The Braille Forum Vol. XXI July, 1982 No. 1 Air Safety and Evacuation Equipment Demonstration Featured at ACB National Convention Dr. Robert Winn Resigns from RSA to Head Hadley School Published Monthly by the American Council of the Blind Mary T. Ballard, Editor ***** ** National Office: Oral O. Miller 1211 Connecticut Avenue, N.W. Suite 506 Washington, DC 20036 (202) 833-1251 ** Editorial Office 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: Grant Mack 139 East South Temple, Suite 5000 Salt Lake City, UT 84111 * First Vice President: Dr. Otis H. Stephens 2021 Kemper Lane, S.W. Knoxville, TN 37920 * Second Vice President: Dr. Robert T. McLean 2139 Joseph Street New Orleans, LA 70115 * Secretary: Karen Perzentka 6913 Colony Drive Madison, WI 53717 * Treasurer: James R. Olsen Summit Bank Bldg., Suite 822 310 4th Avenue, S. Minneapolis, MN 55415 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 Contributing Editors ACB Officers President's Message, by Grant Mack The Blind Mystique, by Lois Collins News Briefs from the ACB National Office, by Oral O. Miller Are the Courts a Suicide Course for the Federation?, by Durward K. McDaniel Dr. Robert Winn Named to Head Hadley School Ned E. Freeman Article of the Year: The Secret Cane of Walter Mitty, by John B. Dashney Special Education Rules to Be Revised A Consumer's Guide to State Remedies for Employment Discrimination, by Barbara Nelson Ten Commandments of Human Relations President Reagan Makes Commitment to Handicapped Infants, by Barbara Nelson The Listening Ear, by Dorothy Stiefel Lions Gallery of Senses Celebrates Tenth Birthday International Blind Sports Week to Be Held in Hawaii The Washington Connection in Review Here and There, by Elizabeth M. Lennon Notice to Subscribers ***** ** President?s Message By Grant Mack Much of our attention is given to publicizing success stories about blind people. Most often, these examples are occupationally, athletically, or vocationally centered. Not enough attention has been devoted to the successful parenting that is done by blind couples. Frank and Mary Collins from Idaho Falls, Idaho, are such successful parents. They have reared a family of five - all of them well adjusted, well educated, effective, and happy. I met their youngest daughter, Lois, a couple of years ago while she was a journalism major at the University of Utah. When my secretary drew my attention to a very interesting article in the June issue of Utah Holiday Magazine, I was not surprised to learn that the article about blind parents had been written by Lois. Because it is written so well and gives an interesting perspective to this business of blindness - from the point of view of a sighted child of blind parents - I have suggested that this space be used to publish the entire article. Many of you know Frank and Mary Collins. They are active members of the American Council of the Blind, and Mary is currently serving as president of the Idaho Council of the Blind. ** The Blind Mystique By Lois Collins (Reprinted from Utah Holiday Magazine) I will always remember my first date, but not for the normal reasons. My memories center not around the date itself, but around an argument Sam and I had on the way to his car. Sam had done all the things that 16-year-olds were supposed to do on a first date, including meeting my parents. He shook hands with my dad and, innocent as it sounds, that led to the argument. My parents are both blind, and after we left the house, Sam insisted that dad reached out and grabbed his hand. "He really did, Lois. I mean - that's amazing. Here is this blind man, and his radar directed him right to my hand." It was a small point, but Sam was wrong. Dad held out his hand and Sam took it. But his version was more interesting; the mystique in which so many sighted people insist on cloaking a blind person had been enriched by another anecdote. I've grown up in that mystique, and it can be funny, embarrassing, and even frustrating. My childhood relationships took place on a sort of sacred ground reserved for the elite, the hideous, and the unusual. My family was different, and I have grown accustomed to being asked what it's like to have blind parents. Some ask with pity, others with awe, but I can't answer. I have no basis for comparison. The only parents I will ever have are blind. The two boys, ages 6 and 9, laughed uproariously as they dragged the homemade three-wheeled wagon up the roof of the barn. The older one was blind, but an observer wouldn't realize it. The younger brother's eye problems were more noticeable: he wore thick glasses over slightly distended eyes. Together they made it to the top with their burden, and they creep-walked across to where the barn sloped at a sharp angle. The little one hopped on the front, steadying it with his foot while his brother got on the back. Screaming with laughter, they raised their feet and started racing down the slope toward the yard below, where plows, scythes, and other farm equipment lay abandoned. At the last second, when they were within inches of the ledge, the boy in front yelled, "Drop," and they put their feet down, balancing on the ledge of a 12-foot drop. Slapping and jostling, they pushed the wagon back up to the top to try it again. My father, Frank, was raised on a small farm in northern Idaho, until he lost the last remnant of his sight to glaucoma in 1926, when he was 13. At that time, he was sent to a special school for the blind. Dad was never a militant or bitter man - demanding to do everything for himself - although he was and is independent. He had to adjust to being blind, but his sight had been going for so long that it was not unexpected. He was always a free spirit, whether selling stockings in Seattle or hitchhiking to a piano tuning job. He climbed trees and played and got into trouble like any other boy. He even climbed the tall train trestles wending through the mountainous area of his youth, "just for the thrill." My mother, Mary, was born blind, the result of a doctor's error that retarded the growth of her optic nerve. She grew up in a small sheep and potato farming area in southern Idaho, a sunset child who arrived after her parents had raised a family of boys. When I was little, Mom and Dad used to take long walks. My brother Ken and I worried about how they would handle traffic (we were told to look both ways and they couldn't!), and we would trail after them far enough behind that they wouldn't know we were there. They'd link arms and start up the street, Dad with a cane in one hand and Mom's arm in the other. Ken and I would drop everything and prepare to follow, ignoring the knowing smiles on the faces of my other brother and sister, Dave and Kathy. They were older and wise, which meant they had quit being afraid. About forty walks later, we quit, too. Most often, though, Dad walked alone. Sometimes he took the dog, Nipper, and they'd be gone for hours. Alone, Dad would be okay, but Nip was excitable and dragged him off course so that he'd have to ask for help or climb a porch and feel?read the address to figure out where he was. It worked, because he always made it home. His mind is a computer, and in its data banks are maps of every city he has spent time in. A friend I took home from college still laughs about the afternoon she spent driving through an unfamiliar city following directions from a blind man. Mother is his partner, keeping his books and making all of his appointments. She learned to type when she was 8. Her teacher, Fred Somers, also blind, taught her to read braille and tutored her through the fourth grade. Under his guidance, she learned to type quickly and accurately, reaching a speed of 85 words a minute. He also started her on her greatest love affair, the piano. She has perfect pitch, and if you can hum a song, she can play it on a variety of instruments. Dad taught her to write, using soft copper wire and pointed pliers to form the letters. Mom loves purple and yellow, and I sometimes wonder what they look like in her mind. Can her purple be my purple? How can she love a color she's never seen, or has she? But, whether her color is the color, she does see it and love it, and I sometimes ponder that. She took her 5-year-old son Dave out on the front porch one day, holding his hand in one of hers and a matchbox in the other. She directed him to watch carefully and, when there was no traffic, to place the box in the middle of the street. Then they sat in the summer hot sun and waited. A few moments later, a car sped by, smashing the box. "That's why you have to be careful, Dave. That box in the street could be you." Looking at the mangle of cardboard on the sidewalk, the boy understood. Because no child is really capable of understanding the word blind, we were taught that my parents' eyes were broken. Any child can understand that concept. If something is broken, it doesn't work - like Mom's eyes. When people ask me about growing up in a "world of blindness," I always say that it is normal for me, but I am not so insensitive that I can't see the differences. While my friends' parents were driving them places, I was dropping my parents off. Later, when my siblings and I moved away, or became involved with work and school, they had to hire a driver. That's an inconvenience most people never think about - when they want to go somewhere, they just hop in the car and go. My parents have to save up their errands until it is convenient for someone to take them, and they often have to pay for it on an hourly basis. But for each time blindness was an inconvenience - like having to hire someone to take them to a funeral ? there were compensations. My slumber parties were great, because I had the only mother on the block who could read ghost stories in the dark. And when the power failed, Dad built a fire and we gathered in front of the hearth to play scrabble on their special braille board. There was one aspect of blindness that I never have gotten used to, though. It has always bothered me to enter a dark house and hear Mom and Dad playing chess or cards with some of their friends. Now Dad tries to remember to turn the lights on when I am expected home, with the understanding that I will turn them off when I leave. It's amusing explaining to friends that they should ring the doorbell even if the lights are out, since someone may be home. Almost without fail, when I go shopping with Mom we are stopped in the middle of an aisle by someone who wants to play a rousing game of "Who am I?" Someone in the Dark Ages spread a rumor that blind people can always recognize a speaker by voice alone, and sighted people ever since have thrilled to the game. One day a woman grabbed Mom's arm and said, "Who am I, Mary?" "I don't know right off hand," Mom said. "Keep talking and perhaps it will come to me." The woman talked for the better part of a half hour, punctuating each sentence with, "Who am I?" Finally Mom admitted defeat. "Surely you remember me," the determined woman said. "We were in high school together." Mom graduated in 1942. Another favorite game is the driver's license game. Because this is the preferred form of identification for check cashing, clerks sometimes demand to see Dad's. He has a state identification card that is almost identical to a driver's license, but occasionally a clerk refuses to accept it. "I can't cash a check without a driver's license, sir." "Well, I can't get a driver's license without vision." He had to offer one particularly stubborn clerk a ride with him driving before she accepted his state ID. Another quirk that people exhibit when dealing with blindness is even more inexplicable. When speaking to someone who is blind, these people invariably raise their voices, confusing blindness with deafness. I do, regrettably, have a fairly low tolerance for such silliness. I understand that one who has never been exposed to blindness cannot be expected to understand it. But the same experiences are repeated over and over again. When someone asks how my parents dial the telephone, I have to bite my tongue to keep from laughing: "With their fingers. Do you use your eyeballs?" Yet the roots of such ignorance are understandable. I saw Jose Feliciano announce on television that he thinks the hardest thing a blind person must do is combing his hair. Lots of people heard that, and they ask my father how he does it. "I suggest you use a comb," he deadpans. "If that doesn't work, try shaving your head." To my parents, blindness is not a tragedy, but a: reality. Failure to accept blindness would be a failure to accept life itself. The words "look" and "see" cause them no pain, although many sighted people are uncomfortable using the words around blind people. Pity is wasted on them, because they ignore it. Because my father could see once, he would take his vision back if he could get it. But one adjusts in a half century, and he is used to his blindness. Mom, on the other hand, would be afraid of the gift. After almost 58 years without sight, she wouldn't know how to use it. It would turn her world upside down. Babies develop their sight slowly and assimilate the light and shadows, gradually learning shapes and colors. Mother would have to start from scratch, and it would terrify her. I would like to share visual experiences with her, as I do with Dad. I am amazed to realize that she has never seen a flower or a sunset, things I take for granted. But, in a way, I am glad she'll never see. Her picture of me - of all of us - is a beautiful one. In her head and her heart, we are as lovely as people can be. I wouldn't want that image destroyed. Besides, contrary to popular myth, blind people don't walk in darkness. Dad told me it isn't dark behind those sightless eyelids. There is a constant light, a permanent sunshine. And that just can't be bad. ***** ** News Briefs from the ACB National Office By Oral O. Miller National Representative It is always somewhat difficult to write a timely article for the July issue of The Braille Forum, because it is already too late to publish information for use in connection with the ACB national convention and it is still too early to publish anything that transpired during the convention. However, there are several important items which should be discussed on both interim and prospective bases. One development which "broke" even too late for the details about it to be included in the national convention pre-registration announcement is the scheduling of "hands on" safety and evacuation equipment demonstrations for ACB conventioneers at the Eastern Airlines Safety Training Center at Hartsfield International Airport in Atlanta. All blind people who travel by air have heard countless times about the emergency exits, exit windows, flotation equipment, evacuation slides, and the like. But how many have actually seen and examined these things firsthand? There is an incorrect assumption by all airlines that it would be necessary for airlines personnel or other passengers to assist blind travelers in the event of an emergency, but this view totally overlooks the fact that during the panic, confusion, and disorientation of an emergency, it might be necessary for a blind traveler to assist other passengers or take care of himself. What a tragedy it would be if a blind traveler were to reach an emergency exit, but then not know where the release is located, whether to push, pull or turn the release, whether to move a window exit inward or outward, or how to inflate a flotation jacket or evacuation slide! Although the demonstrations being conducted by Eastern Airlines. at the request of the American Council of the Blind will be able to accommodate only a few hundred conventioneers, their success will be a very important determinant affecting recommendations which ACB will make thereafter concerning future training of blind travelers. During the national convention week, Eastern also plans to staff an educational exhibit in the convention hotel in order to display and demonstrate smaller items of interest, such as inflatable life preservers, oxygen masks, flotation cushions, fire extinguishers, etc. We expect information gathered from the exhibit and the demonstrations to be extremely helpful to both the American Council and the airlines. During May 1982, it was the pleasure of National Office staff personnel to attend the regional seminars conducted by the Pennsylvania Council of the Blind. As far as I know, the Pennsylvania Council is the only ACB state affiliate which conducts four regional seminars plus a statewide convention in order to stay in contact with and provide timely information to its members. Although this format would not be appropriate in many states, perhaps it could be considered by affiliates in very large or very populous states as a way of providing useful services and reducing travel costs of members. During May 1982, it was my pleasure to meet with members of the Arizona Council of the Blind during the state convention of that affiliate in Phoenix, and to discuss some of the tentative plans being made in connection with next year's ACB national convention, scheduled to take place in Phoenix. During 1983 Phoenix will be the unofficial center for conventions of organizations of the blind or involved in work with the blind. In late June, it will host the convention of the Association of Radio Reading Services, and during consecutive weeks in July it will host the national conventions of the American Council of the Blind and the American Association of Workers for the Blind. Since the latter two conventions will take place in the same hotel, conventioneers and exhibitors alike should start planning now to spend two weeks, if possible, in Phoenix. Another victory in the courts for the American Council of the Blind and one of its members! We have just received word that the Desert Inn in Las Vegas has agreed to abolish its rules concerning the compulsory seating of handicapped theater guests in specified areas. An article in a future issue of The Braille Forum will give details. We take pride in the fact that the pages of The Braille Forum have not been used as the vehicle to carry on a verbal war with any other organization, regardless how inaccurate or misleading the charges may have been. However, honesty and good conscience dictate that the record should be set straight regarding the latest batch of inaccurate, distorted, misleading charges made about the American Council of the Blind in the pages of The Braille Monitor. An article in the June 1982 Braille Monitor asserted, with characteristic disregard for the facts, that many of the progressive steps taken by the American Council of the Blind in recent years have been simply imitations of steps taken by the National Federation of the Blind many years before. While the article was or implied recentness of many of the steps, we appreciate the publicity which it gave to many of those steps and to the growth of the American Council - such as the opening of our National Office (approximately fifteen years ago), a published request for bequests in The Braille Forum (in use for almost twenty years), and the establishment of the position of Director of Governmental Affairs (done almost seven years ago). As for the computerization of membership records, the distribution of public service announcements, and the establishment of the "Washington Connection" with a widely available toll-free number for use in obtaining legislative and other information, we are pleased that The Braille Monitor saw these as the worthwhile steps we knew they were. In short, in spite of all the rhetoric and poetry about shadows, the amount of attention given to ACB by the June Braille Monitor obviously means that the American Council of the Blind is doing a lot of things right and very successfully. ***** ** Are the Courts a Suicide Course for the Federation? By Durward K. McDaniel On June 4, 1982, the District Court judge in Des Moines, Iowa, issued his decision in a case in which both the plaintiffs and the defendants claimed to be officers of the Iowa Association of the Blind, doing business as the National Federation of the Blind of Iowa. The suit was filed shortly after the organization's 1981 Memorial Day weekend convention, during which a rival group led by Kenneth Jernigan, President of the National Federation of the Blind, conducted a simultaneous convention on a different floor of the same hotel. The Iowa Association of the Blind is an Iowa membership corporation and had been the Iowa affiliate of the NFB for forty years. On the day before its 1981 convention was to commence, Jernigan met with his supporters at the hotel and read resolutions adopted by the national board of the NFB, proclaiming the expulsion from membership in the Federation of its state president, Sylvester Nemmers and his followers, and cancelling a scheduled state board meeting on that day and the convention itself. Nevertheless, the board meeting and convention were held, and Nemmers and his followers continued to act as officers and members of the organization - Nemmers' sixth two-year term as president was not to expire until May 1982. Meanwhile, in the "other" convention, an entirely new slate of officers was chosen, with Peggy Pinder of Sioux City as president. Pinder and the other officers, as individuals, filed suit in their names and for the Association against Nemmers and the treasurer of the organization, who had control of its assets. The plaintiffs claimed to be duly elected officers of the corporation and alleged that the Nemmers group had formed a new organization on May 23, 1981, and that Nemmers and others were erroneously purporting to be the officers of the Iowa Association of the Blind. The case was tried and the judge ruled for the defendants significantly, as follows: " ... It follows from this that the purported expulsion of the defendant Nemmers as president of the Iowa corporation and its reorganization by the national corporation, as described above, are nullities. Accordingly, the Iowa corporation retains its property as its own, including all the property and funds identified by stipulation of the parties given to the Court at trial ... In this regard, the Court finds that the Ames or Central Iowa chapter of the corporation inadvertently sent its membership dues to the Pinder group, being the officers elected by the meeting called by the national corporation ? and have asked for the return of those dues. The plaintiffs are accordingly ordered to return such dues to such chapter promptly. ? Accordingly, the defendants are enjoined from use of the name National Federation of the Blind of Iowa, or any essential derivative. The Iowa corporation has never lost its status as a corporation in Iowa and may continue as before to operate as the Iowa Association of the Blind, with the defendants and others as its officers and directors, as duly elected by what can be called the Nemmers group at the May 1981 convention of the Iowa corporation. The national corporation shall not interfere with the use of that name by the Iowa corporation and shall not use the name Iowa Association of the Blind or any essential derivative. Costs hereof are taxed to the plaintiffs." In 1978, the National Federation listed its Iowa affiliate at 1,000 members, second only to its California affiliate, the National Federation of the Blind of California, which is still litigating its "expulsion" from the NFB in late 1978, and a host of other legal issues, including the right to use its name, its treasury, accounting for national funds raised and spent by NFB, and claims for damages against the NFB and its president and other officers. On May 5, 1982, a trial court judge in San Francisco ruled that the NFB of California is not "subordinate" to NFB, and that the state organization is entitled to its bank accounts which the NFB had unsuccessfully claimed. As we go to press, a motion is pending in the California litigation to require one of the defendants, Kenneth Jernigan, to appear to testify on deposition. Informed Californians estimate that the NFB has spent approximately half a million dollars in the suit against the NFB of California. Over the past several years, the NFB has been in court with its state organizations in Alabama, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, California, Washington, and Iowa. In each case, the state organization has successfully retained its treasury. Many Federationists have expressed a growing concern over the use of publicly contributed funds to finance lawsuits against other Federationists, the wholesale expulsion of members and organizations, and the national claims on state treasuries. They indicate a growing sympathy within the Federation for the treatment dealt Federationists in California and Iowa, in particular. Many are now questioning the viability and future of a "movement" which indulges in such internally destructive tactics. ***** ** Dr. Robert Winn Named to Head Hadley School Dr. Robert Winn, Director, Office for the Blind and Visually Handicapped, Rehabilitation Services Administration, has announced his resignation from that position, effective July 15, 1982. Dr. Winn has accepted the position of President of the Hadley School for the Blind in Winnetka, Illinois. Prior to his appointment to RSA, Dr. Winn served for two years as Executive Director of the Texas Governor's Coordinating Office for the Handicapped. For four years, he was employed as Assistant Deputy Commissioner for Community Services in the Texas Department of Mental Health and Mental Retardation. From 1969 to 1972, he worked with the Texas Department of Special Education and Special Schools. Additionally, Dr. Winn has had experience as a psychologist in education and rehabilitation programs and served as a grants reviewer for the U.S. Bureau of Education for the Handicapped, participating in the drafting of legislation which was to become P.L. 94-142, the Education of Handicapped Children Act. He received his Ph.D. in the field of Special Education Administration from the University of Texas in 1975. As President of the Hadley School, Dr. Winn heads a teaching staff (including the international offices) of 85, 26 of whom are legally blind. The School serves over 4,500 students from every state in the United States and 55 foreign countries, with a projected growth of 10% per year. Often called the "University of Courage," the Hadley School was founded in 1920 by William A. Hadley, himself blind. It is the world's only correspondence school for the blind. Its more than 125 braille and/or cassette courses are offered, tuition free, to blind students throughout the world who wish to achieve educational goals, learn new skills, prepare for self-support or vocational advancement, or enrich their lives. College-level courses are made available through cooperative arrangements with several universities. Hadley maintains eight international offices: Bogota, Colombia; Bombay, India; Buenos Aires, Argentina; Florence, Italy; Madrid, Spain; Nairobi, Kenya, Paris, France; and Sao Paulo, Brazil. The School has been accredited by the Accreditation Commission of the National Home Study Council since 1958, by the National Accreditation Council for Agencies Serving the Blind and Visually Handicapped since 1970, and by the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools since 1978. Hadley welcomes inquiries from prospective students of all ages, races, and creeds. Write Hadley School for the Blind, 700 Elm Street, Winnetka, IL 60093. ***** ** Ned E. Freeman Article of the Year (Note: The ACB Board of Publications has selected this essay from among 36 entries to receive the Ned E. Freeman Article of the Year Award. Mr. Dashney?s essay is light, imaginative, and humorous and a refreshing change of pace. All entries were of the highest quality, and it was difficult to select just one winning entry. The Braille Forum hopes to print some of the other entries from time to time, as space permits). ** The Secret Cane of Walter Mitty (With Love and Apologies to James Thurber) By John B. Dashney Our scene is the annual meeting of A.B.S.C.A.M.S. (Able Brother- and Sisterhood of Cane and Mobility Sticks, for the benefit of the uninitiated). A somewhat battered fiberglass stick with a much-worn glide tip rises to address the throng. "My fellow A.B.S.C.A.M.S.," he begins, "many strange and shocking stories have we shared during the convocation; but nothing, I believe can compare with the uncertainty, the ambiguity, the just plain confusion of being the extension of a latter?day Walter Mitty. "Let me take you through a typical day and show you what I mean." "We begin in the morning, naturally. I have just been rudely roused from my slumbers and an exotic dream of romance with a bewitchingly beautiful broom handle by the sudden blare of a Beethoven symphony on the stereo. Anyone who plays Beethoven before noon has to be a bit strange, right? Then his grip gets tighter and tighter, and I'm swinging back and forth ? and all of a sudden I realize he's conducting with me! And I don't know an arpeggio from an apricot! But he's sawing away like Toscanini, and just before the crescendo, I manage to whack a lampstand in a ringing A-flat major and bring him back to reality ? although the lamp still hasn't forgiven me! "It's a nice day, so we go out for a stroll. Three doors down lives a feisty little peke who likes to worry at my tip and his ankles. It's easy to track by sound, so right away I'm jabbing and poking at the little mutt. Then I feel myself being couched like a lance. He's off again! "The horse's hooves go 'pocketa?pocketa' as the Bengal Lancer closes in for the kill! But what are we hunting? Are we pigsticking today? Or is this the doomed garrison of Cawnpore, and am I fending off hordes of traitorous Sepoys? It was bad enough yesterday when Mrs. Grimball's fat old tabby became a ravenous man?eating tiger. "Before either the peke or I can do any damage, its owner calls it off. She's used to it by now, and only shakes her head at our little game. "In the next block there's a crack in the sidewalk, where a tree root has split it. He knows right where it is by now, but does that give me a respite? Not on your life! Ten paces from that crack his grip shifts and tightens again. He's a pole vaulter now, and I'm stuck with being the pole! 'Pocketa-pocketa!' go the great athlete's shoes as he pounds down the tarmac. This is the last try for the gold ? twenty feet up to the bar! No man can do it! No man but - "Sproinnng! the impact nearly bends me double, and I jam about an inch of handle into a soft, flabby mid?section! So much for the great athlete! "Where are we going today? It's hot! Ah, in for a quick beer! My chance to lean against the bar and just be me! Oh oh, what's that 'pocketa?pocketa' sound?, A pool table ? a game ? his hands are tightening again! "He's who now? Fast Eddie? And this is the big match with Minnesota Fats? And I have to drop the eight ball off a three-cushion bank from a bad lie behind the ten? Forget it! I can't even tell a bad lie ? let alone shoot one! "He's actually been invited to try a shot! What are you doing to me? Chalking my glide tip-gad! I'll never live this down! Sorry about this, Ball - it's going to hurt me more than you. What's that? 'That's what they all say'? Well, I mean it. Ouch! What a way to make a living! No wonder pool cues have such rotten dispositions! "Man, it's great to be outside again! Nothing but open sidewalk ahead. No distractions. Just that little black Datsun parked across the driveway. I can get him around that easily. "Hey, the engine's running! Funny sound - 'pocketa-pocketa' - almost reminds you of a bull snorting and - oh no! "Now he's the great Manolete, working close to the horns, disdaining all danger, living only for the frenzied, rhythmic clapping - 'pocketa-pocketa!' - of the adoring crowd. The plaza de toros is packed with his fans, begging him not to risk any more. But this must be a classic kill - the sword must go in right over the horns! A moment of silence ? a quick prayer to the Virgin - a quick deep breath - a last quick alignment of the point and - "Blaaaat! ? the horn! Thank goodness the driver was inside! Another instant and I would have been splintered on the hood or driven right through the grill and into the radiator! "Another block and we pass a building under construction. Half the sidewalk is blocked off, and the unfinished shell of the structure rises before us like a cliff ? or a mountain. The sidewalk becomes more and more like a narrow trail. ... "He's Captain Mallory now, challenging the north face of a mighty Everest, and I'm his faithful ice-axe! 'Pocketa-clink!' We drive a piton into the face of a sheer rock wall. The trail narrows to a foothold. Pebbles kicked into the crevasse drop thousands of feet through empty space. This is mountaineering! 'Pocketa-clink!' goes another piton. What's this? An obstruction ? a rock ? almost like a beer can! Use the axe ? push it away into nothingness! Now the way is clear! Everest is ours! "Okay, okay, you made it. But can we get back to reality for the last few blocks, please? "Thank heavens, only a block to go! Nothing to distract him here. 'Plink!' Hey, don't worry about that. It's just another beer can ? no danger. Why, it's squashed so flat that it's no bigger than ... a ... hockey ? puck ? "He skates across the blue line on a break ... 'Pocketa-pocketa!' He knocks two defensemen out of the play! A fake to pull the goalie out of the net! A quick pass to Howe or Richard on the wing! A return pass ? the goalie now hopelessly out of position! A deadly slap shot from twelve feet out - the puck rocketing across the ice ... "So we made it home, and I got a well-earned rest. But I don't know how much longer I can keep this up. I've been so many things that I'm beginning to question my own identity. And now baseball season is coming up, and he's been reading Babe Ruth, and ?" At this point the stick was unable to continue, broke down, and wept openly - wishing that he had become a fishing pole, as his mother had urged him. (Editor's Note: John Dashney, who is partially sighted, has been a member of the Oregon Council of the Blind for the past year. He has a Master of Fine Arts degree in English from the University of Oregon. A retired Government civil servant, he worked for the U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Indian Affairs. He has taught high-school and college English and currently works as a story-teller for the Salem School District. Hobbies include running (he is a member of the U.S. Association for Blind Athletes) and dramatics. He is an active member of Toastmasters International and has served as club president and area governor for Toastmasters.) ***** ** Special Education Rules to Be Revised In mid-June, the U.S. Department of Education issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking which will contain proposals for revision of the regulations governing P.L. 94-142, the Education of Handicapped Children Act. These proposals may change the way the Federal Government requires state and local education agencies to educate handicapped children. By the time this issue of The Braille Forum is in circulation, copies of the proposed regulations will be available from the Department of Education, Office of Special Education Programs, 400 Maryland Avenue, S.W., Donohoe Building, Room 4030, Washington, DC 20202; telephone (202) 245-9661. The public is invited to comment on these regulations. The deadline for comments is October 1, 1982. The August issue of The Braille Forum will contain details on the proposed regulations. ***** ** A Consumer's Guide to State Remedies for Employment Discrimination By Barbara Nelson Staff Attorney Discriminatory employment practices are a painful reality which confronts most blind people at some time or another. While it is usually possible to deal with these problems informally through education of the employer about the skills and abilities of blind and visually impaired persons, occasionally more formal action is necessary. The decision to file a charge of discrimination is a difficult one which involves not only an analysis of whether one has a good chance of winning a case and how, when, and where such a complaint should be filed, but also involves complex considerations of personal factors: Am I prepared to invest my time, energy, and money to end this discriminatory practice by this employer? To make a wise choice in any specific situation, it is important to seek legal advice. Sources of free legal assistance include Legal Services offices and Protection and Advocacy offices. Some state and local bar associations operate legal advice clinics which offer reasonably priced assistance or which can refer individuals to attorneys who want to work on discrimination cases. This article is intended not as a substitute for competent legal advice, but as a guide to assist blind and handicapped persons in educating themselves about their rights. Because the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 is an important guarantee of equal opportunity, many blind people tend to think of it as the only possible remedy for discrimination. However, the Rehabilitation Act is limited. It only protects people from discrimination in employment by the Federal Government, or by agencies which receive grants or other Federal financial assistance from the Government. Therefore, in many circumstances, state human rights or fair employment laws are a better source of protection against discriminatory employment practices than Federal laws. * State Human Rights Acts: What to Look for in Your State Law All states except Arizona, Delaware, North Dakota, South Carolina, and Wyoming provide some protection from employment discrimination to their handicapped citizens. In Alabama, Arkansas, Idaho, Mississippi and South Dakota, this protection applies only to public employees. Other state laws prohibit discrimination against disabled people by private employers as well, although some states exempt small employers from coverage by the law. Many of these states even expand their protection to cover the practices of labor unions, employment agencies, and apprenticeship programs. One very important aspect to investigate is the definition of handicap under your state human rights law. Some laws protect only physically handicapped people, while others use a broad definition and also cover people who are "regarded as having a handicap" and "have a history of a handicap." Minnesota has the dubious honor of having one of the least useful definitions. It defines disability as "a physical or mental condition which constitutes a handicap." In Michigan, and only in Michigan, people with handicaps are referred to in the law as handicappers. Some states require employers to make reasonable accommodations necessary to enable a disabled person to perform the essential functions of the job. Many state laws, however, make no mention of reasonable accommodations, while still others clearly exempt employers from any obligation to provide extra assistance to handicapped job applicants and employees. "Do you have any handicap?" "Have you ever been treated for any of the following ??" These were once common questions on employment applications. In many states, these broad questions are no longer legal. Employers can ask only for information which enables them to determine if the job applicant has a disability which will interfere with job performance in the specific job in question. * Enforcement After it has been established that your state's anti-discrimination law applies to your situation, it is essential to learn about the procedures available to you for enforcement of your rights. A few states have no real authority to require employers to stop discriminatory practices. Most states, however, have similar enforcement procedures. Unfortunately, the quality of the investigations they conduct and the time it takes to conduct them vary considerably. Usually a handicapped person who has been treated improperly must turn first to the state human rights agency before he or she can file a lawsuit against the employer. The first step in this process is filing a "charge" or "complaint" of discrimination. There is always a deadline for filing - usually 180 days from the date of the discriminatory action. Late complaints will never be considered, so it is absolutely essential to check the deadline for filing. Most state human rights agencies will first try to resolve complaints informally before any investigation occurs. If attempts at informal reconciliation fail, the agency will investigate the charge. In most states there is a backlog of cases waiting for investigation - often more than five years long. There is incentive for both sides to resolve the problem at this point. Employers may save money and embarrassment if they settle quickly. Handicapped persons may settle for smaller amounts of money now, rather than waiting for years for a formal result in their favor. At some point after a complaint has been filed, the handicapped person will be given the opportunity to initiate his or her own private lawsuit. If the individual chooses to do this the state agency investigation will stop. This choice is a very difficult one. It should be made only after consultation with an attorney. One very basic factor to consider is cost. A private lawsuit is expensive. Not only must one pay legal fees, but one must also pay for the cost of an investigation into the case. In some limited and special situations, the employer may have to pay the plaintiff's legal fees and costs. However, this is the exception, not the rule. Also, a private lawsuit is risky. Lawyers and judges are accustomed to thinking of people with disabilities in the context of personal injury litigation, where the emphasis is on determining how much an accident has hurt a person and the economic losses suffered by people who become disabled. Thus, they are not accustomed to looking at the abilities of people with handicaps. You will probably have to educate your attorney, who will have to help you to educate the judge who will decide the case. If you decide against a private lawsuit, the state agency will sooner or later investigate your case. After the investigation, the agency will decide whether there is "probable cause" to believe that the employer violated the law. A finding of probable cause commits the agency to try to eliminate the improper conduct on the part of the employer. If the state agency finds that there was no probable cause, the person who initiated the complaint may have the opportunity to appeal that finding. Similarly, the employer may have the opportunity to contest the finding of probable cause that it had discriminated against the handicapped person. If informal efforts to fashion a remedy for the handicapped person after a finding of probable cause fails, most state agencies can bring a formal charge of discrimination against the employer. An administrative hearing will be held. If the hearing examiner agrees that discrimination has occurred, the employer will be ordered to take appropriate steps to eliminate the result of the discrimination - usually to reinstate the employee and pay the employee earnings lost as a result of the improper conduct. The hearing decision can be appealed to the state courts by either side if they disagree with the result. Review by state courts is limited in scope and must be requested promptly. State human rights laws vary in their effectiveness as tools to build equal employment opportunity into the structure of our society. With use and refinement, these laws can be used by state human rights agencies and state courts as vehicles to fashion appropriate remedies for discrimination and to reinforce the commitment of the states to guaranteeing equality for all citizens. However, even the best laws, administered by the strongest, most sensitive agencies and courts, are only a partial solution to the problem of discrimination. Advocacy and education of employers about handicapped people, strong Federal anti?discrimination laws, expanded employment opportunities for handicapped persons, high quality rehabilitation services, and changes in general attitudes about blindness and handicaps are also necessary to ensure equal opportunity for handicapped citizens. ***** ** Ten Commandments of Human Relations (Author unknown. Submitted by Father Boniface Wittenbrink, Illinois Radio Information Service, Shrine of Our Lady of the Snows, Belleville, Illinois) 1. Speak to people. A cheerful word of greeting can brighten the most depressing day. 2. Smile at people. It takes 72 muscles to frown and only 14 to smile. 3. Call people by name. There is nothing anyone likes to hear more than his own name. 4. Be friendly and helpful. If you would have friends, then be friendly ? If you would have people help you, then be helpful in turn. 5. Be cordial. Speak and act as if everything you do is a genuine pleasure. 6. Be interested in people. You can like almost anyone if you only try. 7. Be considerate of other people's feelings. 8. Be generous with praise, but be most cautious with your criticism. 9. Be thoughtful of the opinions of others. There are usually three sides to every controversy: yours, the other fellow's ? and the right side. 10. Help people. What counts most in life is what you do for others ? and the manner in which you do it. Never think: "What's in it for me?" ***** ** President Reagan Makes Commitment to Handicapped Infants By Barbara Nelson Staff Attorney Just as handicapped people feared that the U.S. Department of Justice and the Office of Management and Budget were going to weaken the Federal regulations which ensure equality for handicapped persons, President Reagan made a strong commitment to using Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 to protect handicapped children. As reported in the March 1982 issue of The Braille Forum, the Section 504 regulations are scheduled for revisions aimed at making them less burdensome and more cost-effective, even though these revisions would weaken guarantees of equality. President Reagan's statement was made in response to an incident which occurred in April in Indiana when a severely handicapped newborn died after its parents and doctors authorized food and medical treatment to be withheld. The President said: "Our nation's commitment to equal protection of the law will have little meaning if we deny such protection to those who have not been blessed with the same physical or mental gifts we too often take for granted." At the President's request, Health and Human Services Secretary Richard Schweiker sent a notice to the 6800 hospitals across the country which receive Federal financial assistance. "Under Section 504," he stated, "it is unlawful for a recipient of Federal financial assistance to withhold from a handicapped infant nutritional sustenance or medical or surgical treatment required to correct a life-threatening condition, if the withholding is based on the fact that the infant is handicapped.'' Secretary Schweiker recognized that hospitals may not have full control over the treatment of handicapped patients when, for example, parental consent to treatment has been refused. Still, he warned that the Federal financial assistance to hospitals which significantly assist in discriminatory actions could be terminated. "In providing this notice, we are reaffirming the strong commitment of the American people and their laws to the protection of human life," he said. Hopefully, the President realizes that all forms of discrimination against handicapped persons grow from the assumption that handicapped people are second-class citizens. Protection of a handicapped infant's right to life assumes that this nation must also dedicate its resources to ensure equality of opportunity for that child throughout his life, and to provide services necessary to allow him to maximize his potential as a human being. It is to be hoped that this new commitment to protection from discrimination for handicapped infants will trickle down to all handicapped individuals. ***** ** The Listening Ear By Dorothy Stiefel Dear Dorothy: I am one of your listeners who would like to help Alabama In-the?Woods, since I suffered through a similar situation. I, too, suffered from the disease of alcoholism. The fact that I was going blind contributed to my dependence on alcohol, although I was in trouble with it before I discovered my impending blindness. Alcohol brought me to . . . the loss of most of my values and valuables, along with pain, hurt, and suffering almost unbearable. The solution to my problem ? and what a successful solution it was ?was Alcoholics Anonymous. I was quite a bit older than In-the?Woods' age when I entered the doors of AA. I am still an active member and am associated with many people of In-the-Woods' age who are successfully putting their lives back together with the help of the AA program. ? It is a wonderful fellowship. I have come from a virtual hell on earth to being a respected, useful citizen in . . . both blind and civic community. In-the-Woods, I beg of you, go to AA! Go with an open mind and ... I know it will work for you, since it worked for me and is working for thousands of all ages. The best of luck to you! ? Once in the Woods. Dear Once: Thank you for the caring letter. Your personal reply has been forwarded to In-the-Woods, as requested. Dear Dorothy: ... One thing I've come to find out in life is that all one needs is money! ? cash! But no, that's not quite right. According to Sterling Sill, what we all need to become leaders in whatever field we want to go into is K. A. S. H. If we take KASH plus our own personalities, we can become leaders. The first thing is to go out and get Knowledge. Most of us can use it. The next thing, and the most important of all ? the thing that causes most failures ? is Attitude. If we go about life with a chip on our shoulder, we will surely fail. The next thing most of us can do is to learn the Skills needed for doing a job. I am a carpenter by trade, and it took much practice to saw a straight board through the use of guides, but today it means I can do a job in most cases better than the carpenter with no visual limitations. The last thing is forming good Habits ? physical, social, mental, and spiritual. We have to learn to be creative and imaginative; to keep trying to do a job until we can find a way to get it done. I think the New Federalism can be the greatest blessing we have had in a long time if it pulls the handicapped together and we all fight for the basic rights of all handicapped people. I think maybe all of us have been spoon-fed too much. The Rehabilitation Act of 1973 has failed because state rehabilitation agencies haven't tried to get qualified handicapped into industry, etc., and the handicapped haven't been willing to try for jobs on their own, knowing very well that they will be turned down and will have to go file a complaint with the Labor Department ? and write, and write, and call, and call their local U.S. Congressmen and Senators ... For those of you who think we lost more rights last year than any other time, perhaps you need to read From Homer to Helen Keller, or From the Hand of Cain, and other such books, and we will thank God that we have so many, many individuals on our side today. ? Thanks, Dorothy, for a listening ear. I enjoy the column and also enjoy very much The Braille Forum in general. ? ? Robert L. Liesen, 1708 Larkwood Drive, Mobile, AL 36618. More on the white cane dilemma: An article entitled "Visibility of the White Cane," which appeared in The Long Cane, Vol. I, No. 1, published by the American Foundation for the Blind, offers some highly beneficial tips for "defensive walking." The article notes that a serious problem with cane users is visibility, especially in poor contrast areas such as in snow or against cement. Fog, wet, or icy windshields also lessen visibility for drivers to notice a white cane. "To deal with this problem, we suggest that white cane users ? or their mobility instructors ?improve the visibility of the white cane by the simple addition of two strips of red reflective tape on the upper third of the white shaft. Two-inch strips of red tape, spaced two inches apart, provide a good visual contrast to the white of the cane ?" The article also cautions: "Cane users should be aware that their white canes, no matter how they are held or moved, will not always alert drivers and others to their presence." Readers are encouraged to share their comments in response to any letters appearing in this column. If you have a concern to share or a gripe to air, write to Dorothy Stiefel, c/o The Listening Ear, P.O. Box 8388, Corpus Christi, TX 78412. For a personal response, please be sure to include a self-addressed, stamped envelope. ***** ** Lions Gallery of the Senses Celebrates Tenth Birthday The Lions Gallery of the Senses, created as a cooperative effort by the Ladies Visiting Committee of the Connecticut Institute for the Blind, the Lions Clubs of District 23-B, and the Wadsworth Atheneum, is the result of a shared desire to create a place where blind visitors can enjoy the visual arts. Lions International, District 23-B, of Hartford and Litchfield Counties, has provided the major source of funding for the Lions Gallery since its beginning. The Gallery celebrated its 10th birthday on Saturday, May 22. The Gallery incorporates contemporary art that transcends the boundaries of vision and makes use of traditional art in untraditional ways. Unlike most exhibitions, the art objects here can be touched. Sally Williams, curator of the Lions Gallery, sees it as a place where visitors are encouraged to use all of their senses for "aesthetic discovery." Visitors to the Gallery have made paper, dug in the sand for archeological treasures, danced and moved through sound-filled spaces, entered odor chambers, made music and musical instruments, and taken imaginary journeys. Visitors to the Lions Gallery are challenged to explore the exhibition space alone or in groups led by museum staff or volunteers. The exhibition schedule for the Gallery is planned by an advisory committee made up primarily of visually handicapped members with a shared interest in the accessibility of art. Members assist individually with specific exhibitions. Those attending the Lions Gallery 10th birthday party had the opportunity to create bell-like tones by moving through the current exhibition of sound sculpture by artist Bruce Pier. The Gallery is accessible by wheelchair, and admission is free. ***** ** International Blind Sports Week to Be Held in Hawaii The International Disabled Sports Association is proud to present "International Blind Sports Week," to be held in beautiful Hawaii October 4-14, 1982. The week of sports activities for the blind and visually impaired will include canoeing, sailing, swimming, bowling, basketball, tennis, cards, checkers, and chess. These events are open to all blind and visually impaired persons. Entrants do not have to have a qualifying rank, be part of a blind sports team, or know how to play any of the sports being offered. As a continuing celebration of the International Year of Disabled Persons (Who said it has to end with 1981?), the purposes of this sports week are: 1. To expand sports to all blind and visually impaired persons. 2. To teach the basic techniques and fundamentals of the sports being offered, so that those who may never have tried these sports can learn. Persons with newly acquired visual disabilities are especially encouraged. 3. To encourage friendship, unity and sportsmanship among the blind and visually impaired. 4. To expand community awareness about the capabilities of blind and visually impaired persons through their sports abilities. Family and friends are welcome to accompany blind and visually impaired entrants at the same registration cost. Certainly this will be an exciting week for all those participating, as well as an opportunity to meet other blind and visually impaired persons from around the world. For further information, contact Melanie Chang, Program Director, International Disabled Sports Association, Century Center, Suite 3-188, 1750 Kalakaua Avenue, Honolulu, HI 96826. The International Disabled Sports Association looks forward to hosting this International Blind Sports Week in Paradise! ***** ** The Washington Connection in Review Again this month, the Federal budget has been almost exclusively the subject of bulletins, updated daily at times, on the Washington Connection, ACB's information and legislation hotline. Fiscal 1983 First Concurrent Budget Resolution - During the latter part of May, the Senate passed and the House failed to pass the First Concurrent Budget Resolution for FY 1983. This first, non-binding budget resolution sets spending and revenue targets which guide the appropriations committees in setting spending levels for the next year. During the week of May 24, the Washington Connection reported daily on developments as the House considered seven different budget proposals, then narrowed the field to three, and subsequently voted up or down on 67 amendments. The House ultimately failed to pass any of the three budget packages (including the Jones budget supported by the American Council of the Blind), and the matter was again scheduled to be taken up by the House in early June. Following the Memorial Day recess, the House Budget Committee reported out the President's February budget, with its deficit of $22.2 billion. Two substitutes, which could not be amended by the House, were also offered for consideration. Had either of the two substitute proposals passed, then the President's February budget would have been adopted. The proposals were by Representative James Jones (D., OK) and Representative Delbert Latta, ranking Republican member of the House Budget Committee. Although details were not immediately available, the Latta budget was characterized as more conservative than previously introduced. It was not realized until Thursday, June 10, the very day of House deliberations and vote on the First Concurrent Budget Resolution for FY 1983, that the Latta proposal failed to provide not only for the "FREE MATTER" mailing privilege for the blind and physically handicapped, but also for non-profit bulk mail permits as well. By telephone report directly from the Capitol, immediately following the vote, callers to the Washington Connection learned the disturbing news that the Jones proposal was defeated by a vote of 225 to 202; that the Latta plan was passed by a vote of 220 to 207. The Latta proposal now goes to conference committee, where differences between the Senate and House versions of the budget will be resolved. Voting Rights - The Voting Rights Extension Act, S. 1992, was expected to come to the Senate floor during June. It is expected that Senators East and Helms may attempt a filibuster on this bill. The Voting Rights Extension Act is aimed primarily at racial and ethnic minorities who have historically been discriminated against in matters of access to the election process. S. 1992 also contains an amendment by Senator Howard Metzenbaum (D., OH) which ensures that disabled people will have the right of free choice in the selection of a person to assist them in the voting booth. Although the Metzenbaum amendment is less comprehensive than other legislation currently pending in the Senate designed to ensure the rights of handicapped and elderly voters, ACB continues to support S. 1992. Regular callers to the Washington Connection are kept abreast of developments as they occur and are informed how and when to make their views known to Congress. When telegrams are warranted, a special Political Opinion Message is available from Western Union at a cost of $4.25 plus tax for 20 words. You may also call your Congressional representative by dialing (202) 225-3121 during regular business hours. This is a toll call, of course. The Washington Connection is a public service of the American Council of the Blind. This hotline service is available by calling, toll free, 1-800-424-8666 from 6:00 P.M. to 9:00 A.M., Eastern Daylight Time, weekdays or any time on weekends and holidays. Messages are changed weekly, or more often if necessary to reflect the latest breaking developments in Washington. ***** ** Here and There By Elizabeth M. Lennon A previously untreatable eye condition, macular degeneration, can be arrested with laser-beam therapy, according to an article in the Kalamazoo (Mich.) Gazette. Dr. Carl Kupfer, Director of the National Eye Institute, is urging doctors to begin using the treatment immediately to save the sight of thousands of Americans. A five-year comparison test of the technique, involving more than 200 patients at twelve medical centers, was cut short after three years because the method was so effective. The treatment seals off bleeding vessels in the eye and is similar to the technique used to stop bleeding in the eyes of diabetics. Are you interested in a kayak trip in the southeastern United States, a bike trip from the United States to Canada, canoeing and horsepacking in the Rocky Mountains? These are among the summer programs being planned by the Vinland National Center and open to all disabled persons. Cost of the programs vary, but participants are asked to pay for room, board, and travel. Scholarships may be available. Contact Vinland National Center, P.O. Box 308, Loretta, MN 55357. Telesensory Systems, Inc. has recently resumed publication of the TSI Newsletter after an 18-month lapse. While the braille edition is no longer being produced, the spring issue was the first to be put on VersaBraille cassette. For a copy, send a new, unopened Maxell UDXL-1 cassette to TSI Newsletter, P.O. Box 10099, Palo Alto, CA 94304. From The Matilda Ziegler Magazine: If you feel uneasy about fire while staying overnight in a hotel or motel ? and the recent rash of hotel fires has made us all aware of this potential danger ? why not travel with a portable smoke alarm that you can attach to the top of your hotel room door? By means of a dual ionization detection system, this battery-powered device can "sense" smoke before it enters a room: Smoke triggers a chemical reaction that sets off a loud, penetrating siren. The alarm is equipped with a recessed battery test button so it won't go off accidentally in a tightly packed suitcase. Such detectors set for between $25 and $35 and are made by General Electric, First Alert, and Travel Commander. Available in most hardware and department stores. It is the consensus of the Arkansas Council of the Blind that prejudice is a learned trait, and that it can never be eradicated from society by educational programs focused entirely on adults. Prejudice must be dealt with in the very young. As a service project to the citizens of Arkansas, the Arkansas Council of the Blind has purchased the film, "The Invisible Children" (better known as "The Kids on the Block") to lend to special education teachers, librarians, caseworkers, churches, civic clubs, and members who will show the film, so that prejudice will be uprooted and a better understanding created between the handicapped and the non-handicapped. The film uses handicapped puppets to convey its message. From The Vermont Informer (Vermont Council of the Blind): The big, single legislative achievement in which the Vermont Council of the Blind played a prominent role in the past year was the streamlining of the handicapped motor vehicle registration plate law. The new law will enable blind persons and persons with ambulatory disabilities to have a registration plate or windshield card. In order to have the plate, however, the disabled person will have to have a vehicle registered in his/her name. For example, John and Mary Smith have a blind daughter who is only 9. The little girl will be able to get a card for use in any vehicle, and her parents may have their car registered in their names and also in the name of their daughter. By doing so, they will be eligible to have the registration plate displaying the international symbol of the handicapped. The Vermont Informer also reports that a complaint has been filed with the New England Telephone Company of Vermont concerning the rude manner in which some of its Directory Assistance operators are handling credit card information calls. This is the second complaint filed since the Directory Assistance fee schedule came to Vermont several years ago. A telephone user who is unable to use the conventional directory because of a handicapping condition is eligible to have his home phone exempted from Directory Assistance charges, and is also eligible to have Directory Assistance calls made from any phone charged to his credit card, and thereby have those calls exempted from charges. The problem comes when some operators insist either that a caller can dial Directory Assistance directly or that an information call cannot be charged to a credit card number. There have been at least three instances when operators have been rude enough to cut a handicapped caller off the line. Dr. James O'Hair, Executive Director of the Affiliated Leadership League of and for the Blind of America, died on May 27 after an extended illness. Mr. O'Hair had just begun his work with the Affiliated Leadership League last summer when he was told he would lose his leg from cancer. This setback did not hold him down, however. He began many new projects, raising the visibility of ALL among its members as well as throughout the entire blindness field. The U.S. Association for Blind Athletes has available seed money grants in the amount of $500.00 for the purpose of aiding those groups or organizations interested in developing USABA chapters. There are also a few remaining $500.00 grants for anyone interested in beginning, or already involved in, recreation programs for visually impaired children aged 12-18. For further information, contact USABA at 55 West California Avenue, Beach Haven Park, NJ 08008; telephone (609) 492-1017. Position Available: Executive Director, Iowa Commission for the Blind. Qualifications: Master's level education or equivalent desired, and at least ten years' work experience, with a minimum of five years' top?level management that has provided substantial exposure to government process and policy-making boards or commissions; exposure to Federal or state rehabilitation agencies preferred. Salary range: $29,200 to $40,800, based on qualifications and experience. Send resume to Chairman, Search Committee, 600 Fifth Avenue Plaza, Suite E, Des Moines, IA 50309. Nearsighted artisans may be responsible for the detailed art work found on ancient jewelry, coins, and trinkets, according to an item in Science News. Researchers at the State University of New York at Stony Brook believe that myopic people, who can see small objects when held close to the eye more easily than other people, may have become engravers. They even speculate that, because myopia is hereditary, certain families or castes may have specialized in this work, providing selective pressure for the eye condition. From Update (National Library Service): The Mensa Friends Tape Recording Studio, Inc., a volunteer group at the Patuxent Institution in Jessup, Maryland, celebrated its 13th anniversary recently. When the unit was established in 1969, it was one of the first prison programs in the nation, and it remains one of a few such groups in maximum-security facilities. Music lovers who are interested in receiving audio cassettes of musical programs are invited to contact the Audio Volunteers Music Library for the Blind, c/o Ed Tomlinson, R.F.D. 1, Box 213, Green Forest, AR 72638. Programs vary in playing time from three to six hours. All programs are loaned free to those who are eligible to use the "FREE MATTER" mailing privilege. Choose from the following musical categories: nostalgia, classical, jazz, country, and Christian. Please send requests on an audio cassette, which will be returned. ACB of Texas member Larry Johnson, whose article, "Remember What I Do ... Forget What I Am," appeared in the November 1981 Braille Forum, has written and recorded a special 15-minute relaxation tape. "Relax and Live" offers a serious, scientifically approved, progressive relaxation exercise, set to a soothing background sound of babbling brook. The tape may be purchased for $4.95 from Larry Johnson, 10387 Sahara Drive-6H, San Antonio, TX 78216. The Michigan Legislature has voted to extend indefinitely a law passed in 1979 and due to expire at the end of this year, permitting the removal of corneas from deceased persons during autopsies, provided there is no objection from next-of-kin. Before the law went into effect, about 300 corneas were available for transplants within the state, and some visually impaired persons had to wait for a year or more for an operation. Last year, there were more than 1,000 transplants, and the waiting period has been reduced to a month or less. It is expected that this year, 1200 persons will have their sight restored by cornea transplants. ***** ** 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. ###