16, 1980, the Army notified Ms. Scott that the EEOC examiner's recommended decision had been received and was being adopted. The EEOC found that the Army had discriminated by refusing to make the reasonable accommodation requested by Ms. Scott. The complaints examiner found no reprisal for the withholding of the pay raise because, in fact, Ms. Scott's performance on the job had not been satisfactory and the denial was therefore warranted. However, the examiner recognized that the reason Ms. Scott's performance had become unsatisfactory was the failure of the agency to accommodate her visual impairment. Therefore, back pay was ordered from the date on which she should have received the raise. Some of the language in the EEOC examiner's decision is particularly significant for all Federal employees: "I find that the agency ... sought to substitute its medical judgment for that of the complainant's own doctor who had treated her for ten years, pressured the complainant to undergo a fitness for duty examination, and further pressured the complainant to purchase a lens which was known by complainant's doctor to be ineffective. Such a procedure would set a dangerous precedent. One's employment position should not be jeopardized by a request for accommodation, nor should an agency's prescription, be it for eyeglasses or medicine, be forced on an employee." One of the purported accommodations made by the agency was to remove nearly all of the other tasks normally a part of Ms. Scott's job so that she would have more time to type. "This kind of solution, while perhaps having some superficial logic to it, is no solution at all. When duties which are capable of performance without difficulty are removed, not only is the classification of the position endangered, but the handicap is thereby emphasized. Such counter-productive action is incompatible with the thrust of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, which mandates the maximum use of the abilities of handicapped employees rather than a focus on their disabilities." Again on the subject of reasonable accommodation, the Army had claimed that its offer to buy expensive but not helpful appliances such as a Visualtek fulfilled their obligation. Their willingness to go to this expense, while refusing the simple request to dictate the work, did not persuade the examiner: "The inspection of devices for the visually impaired was no accommodation, but is an indication that some solution was sought which would have obviated any personal adjustment on the part of Mr. Coombs and the other auditors. This was clearly an accommodation sought for the staff, not for the complainant's impairment (emphasis added)." While the favorable decision from the EEOC was cause for celebration, even more remarkable was the full acceptance of that decision by the U.S. Army's Office of Equal Employment Opportunity. In fact, the Army's representative went even further than the EEOC's examiner and found that there had been reprisal by Ms. Scott's supervisor when he filled out the promotion evaluation. Thus, in addition to the back pay order, the Army ordered that the promotion evaluation be expunged from Ms. Scott's personnel records. It is not often that a complainant in any discrimination action receives such complete relief as that awarded to Ms. Scott. Kathleen Megivern and the American Council's direct involvement in securing this result is a victory of which all ACB members can be proud. Because there has been so little litigation under Section 501, this decision, even though only at the administrative level, is of value and importance for all Federal employees and for those attorneys who have sought guidance on the meaning and extent of reasonable accommodation. This is yet another example of the growing significance of ACB and its contributions to blind and handicapped people. ***** ** Campaign '80: Paradise Lost? By Kathy Megivern Now that the long campaign of 1980 is behind us, it might seem an exercise in futility to spend time examining the platforms on which the three major Presidential candidates ran. That may be true if, in fact, those platforms are merely part of the soon-to-be-forgotten campaign rhetoric. But the specific references in all three platforms to the problems and needs of handicapped people warrant some closer examination, and those references may be our greatest source of hope in the coming years. Both the Republican and the Democratic platforms, as well as the Anderson-Lucey platform, have separate sections addressing the issues facing handicapped people. The Democratic and Anderson­Lucey platforms are the most detailed, specifically calling for amendments to the Fair Housing Act and the Civil Rights Act to include handicapped people, and supporting full implementation of Section 504 by all Federal agencies. But, just as President Carter has consistently failed to mention handicapped people when speaking of civil rights, the Democratic platform enumerates nearly every group except the handicapped in its discussion of civil rights needs and programs. While the separate sections of the Republican platform dealing with the handicapped are somewhat vague, there is an enumeration of areas in which handicapped people face discrimination, including education, employment, transportation, and housing. The platform then states: "We support a concerted national effort to eliminate discrimination in all these areas." Even though no specific actions are recommended, such a clear statement of intent should not be ignored, nor should we allow it to be forgotten. The work of the American Council of the Blind will be far more affected in the months to come by the changes in the Senate than by the Presidency. Because the Republicans are now the majority party in the U.S. Senate, every committee and subcommittee chairmanship will change. In terms of programs of interest to handicapped people, some of the most significant changes are as follows: Senator Harrison Williams (D., NJ), chief sponsor of S. 446 to include handicapped people in Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, will no longer be chairman of the Committee on Labor and Human Resources. The new chairman will be Orrin Hatch (R., UT). Senator Hatch is extremely conservative, but leaders of organized labor and others have expressed hope for a spirit of cooperation. The Subcommittee on the Handicapped will no longer be headed by Senator Jennings Randolph (D., VT), but the new chairman, Senator Robert Stafford (R., VT) has been a good friend and was a co-sponsor of S. 446. Perhaps the change most likely to have a negative impact is the shift in the chairmanship of the powerful Senate Judiciary Committee, from Senator Edward Kennedy (D., MA) to Senator Strom Thurmond (R., SC). This will be particularly bad news in areas such as fair housing. On the House side, there will be no automatic shift in leadership positions because Democrats still maintain a majority. However, several House members who have long been supportive of programs affecting handicapped people were among those Democrats who were defeated. Legislators such as John Brademas (D., IN) and James Corman (D., CA) will be sorely missed by those working to maintain and improve education, rehabilitation, and health services. It seems obvious that the 97th Congress will be a far different place in which to be working for human services programs. Some battles will be much harder fought and more frequently lost. But, keeping the words in the Republican platform in mind and counting on the fact that reality will moderate some of the more extreme election rhetoric, there is reason to hope that the programs and services benefitting blind and handicapped people can continue to improve or at least to hold the line. The one certainty is that if anything positive is to be accomplished in the 97th Congress, now, more than ever, handicapped people must work together to improve their political "clout" and to make their needs known to our legislators. ***** ** The Spirit of St. Louis By Assunta Lilley 1981 ACB National Convention Chairperson St. Louis, the city which in 1927 gave Charles A. Lindbergh his start for his memorable non-stop flight from New York to Paris! St. Louis, the city which held the first American Council of the Blind convention in the summer of 1962, after its birth in Kansas City in 1961! And so next year, in 1981, we plan to celebrate ACB's 20th anniversary in Missouri in St. Louis. The Missouri Federation of the Blind plans to make this the finest convention in ACB history. Kentucky said that in 1980, and it was. Georgia will say it in 1982, and it will be. This is the story of any growing organization, and ACB is undoubtedly the fastest growing organization of the blind anywhere. The presidents of the special-interest organizations are aware of their responsibilities for arranging activities and making them known to the Convention Planning Committee. Special-interest affiliates will be contacted directly with a request for specific information concerning plans, but it is not too early to begin preparations for the 1981 convention. State affiliates and local chapters can make plans for boutiques or for fund-raising enterprises. If you as individuals have specific ideas for convention activities, please feel free to give us the benefit of your thinking. Address communications to the Missouri Federation of the Blind, 2683 Big Bend Boulevard, St. Louis, MO 63143. Convention headquarters is the Chase Park-Plaza Hotel, where room rates are singles, $24; doubles, $28; triples, $34. Mark the convention dates on your calendar: July 4-11, 1981. Convention plans are in the making. You will hear more from us in forthcoming issues of The Braille Forum. ***** ** NAC -- What It Is and Why It Is Important By Dr. Otis Stephens (Editor's Note: Dr. Stephens, a member of the ACB Board of Directors, is currently president of the National Accreditation Council. He gave the following address at the 1980 national convention of the American Council of the Blind in Louisville, Kentucky.) Along in the mid-'60s, it became apparent through the publication of a widely read and widely discussed report, called the COMSTAC REPORT (COMSTAC standing for Committee on Standards and Accreditation) that something was going to have to be done to improve the quality of services to blind persons around the country; that the problem was serious; there was lack of uniformity. The report itself disclosed many shortcomings in the field. A number of ACB leaders at that time were involved in the COMSTAC REPORT, including ACB's first president, Ned Freeman, also including ACB's next president, Reese Robrahn, and Durward McDaniel and there were others. Out of that COMSTAC REPORT an effort was begun to establish some means of stimulating improvement in the field, identifying general standards of acceptable performance, and this effort led to the establishment in 1967 of the National Accreditation Council for Agencies Serving the Blind and Visually Handicapped ... What I'd like to do is describe this organization -- how it is established, how it is set up -- and then to comment on why the accreditation process is important to blind persons. First the structure of NAC: The organization has a governing board of directors which consists of 35 members. Each of these members is limited to two consecutive three-year terms and elected by the membership of NAC. The membership consists of the accredited agencies (there are now 84 of those agencies); also the sponsoring national organizations of and for the blind, such as the American Council of the Blind, which is a voting sponsoring member of NAC, the Blinded Veterans Association ... There are also supporting, non­voting members of NAC, and they include several of our state affiliates ... The Board of Directors makes policy for NAC. There is also a group of committees which do the ongoing work of NAC. Briefly, these are the Commission on Accreditation, which actually enters into the business of determining which schools and agencies which have applied for accreditation should be accredited; which should not be, also; the Commission on Standards, which draws up and revises from time to time, on a regular basis, as the means of the organization permit, the standards in the various fields. There are 25 sets of standards that NAC applies. They cover every aspect of an agency's operation, from its financial base and reporting, its public accountability, to consumer participation, to such things as the kind of curriculum that a residential school might have in a given field, to standards in sheltered workshops for blind persons -- the whole range of activity of services in this field. This Commission on Standards attempts to revise at least two sets of standards per year and has recently attempted to pick up the pace of revision ... NAC has a full-time professional staff located in New York City at 79 Madison Avenue. There are six persons who are classified as administrative staff members, who work closely with the standards and the accreditation process itself. There are also six members of NAC's secretarial staff in New York. Currently, two of the people who work on the NAC staff in New York, Carl Augusto and Dorothy Matano, are blind persons. Let me describe briefly the steps in the accreditation process, just to give you an overview of what takes place. First of all, accreditation is a voluntary undertaking. It is not required of anyone. It is encouraged as a way of showing to the field that your organization is willing to submit to review and evaluation. The first step after an agency or school indicates that it wishes to apply for accreditation is a self­study which involves virtually every staff member of the agency -- a self-study looking at all aspects of the agency's work -- followed by the preparation of a written self-study report. The second step is an on-site review by a team of outside persons. These people are chosen by NAC itself, with suggestions and input from the accredited agency or the agency seeking accreditation, but with the actual decision on the makeup of the on-site team being made by NAC itself. The team goes to the agency, stays there for a period of three to four days, makes an evaluation of its own, having looked at the self-study report, and then the on-site team draws up and submits a written report and recommendations. At that point, the Commission on Accreditation considers this report, together with recommendations by the NAC staff, and makes a decision regarding accreditation of the agency. The decision can be either to accredit for a maximum period of five years, at the end of which time the agency must go through the entire process of self-study and evaluation again seeking re-accreditation, or the Commission on Accreditation can make a decision to accredit the agency for a shorter period than five years, or it can decide to postpone accreditation, finding that the agency has not met certain standards and that a decision to accredit would not be proper, would be premature. The fourth option that the Commission on Accreditation has is to deny accreditation. Denial of accreditation doesn't prevent the agency from reapplying at some later date. But denial does mean that the agency is substantially below NAC standards. I mentioned to you a while ago that NAC has 84 accredited agencies. That is a little better than 20% of the potentially accreditable agencies in the country ... I might break down the 84 agencies a little more for you. There are at the present time 23 accredited residential schools; approximately 30 accredited workshop programs or agencies which contain among their activities sheltered workshop programs; and then there are a number of agencies which perform a variety of functions not easily classified as either school or workshop. There are several state agencies for the blind, for example, which are accredited, one guide dog school, the organization Recording for the Blind ... the Clovernook Printing House in Cincinnati is accredited; the Hadley School also is one of our accredited agencies. This gives you just an overview of the structure and function of the National Accreditation Council. What I would like to talk about now is essentially the major problem which NAC has confronted over the last several years and which has contributed in large degree to the slow growth of accreditation in this field. I am referring to the opposition to NAC by the National Federation of the Blind. NFB was originally a participating organization in NAC. Members of the NFB leadership or representatives of its leadership were on the NAC Board in the late '60s and early '70s, along with leaders of ACB such as Reese Robrahn, Durward McDaniel, and others. In 1972, however, the president of the National Federation of the Blind resigned from the NAC Board some three months before the expiration of his term, announcing to the field, through the Braille Monitor and in other ways publicly, that he was no longer able to support NAC and that the National Federation of the Blind would make every effort to put an end to this organization and its efforts. Since that time, NFB has been regularly picketing NAC Board meetings and membership meetings. It has very severely criticized NAC in its publication on several grounds. It has said, among other things, that NAC accredits only bad agencies, weak agencies (if you think back on the list that I indicated to you a while ago, you can make your own judgment as to whether that is an accurate characterization of many of the agencies which have been accredited). It has also said that NAC's representation of blind people on its Board of Directors is token representation; that those who are drawn from the ranks of blind persons who are on NAC's Board are not representative of blind people; that they are essentially "Uncle Toms." They have also argued that somehow in general NAC has not been responsive to consumer input, and that it has condoned, through accreditation, practices in the field which are totally unacceptable. NAC's position in response to these criticisms has been to look at the criticisms themselves, and where the criticisms have been valid, as in a few instances they have been, to attempt to make change, to attempt to improve as a result of criticism. However, the sweeping condemnation of NAC by the National Federation of the Blind has not been supported by factual evidence as far as we can determine, and we have reason to believe that because of three investigations by separate agencies of the Federal Government into the operations of NAC during the mid-'70s. NAC was investigated by the General Accounting Office, by the Office of Education, and by the agency which preceded in organization the Rehabilitation Services Administration, part of HEW. All three of those investigations reached the conclusion that NAC was doing an important work; that the criticisms leveled at its legitimacy by the National Federation of the Blind were not supported; and that NAC was performing an effective task. As a matter of fact, the Office of Education has recognized NAC formally as the appropriate and the only appropriate accrediting organization for residential schools for the blind. That recognition has been extended to the maximum time period. By the way, when that recognition occurs, it involves a review of NAC, a kind of self-study and then an on-site review of NAC itself by the Office of Education, so that NAC, the accrediting organization, from time to time submits to a review of its work. However, NAC has attempted to meet squarely the question of whether it as an organization is effective in making a difference, in having a real impact on the provision of services to blind people throughout the country. Last year the NAC Board approved a policy which calls for a comprehensive evaluation of NAC to see what kind of impact it in fact is having -- an evaluation to be conducted by professionals in the field, themselves not a part of the National Accreditation Council -- so that we can, in fact, have an objective assessment of the importance of accreditation. My feeling, as an active member of NAC, serving first on the Commission and Accreditation and now as the presiding officer, is that NAC has had a significant impact, and that its impact is becoming greater as consumer participation becomes a more important dimension of NAC's work. ... NAC is now very much attuned to consumer input, not only through representation on the Board of Directors, but through service on NAC's committees and commissions, and also through encouragement of direct input to NAC itself. NAC publishes a newsletter called The Standard-Bearer, which is available on flexible disc and in large-print as well as regular print. ... We want that information to be more widely disseminated, as we also want information regarding the NAC standards to be more widely known. The standards, by the way, are now in braille and on flexible disc and cassette. NAC is listening to consumers. It is not, and does not conceive of itself to be, a perfect mechanism. There is not always total agreement within the National Accreditation Council as to what standards are best, as to where the weaknesses and strengths in the accreditation process are. There is a continuing, ongoing dialogue. But there is a strong commitment to the idea that accreditation which requires an agency to evaluate its own program and then to submit to an outside evaluation is important. It is because we believed in the value of that process that last November, the Board of Directors of the National Accreditation Council adopted a resolution which I am sure you have all heard about. The resolution is addressed to the criticism which is leveled at accreditation by the leadership of the National Federation of the Blind. For several years -- in fact, from 1972 when this criticism began until 1979 -- NAC did not respond by addressing the critics themselves. We did attempt to look at the criticisms, and where they were valid to make changes. But the criticisms persisted in spite of all that we could do to meet those criticisms. It finally became apparent that the criticism of NAC had something to do with perhaps an attempt to undermine the accreditation process itself for reasons that could not be accepted by those who feel that services need improvement and need some kind of objective measurement. In other words, it was felt that the criticisms which were leveled at NAC were really not based on a genuine concern to improve services to blind persons, because, in effect, no alternative to accreditation was being suggested by the critics. And so the resolution was adopted in which NAC went on record as saying that the national leadership of NFB is, in our judgment, harmful to the well-being of blind persons because of its opposition to standards and accreditation and that, therefore, NAC does not recognize the national leadership of NFB as a positive influence in the provision of quality services to blind people. However, NAC reaffirms its commitment to work with all organizations and individuals, including members of the National Federation of the Blind, who are interested in improving services through standards and accreditation. ... Clearly, NAC cannot survive if it is not in fact making a difference in the field, if it is not in fact providing the kind of review and assessment which brings about better services. There is no reason to have an accreditation organization which merely goes through the motions of reviewing and accrediting agencies. But NAC is not that kind of organization. NAC is a very serious undertaking. Every agency which is accredited, if it intends to stay accredited, must go through the process of re-evaluation at the very least every five years. An initial decision to accredit does not mean that an agency will necessarily be re-accredited or that it will receive no further criticism. ... Accreditation is a serious process. It requires your input for it to be successful. Eighty-four agencies is a fairly sizable number, but that's still only a little better than 20% of the field. We need to have more insistence by consumers that the agencies which serve them go through this process, and we also need to have expressions of your interest in taking part in NAC's work. ***** ** The Aloha Council on Molokai By Emogene Johnston (Mrs. Johnston is a member of the Washington Council of the Blind. She and her husband met and talked with most of the people mentioned in this article during a visit to Hawaii this past spring.) The Aloha Council of the Blind and Visually Impaired has a unique group of 45 members-at-large living at Kalaupapa, the leprosarium on the Hawaiian island of Molokai. The group includes 41 patients, the Rev. James Drew and his wife Sally of the Episcopal Church, Father Nobincio Fernandez of the Catholic Church, and Jack Halstead of the Hawaii State Department of Health. The patients are a part of a group of 106 who elected to remain at Kalaupapa after most restrictions against their freedom of movement were removed by the Hawaii State Department of Health in 1973. The youngest is 37 years of age; the majority are over 50, many of them having been committed to the colony when they were very young. "Committed" is a harsh word, but before medication was developed to control leprosy, or Hansen's disease, as it is also called, sufferers were outcasts and were literally committed to live until their death (or improbable cure) in colonies isolated by high fences or natural barriers. Kalaupapa, situated at the foot of a cliff on a rock-bound coast with no harbors, was an ideal site. Ben Kahikina, a tall, vigorous Hawaiian, blind as a result of the disease, became a patient there when he was 12. He says, "It was a prison without bars." When he was free to go, Ben went to Honolulu for rehabilitation training at Hoopono Center and subsequently obtained a dog guide, a tremendous, gentle Labrador. While he was at Hoopono, the Aloha Council was in the process of formation. Ben was a member of the Constitution Committee and carried his message about the values of such an organization back to Kalaupapa. My husband Charles and I met Ben and his beautiful wife, Zilpah, who does not have the disease, when we flew to Kalaupapa with Coletta Whitcomb, President of the Aloha Council of the Blind, and Howard Nunn, Vice President, for an informal meeting with a few Kalaupapa members. Mariano Rea, another patient, said, "Ben and Zilpah met when Ben was at Hoopono and returned here to stay after their marriage. Theirs is a true love story. There was a time when their marriage and Zilpah's residence in the colony would have been forbidden." Mariano, who is legally blind and has only the stubs of hands as a result of the disease, drove us in his pickup truck on a sightseeing tour of the Old Settlement, including Father Damien's church and the adjacent cemetery. Mariano, who would certainly be unable to obtain a driver's license elsewhere, handles his truck expertly on the narrow, red clay roads winding between luxuriant wild shrubs and bushes which cover the cliff and threaten to choke out the clearings. As we rode along, he told us of the time he spent at Cardale, Louisiana, the Federal leprosarium in the Continental United States. He said that at Cardale, patients were not permitted to remain alone in a house in which they had lived with another person. If for any reason anyone was left alone, he had to relinquish his house and furnishings and move into a dormitory provided for single persons. In Kalaupapa, however, Mariano lives in a house which he formerly occupied with two other persons. He explained to us, also, the hope that the patients have that the area will be taken over before 1981 by the National Park Service of the Department of the Interior. This would mean that the buildings and grounds of the Old Settlement and the present colony site would be maintained by the Federal Government, only the medical care of the patients being provided by the Hawaii State Department of Health. At present, he explained, the total facility is operated on a grant to the Communicable Disease Division of the Hawaii State Department of Health, in which the United States Government pays 80% and the State of Hawaii 20% of the cost. The State must adhere to Section 504 in its treatment of the patients. A recent complaint by Ben Kahikina to the Office for Civil Rights in San Francisco resulted in a 14-page ruling against the Hawaii Health Department under Section 504. Since most of the complaints were on accessibility, and because most of the buildings in question were built in 1934 or thereabouts, the outside date for compliance/completion of repairs was set for June 2, 1980. As the offices of the Health Department are in Honolulu, and as many of the patients can neither write nor travel easily, they entrusted a great part of the work on the problems of compliance and other issues to Aloha Council President Coletta Whitcomb. The "President's Message" in the Aloha Council's May-June newsletter reports that the Department of Health has completed the building alterations and is working with the patients to meet their additional needs. John Kaona and his warm and gracious wife Lucy, who brought us lovely shell leis they had made themselves, told us more of the history of the island. Like Mariano, John, who is legally blind and has severe disablements in all his limbs, a result of the disease, has a lyrical sense of the beauty of the place and its special ambiance. He showed us an album of priceless pictures of the Old Settlement. Between John, Lucy and Mariano, we developed a clear concept of the former isolation and almost autotrophic quality of life at Kalaupapa ... Before the airport was built, the only way to reach the colony was by sea or down a tortuous path over the cliff from "topside," where the ranches and farms were located. There were many shipwrecks on the rock-bound coast. Except for supplies lightered from ships anchored offshore, the colony was practically self-sustaining, with its own chicken houses, gardens, and bakery. The only way to reach Kalaupapa from Honolulu, even at present, is a 20-minute flight in a small plane. Since the tourist developments are "topside," all planes stop there en route. Then, in order to reach the tiny airport at Kalaupapa, it seems as if the planes drop over a steep cliff as soon as they are airborne and fly, with wing tips almost touching, around the base — a contribution to one's comprehension of the isolation of the colony. Although everyone who visits Kalaupapa must be cleared by the Hawaii State Department of Health, 75 to 80 tourists a day fly into Kalaupapa airport or come from "topside" on muleback, a two-hour ride down the tortuous path used in the old days. They are transported by van to the Old Settlement and then through the present colony, the site of a new 14-bed hospital, dedicated February 24, 1980. Castle Kalaukoa, a Hawaiian who shows no evidence of the disease, drove us in his convertible to see this new hospital which was variously described in the Star-Bulletin -- by George Yuen, Director of the State of Hawaii Department of Health, as the beginning of a "new era of trust and opportunity for better communication" between the State and the Settlement; by Bernard Punikaia, Chairman, Patients Advisory Council, as "a victory for the patients"; and by a patient, "If you've gotta be in a hospital, there's no better place in the world." Castle himself is perfectly satisfied to remain at Kalaupapa. He spoke affectionately of Jack Sing, President of the Church of the Latter Day Saints ... As a matter of fact, one cannot visit Kalaupapa without being aware of the effect of missionaries of all faiths. Part of the ambiance of the colony is the cooperative dedication of the religious and the medical in patient care. Once the restriction on freedom of movement was removed, the patients say, any feeling of imprisonment ended. But, as Lucy told us, although they are willing to go to Honolulu for checkups or treatment, they wouldn't want to live there, or even "topside" on Molokai. They still see themselves as belonging in the peace and slow pace of Kalaupapa, which is like another world, another time. We sensed their definite awareness of personal dignity and privacy. Lucy indicated that the tourists have little impact on the patients. Also, although the people who have come to write about the colony have provided a look at the outside world and have been given valuable insights into the life of the colony, they have seldom been totally accepted. Patients believe they have a unique understanding of their past which they do not care to share with everyone. They feel medical and government staff change too frequently to build real confidence in their ability to help the patients to solve their problems ... Hence, their gratitude to Aloha. ***** ** The Electric Car Controversy (Reprinted from News and Views, Summer, 1980, published by American Association of Workers for the Blind) The Northeast Region Interest Group IX (Orientation and Mobility) has become concerned with electric cars as a potential barrier to independent travel for visually impaired people. With the exception of the noise produced by the friction of the tires against the pavement while the car is moving, electric cars are completely silent. Electric cars are manufactured by 55 companies nationwide. There are currently only 7,000 to 8,000 electric vehicles on the road; by the year 2000, it is projected that there will be six to eight million electric vehicles on the road. A typical electric car is powered by sixteen standard car batteries which require ten hours to recharge completely. Ten hours worth of house current used to recharge these cars costs only 60 cents on a national average. This is so appealing to economy-minded consumers that an upswing in popularity of the vehicles is now occurring. The Federal Government has invested $3 billion to date on further development of the battery used to power electric vehicles. Modifications in battery design are expected by the end of this year to increase the driving range possible on a single charge from the present 50-70 miles to a more practical 200-300 miles. Both energy and cost savings to consumers and Government interest point up a rapid increase in the numbers of electric vehicles on the road in the immediate future. Although the problem of inaudible cars may well affect a number of populations (older pedestrians, the hearing impaired, and children), the Northeastern Region Interest Group IX feels that a number of issues that impact specifically on visually impaired travelers must be addressed on a national level. Implications for both street crossing procedure and safety, as well as parking lot and gas station negotiation, are many. Considerations also exist in terms of training procedures for traffic alignment and environmental analysis. Public education must precede the above, and some manufacturers recognize the potential problem silent vehicles might create for visually impaired travelers. One company has gone so far as to include a notation in their owner's manual and on a label in the car alerting drivers to safety factors for vision- and hearing-impaired pedestrians. Beyond this, manufacturers have offered to provide the public with "sensors" which could be worn on a lapel and operate as a "Go-No Go" device, emitting some sort of signal when an electric vehicle comes within range of the sensor. Our objections to this are: First, a very small percentage of the general population could effectively use such a high technology device, and secondly, the burden of responsibility for safety in traffic should rest on the driver and not on the visually impaired traveler. The Northeastern Interest Group recommends that Interest Group IX (Orientation and Mobility) begin to formulate a plan to deal with these issues. In particular, before electric vehicles truly become an impediment to safe, independent travel for visually impaired persons, workers and blind persons should begin to lobby for general regulations requiring a minimal acceptable sound level to be emitted by these vehicles. This can be accomplished easily through amplification of the natural whirring sound of the only moving part under the hood: the brushes. This sound would not be comparable in any way to the level of sound emitted by even the quietest of combustion vehicles. If you share these concerns and would be willing to participate in discussions around these issues, contact: Monique Signorat, Perkins School for the Blind, 175 N. Beacon Street, Watertown, MA 02172. ***** ** From the Archives The article which follows appeared in the second issue of The Federation Free Press. It reflects the bitter internecine warfare which had been going on in the California Council of the Blind during the preceding year. While the Card Amendment was the immediate cause of the battles during 1958 and 1959, the roots of the conflict were much deeper. Following is an abbreviated summary of happenings which led to the breakup of the large California affiliate of the National Federation of the Blind. Newel Perry, President of the California Council, fearing domination by the national organization of NFB, resisted the attempts of Jacobus (Chick) tenBroek to dictate the choice of his successor. After Dr. Perry retired in December, 1953, his candidate, Robert Campbell, was elected president. Attempts by the tenBroek faction to unseat Campbell during the following years were unsuccessful. In one of these elections, he defeated Kenneth Jernigan by two to one. In the spring convention of 1958, two attempts to instruct Campbell to favor the Card Amendment failed, and he voted against this amendment at Boston. A bitter campaign against him followed that summer. Although Campbell defeated Russell Kletzing for the presidency at the 1958 fall convention, a majority of the Executive Committee were from the opposing faction and took effective control of the operation of the Council in January, 1959. Disregarding the advice of A.L. Archibald and other friends, Campbell then resigned the presidency. His resignation letter appeared in the News Bulletin of the California Council for February, 1959 (a publication sometimes referred to as the "real" first issue of the Free Press). Included in this magazine was a hard-hitting report on the controversy, entitled "The California Story," by the editor, Catherine Skivers, who also resigned her office. Discouraged by the outcome of the Santa Fe convention, the group who had supported Robert Campbell met in August of 1959 and formed the California Association for the Blind, with Newel Perry as honorary president and Juliet Bindt as president. Other officers were Alvin Meyer, Robert Campbell, Audrey Hebner, Catherine Skivers, John Hebner, Fred Pearson, A.E. Septinelli, and Espie White. Although no longer in the NFB, the leaders of the new California organization maintained close contact with the Free Press Association and the provisional committee and participated in the formation of the American Council of the Blind. * A Californian's Point of View By George Fogarty (Reprinted from the Federation Free Press, June, 1959) There was a time, and not so long ago, when I looked upon the Braille Monitor as the gospel, believing every word of it. I wish I still could, for I enjoyed it much more then. But when it wrote of things about which I knew the facts, and realized how inaccurately they were purposefully reported in order to make a point, I could not, as a thinking man, then fail to question its entire content on all controversial matters. I can never again restrict my information to what is presented in the Monitor. I always admired Dr. tenBroek and have felt warmly disposed toward him. I shall always appreciate the very real contributions he has made. But I think very highly of others, too: Durward McDaniel, Marie Boring, Brad Burson, to name a few on the national level; Dr. Perry, Fred Pearson, John Hebner, on the state level. All of these are being alienated from the Federation by its unyielding, uncompromising, ruthless demand for subservience at any cost. I have been asked, why can't the Federation grow with Dr. tenBroek as its leader? It has grown a great deal in this way, but it cannot continue to do so by alienating such people as these from its ranks because of mere difference of opinion. I have met these people, I know these people, and they are just as sincere and interested in the success of our cause as anyone, and could contribute a great deal if permitted to do so. Their views differ from Chick's; they believe that a system of controls more in keeping with the present size and character of the Federation is needed. Instead of seeking a comprehensive consideration of the issues, and a compromise if need be, Chick is willing to risk destruction of the organization to prove his point. This is not leadership to me, nor even strength -- and surely not good sense. It is no shame to compromise, no sign of weakness to listen to the other fellow's point of view, no irreparable disgrace to admit that you were in error. If there is one glaring weakness in the actions of the Federation leadership more than another, it is unwillingness to respect the other fellow's point of view. In time this failure will result in the alienation of all fair-minded people, as it has done and is doing with these. The manner in which Chick sought to get the Card Amendment through, by resorting to instructed delegates (a very expensive postage stamp); the manner in which he conducted Kletzing's campaign, splitting clubs and creating new ones, masterminding a civil war, doing anything to defeat the man who had dared to differ with his conclusions about what was good for the NFB; the transformation of the once respected California Council of the Blind into a sophomoric society submerged by the Federation leadership (Dr. Perry's fear of many years ago now a reality) -- these are things which I cannot approve. The hysterical accusations charging others with personal vilification of the Federation leadership appearing in the pages of the Monitor these days are nothing more than a smoke screen to obscure the issues that are causing Chick such embarrassment. The practices Chick has resorted to -- allowing only one viewpoint to appear in the Monitor; presenting only part of a story to the point of fiction, as in the California story; creating splinter organizations like the San Diego Club of Progressive Blind to offset the votes of established organizations which disagree with him -- these are not the actions of a man who is convinced of the merit of his argument and confident of its appeal to reason alone. I am weary of this victory at any cost business. If it can be accomplished by fair means, by fair and open discussion and decent treatment of all concerned, then, I say, no matter who wins, the blind have lost. It is said that birds of a feather flock together. If this be so, then I'll join the flock with the Dr. Perrys, the Fred Pearsons, the John Hebners, the Casey Whites, the McDaniels, and the Borings -- real assets to any cause of worth. This is reference to personalities, yes, but I seek to make this point: When you alienate such people as these, you are in trouble; there is something wrong; and we had better get to finding out what it is, and we had better look beyond the Monitor to find the answer for its solution. ***** ** USABA to Conduct First National Blind Skiing Championships The U.S. Association for Blind Athletes plans to conduct the first annual national championship tournament in downhill skiing and cross-country skiing from March 4 to March 8, 1981, at the Deer Mountain ski area near Deadwood, South Dakota. While a few competitive skiing events have taken place in the past, this is the first official national championship event being sponsored by the USABA, the organization which sent the blind cross-country ski team to the 1980 Handicapped Winter Olympics in Norway and then sent the official team from the U.S.A. to the 1980 Handicapped Summer Olympics held in Holland. Blind skiers who are interested in competing in the 1981 national championships in downhill skiing and cross-country skiing are invited to arrive in Deadwood (located in the beautiful Black Hills near Rapid City, South Dakota) on Wednesday, March 4, 1981, so that they may practice and train during the next two days, in order to take part in the championships on Saturday, March 7. Skiers will be transported between the Rapid City airport and Deadwood, as well as between championship headquarters at the picturesque Franklin Hotel and the Deer Mountain ski area (located about ten miles away). Competition will be divided according to sex and long established and recognized visual categories. That is, totally blind participants will compete in Class A; skiers who can see no better than 20/400 will compete in Class B; and skiers who can see no better than 20/200 will compete in Class C. Although it will be to the advantage of each skier to bring his or her own sighted guide, efforts will be made to obtain at least a limited number of qualified guides from the Deadwood area. Competition will be limited to sanctioned members of the U.S. Association for Blind Athletes. Anyone interested in taking part in the national championships in either downhill or cross-country skiing may obtain a tournament application form and a USABA membership application form from Mr. Dick Kapp, USABA Winter Sports Chairman, 423 W. Grand Avenue, Port Washington, WI 53074. While tournament applications will be accepted until February 28, 1981, they should be submitted as soon as possible in order to reserve a room at the championship headquarters hotel. Inasmuch as the USABA is the official sports sanctioning organization for the selection of blind athletes from America to take part in international competitive events sanctioned by the International Sports Organization for the Disabled, as well as various other international sporting events, it is hoped that all blind skiers who are interested in competitive skiing will take part in the 1981 and subsequent national championships so they may be considered for selection to teams in the future. ***** ** ACB Affiliate News * Connecticut Council Spring Convention Three outstanding speakers on the theme of "Communications" addressed the spring convention of the Connecticut Council of the Blind, held in East Hartford. Tom Sarubi, representing Connecticut Bank and Trust Company, gave an overview of the many and varied services provided by the bank, which has 86 branches scattered throughout the State. These services do not presently include a braille checking account feature, but Mr. Sarubi pledged to look into the matter. By way of constructive suggestion, the importance was stressed, should such a service be implemented, of sending out the monthly braille statements in a timely manner. The subject of telephone communications was addressed by Ms. Frances Johnson of the Bell System. She stated that local calls were first dialed in 1919 and that long-distance calls were first introduced in Englewood, New Jersey in 1951. More than a million persons are employed by the Bell System nationwide. Of importance to those in attendance was Ms. Johnson's statement that directory assistance is free to blind persons in Connecticut. The social and community service aspects of the world of amateur radio were detailed by Mr. Peter O'Dell of the American Radio Relay League. He discussed in lay terms such activities as message or "traffic" handling, emergency communications, overseas contacts, the formation of valued friendships, and just plain "rag-chewing." Also he touched briefly upon the wide range of possible equipment -- new or used -- very sophisticated or simple, home-brew "rigs." The banquet address by Dr. Robert Long, Chief, Division of Children's Services, State Board of Education for the Blind, yielded a wealth of information and insight into problems of educating blind children in the public school system. Of 700 blind children in Connecticut, 575 attend public schools and 125, who have handicaps in addition to blindness, attend the residential school for the blind in Hartford. There are only about 35 braille readers among the children in public-school classes. Although braille is being emphasized for children who are capable of mastering it, there is a resistance to using braille in favor of recorded materials or, in the case of a child with low vision, audio-visual aids. Dr. Long admitted that problems have developed for the blind student in the public school which local instructors are unable to handle. Moreover, some educators feel that blind children are not capable of coping in such areas as chemistry, industrial arts, and cooking. He stated that his department is doing everything it can to overcome such stereotype attitudes. A social hour, a turkey dinner, and a sing-along rounded out a full, but very worthwhile day as conventioneers departed to all corners of the State. * South Carolina Convention "ACB and You in the '80s" was the theme of the sixth annual convention of the American Council of the Blind of South Carolina, held in Charleston August 15-17. Hosted by the Low Country Chapter, the weekend's activities began on Friday evening with a moonlight harbor cruise. Historical background and points of interest of the harbor islands were described. A light lunch was served, and there was impromptu entertainment by some of the group as they sang, accompanied by Johnny (Floyd) Brooks and his ukelele. ACB President Oral Miller spoke to the group on Saturday morning and told of some of the aims and goals of the American Council for the 1980s. Reports were given by the Commissioner and Deputy Commissioner of the South Carolina Commission for the Blind. These highlighted the Commission's achievements over the past year and some of its goals for the upcoming year. Dr. Gerry Chambers, ophthalmologist and retina specialist, spoke in detail of the causes of diabetic retinopathy and told of new methods for controlling this common eye disease before permanent damage is done. Featured speaker at the Saturday night banquet was State Senator Thomas Hartnett of Charleston, a candidate for Congress in the fall elections. His concise, but hard-hitting remarks focused on fiscal waste within the bureaucratic Federal Government, a condition he hopes to help change if elected. Speaking again at the banquet, ACB President Oral Miller commended the South Carolina affiliate for a job well done over the past year. For ACB of South Carolina has grown, not just in numbers, but also in strength. A new chapter has been formed in Aiken County, and another is soon to be formed in Myrtle Beach. * Florida Council Workshops and Convention The Florida Council of the Blind combined two days of training seminars and a weekend annual state convention as over a hundred members gathered in Tampa in mid-June. In keeping with the overall convention theme of "Better Opportunities Through Advocacy," Reese Robrahn of the National Office of the American Council of the Blind, and Don Cameron, President of the Florida Council of the Blind, reviewed Federal and state legislation affecting the handicapped. Other relevant topics covered on the Saturday morning convention program were "Organizational Development," by Rene Miles; "Why Organize and How," by FCB member and national ACB director, Carl McCoy; "How to Manage a Local Chapter," by Vera McClain; and an update on activities of the American Council of the Blind, by ACB President, Oral O. Miller. While the Randolph-Sheppard Vendors of Florida met on Saturday afternoon, other conventioneers had an opportunity to examine the display of aids and appliances arranged by Carl McCoy. ACB President Oral Miller served as toastmaster at the Saturday night banquet, and Red Graham of old-time radio "Duffy's Tavern" fame delighted the audience as after­dinner speaker. A highlight of the evening took place during intermission at the dance following the banquet. This was the selection and crowning of the 1980 FCB queen. The honor was bestowed upon Vera McClain of Tallahassee, who, according to one report, was so excited she "acted like a young farm girl from Alabama!" At the Sunday morning business meeting, he following officers were elected: President, Chick Crampton of Winter Park; First Vice President, Vera McClain of Tallahassee; Second Vice President, Paul Behn of St. Augustine; Secretary, Marinez Mauldin of Panama City; Treasurer, W.A. Ouzts of Jacksonville; and Membership Secretary, Rene Miles of Lakeland. Conventioneers were pleasantly surprised to have as out-of-state guests former FCB member and White Cane Bulletin editor (and now Vendorscope editor), Dean Flewwellin and his wife Dawn, of Aberdeen, South Dakota. The two days preceding the convention were devoted to two training seminars. The Section 504 and Advocacy Workshop was conducted by Reese Robrahn and Donna Eggert of the ACB National Office. While in one room the advocacy seminar was under way, in another a session was conducted on special transportation considerations for the blind and visually impaired. This session was co­chaired by James Lamb and Paul Edwards, members of the FCB Transportation Committee. Speak­ers were Dr. William Belle, Director of the Center on Gerontology, Florida State University, Tallahassee; Barbara Nelson, Legal Advocate for the Blind, St. Paul, Minnesota, who conducted a session on Social Security for the blind; and Carl Huff, Administrator of Special Programs, Department of Transportation, Tallahassee. The two groups alternated so that everyone had an opportunity to attend each of these one-day workshops. ***** ** Here and There By George Card The Great French essayist, Montaigne, wrote: "Travel can form an important part of education -- provided you leave your prejudices at home." From The Missouri Chronicle: On June 17, Governor Teasdale signed H.B. 1613, which increases blind pensions $15 a month. ... There are currently 30 persons on the waiting list in Missouri for cornea transplants through eye research services sponsored by Missouri Lions Clubs. ... An article in the same issue recounts the story of blind math teacher, Ceinwin King­Smith, who has finally won her right to teach in public schools after a twelve-year battle. Her fight began in 1968 when she applied to take a national teachers exam which she needed to pass in order to teach in a Pittsburgh public school. First they told her she needed a note from the school board promising her a job. Finally they admitted that they simply did not want to hire a handicapped person. She taught in private schools while she carried on that twelve-year battle through the courts — and finally won. Now she teaches math in Brashear High School in Pittsburgh. She teaches nearly 200 students in five classes each day and does so without the help of a teacher's aide. The same issue of The Missouri Chronicle contains another article about the famous blind country music vocalist, Ronnie Milsap. Born in the backwoods of North Carolina, he was sent to a residential school for the blind, where he received an outstanding education in music. He had mastered the violin, the keyboard, woodwinds, and the guitar by the time he was 12. For a few years he had a hard struggle, playing in clubs and bars in Atlanta and Memphis, but finally was given a recording tryout in Nashville. Now he is the lord of a century-old colonial mansion on 7 1/2 prime Nashville acres -- the fruit of 18 No. 1 singles since 1974. He has earned two grammies, the Country Music Association's award for best album and best male vocalist, three times each, and in 1977 the entertainer of the year. He says his blindness has been his great blessing. Without that special school training, he believes he would still be in the backwoods of North Carolina working in some sawmill. From The Wisconsin State Journal: Historic Chesapeake Bay, made even more famous by Michener's best seller, with its innumerable coves, inlets and sub­bays, has half again as long a coast line as any other body of water of comparable size in all the world. It stretches an incredible 8,000 miles. The MAB News reports that the Michigan Commission for the Blind has been hard hit by state budget cuts. Our Michigan affiliate continues its strong, healthy growth and its membership has now reached a figure well over 700. We are very proud of this fine, active organization. The Lions Magazine tells of a wise old judge who had before him a case involving a dispute between two brothers over the division of a large estate. He listened to both sides, then took it under advisement. The next morning he rendered his decision: let the first brother do the dividing. Let the second brother have first choice. The Editor of The Braille Reporter (Seattle, Washington) has a new columnist. He is a blind man living in the Olympic Peninsula, who signs his column, "Uncle Adam." The editor is delighted with his homespun philosophy, his sharp, sometimes acerbic comments, and his pungent aphorisms. A sample: "Obsequiousness is sometimes mistaken for humility. The true humility is never mistaken for obsequiousness. Truly beautiful people always possess humility." From the Newsletter of the World Council for the Welfare of the Blind: As of May 8 last, compulsory vaccination for smallpox was no longer required by 68 countries or territories. Only seven countries still require such certificates. The World Health Organization has asked for total abolition of such requirements. ... The UNICEF Committee of Australia has decided that its big effort would be to raise money for helping to combat preventable blindness among young children in the developing countries. The money is to be used for the purchase of high-potency Vitamin A capsules to protect young children from blindness due to Vitamin A deficiency. ... Mr. E.J. Venn has been appointed Director General of the Royal National Institute for the Blind of England, to succeed Mr. Eric T. Boulter, who retired on August 31. The Arkansas Council of the Blind estimates that 14% of the state's population is physically handicapped and this year made a special effort to get as many of these people as possible registered before the November election. Many of them had never voted before because it has been so inconvenient to get to the polls. From The Stylus (Oregon): Fred Krepela, former ACB Treasurer and Board member, is traveling to Prague, Czechoslovakia, for a family visit. He will be flying over the North Pole and landing in London before reaching his final destination. ... When Oregon banks developed the "Pay by Phone" program, they probably did not realize that they were giving the blind a chance for a more independent lifestyle. "Pay by Phone" can enable blind persons to pay their monthly bills with little, if any assistance. The American Foundation for the Blind is introducing a new identification card. This card replaces the previous travel concession program, which has become obsolete owing to changes instituted by Amtrak and by bus companies. The new AFB identification card will be valid for travel and will be useful for other identification purposes. Wallet sized and permanently laminated, it contains your photograph, name, address, birth date, height, weight, sex, Social Security number, and legal signature. On the reverse side, your vision status is certified for those occasions when this is required. The card has no expiration date and may be replaced in case of loss or change of address. AFB is making efforts to make the card as widely recognized as possible among store chains, major banking institutions, hotels, and the like. For further information, write American Foundation for the Blind, 15 W. 16th Street, New York, NY 10011. An International Symposium on Visually Handicapped Infants and Young Children: Birth to Seven, will be held in Tel Aviv, Israel, June 14-19, 1981. The symposium is being organized within the framework of the International Year of Disabled Persons and is open to physicians, nurses, teachers, psychologists, and especially parents of blind children. For full details, contact Dr. E. Chigier, Secretariat, International Symposium on Blind Infants and Children, P.O. Box 394, Tel Aviv, Israel, via air mail. A recent news release from Michigan State University states that special financial incentives in West Germany have provided many handicapped people with jobs in German industry. According to Dr. Rudolph Schindele, a professor at the University of Heidelberg, German firms employing more than sixteen persons must hire at least 6% handicapped workers. A firm that falls short of the goal must pay a considerable monthly sum for each "missing" disabled employee. This money, in turn, goes to a central labor office which provides free technical adaptations at the work sites of disabled persons and gives strong financial support to the vocational training of the handicapped. For more information, write Fred Bruglodt, Department of Information Services, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48824. From Disabled USA: The Marvel Comic Group has published a braille version of a variety of superhero comic books which are now available. In addition, they have added to their cast of heroes a new character called "Daredevil." Daredevil is blind, and the comic book illustrates how the superhero performs noble feats. Daredevil, alias Matt Murdock, is a successful attorney when he is not busy in his superhero role. For more information, write Pamela Rutt, Publicity Manager, Marvel Comic Group, 575 Madison Avenue, New York, NY 10022. ***** ** Notice to Subscribers The Braille Forum is available in braille, large-type, and two recorded editions -- flexible disc (8 1/3 rpm), which may be kept by the reader, and cassette tape, which must be returned so that tapes can be re-used. As a bimonthly supplement, the flexible disc edition also includes ALL-O-GRAMS, newsletter of the Affiliated Leadership League of and for the Blind of America. Send subscription requests and address changes to The Braille Forum, 190 Lattimore Road, Rochester, NY 14620. Items intended for publication may be sent in print, braille, or tape to Editor Mary T. Ballard at the above address. Those much-needed and appreciated cash contributions may be sent to James R. Olsen, Treasurer, c/o ACB National Office, 1211 Connecticut Avenue, N.W., Suite 506, Washington, DC 20036. You may wish to remember a relative or friend by sharing in the continuing work of the American Council of the Blind. The National Office has available special printed cards to acknowledge to loved ones contributions made in memory of deceased persons. Anyone wishing to remember the American Council of the Blind in his or her Last Will and Testament may do so by including in the Will a special paragraph for that purpose. If your wishes are complex, you or your attorney may wish to contact the ACB National Office. ###