NOTE: There were other DISM convention reports at the 1987 convention. See The 1987 Fall Braille Spectator for these BISM reports and associated convention resolutions.
What are the ingredients for a successful state convention of the NFB? Some of the ingredients are good publicity, a lively interesting program, and lots of audience participation. This year's convention was blessed with all of these. The 1987 Convention of the National Federation of the Blind of Maryland was held during the weekend of October 2-4 at the Comfort Inn, Frostburg, Maryland.
The publicity surrounding this convention was extremely good. Several preconvention articles announcing the convention were carried in both the Cumberland News and Times, and the Frostburg Journal. Radio stations WTBO and WCBC carried convention announcements and longer interviews about the Federation. We also received excellent television coverage on WHAG and on cable television.
We were very pleased that a reporter from the Cumberland News and Times, Mr. Elvis Jones, attended the entire convention. To date, he has written 8 excellent articles about the convention and issues of concern to blind persons. Mr. Jones has become a good friend and we look forward to his continued help in dispelling the myths and misconceptions about blindness.
The convention program was both informative and interesting. Some of the issues that we discussed were the Maryland Library for the Blind, Blind Industries and Services of Maryland, problems facing Vendors, and the need to strengthen the Maryland White Cane Law. As you read the other articles in this news
letter and the 12 resolutions passed by the convention, you will see that we made much progress, but still have much work to do to achieve equal rights for the blind of Maryland.
Two colleagues from other states, Reverend Frank Lee from Alabama, and Mr. Ed McDonald from Kentucky, also contributed to the success of our convention. Reverend Lee, our national representative, gave an inspirational banquet address on his struggle to accept blindness and his struggle to convince his bishop as well as the congregation that blindness did not interfere with his abilities to be a competent minister. Mr. Ed McDonald, a producer announcer on radio station WNKU, Highland Heights, Kentucky, conducted a public relations seminar. We look forward to good results in getting our message to the media thanks to Ed's excellent ideas and suggestions.
This year, a record number of Federationists attended the convention, with 165 people registering. Participation in our convention is crucial if we are to continue to grow and be an effective organization. We need the support of every member in all of our activities.
A special word of appreciation is extended to all who participated in the raffle of five $100 prizes held during the banquet. The winners were Jack Peoples, Lloyd Rasmussen, Marc Maurer, Karen Mayry, and Terussia Lovick. We also thank everyone participating in the DIG, PAC, and Associates programs. These programs are crucial for the funding of our movement. The thirty-two people who recruited Associate contributors in 1986 had a free breakfast on Sunday morning at the convention. Will you become a recruiter of Associates in 1987-88 so that you can be eligible for a prize at the 1988 convention?
Three Board positions were up for election this year. Benny Bagwell, Pat Winebrenner, and Pat Mayweather were elected to fill these two-year positions. Congratulations to Benny Bagwell who also won the Barbara Johnson award.
The 1987 convention marked the end of a very productive year for the National Federation of the Blind of Maryland. Let us continue to strengthen our movement during the coming year.
THE STATE OF THE AFFILIATE
An Address by Sharon Maneki, President
National Federation of the Blind of Maryland Delivered at the
Twenty-First Annual Convention Frostburg, Maryland
Saturday, October 3, 1987
INTRODUCTION
Fellow Federationists, let me begin on a personal note. My experience as president during the past year was exciting, challenging, rewarding and very productive. I attribute our success to the unqualified support of President Marc Maurer, Dr. Jernigan, the officers and board of directors of the National Federation of the Blind of Maryland, and each and every member of the affiliate. I thank you for your loyalty and support and I especially thank you for your excellent participation in affiliate activities throughout the year.
One example of this involvement is the quarterly publication of the Braille Spectator. It is most appropriate that many people present at this convention wrote articles. I extend a word of special thanks to those who record, duplicate, and mail the Spectator. No matter how poor Connie McCraw's health becomes, she makes the effort to record the Spectator. Without the help of Mr. Gerstenberger, Mrs. Chapman, and all who help with this effort, we could not have maintained the quarterly publication schedule.
Let us review the events of the past year together. The year of 1987 was a year of success, recognition, growth and challenge for the National Federation of the Blind of Maryland, and challenges abound for the coming year.
RECOGNITION
The National Federation of the Blind of Maryland received recognition from Governor Schaefer, the General Assembly and recognition through the media. Governor Schaefer is out of the country. Thus he is unable to attend our convention, but he issued a proclamation, as a symbol of recognition and respect of the work of the National Federation of the Blind. The proclamation reads:
"The State of Maryland. Proclamation from the office of the Governor. Job Opportunities for the Blind Month, October, 1987.
Whereas the glory and the promise of the state of Maryland rests in the dedication, commitment and contributions of all of our citizens and blind persons in our state are active and productive in a variety of worthwhile careers and activities--
reminding others that the word "disabled" is truly only just a word;
and whereas the Job Opportunities for the Blind (JOB) Program is an information and referral program, sponsored by the National Federation of the Blind, in partnership with the United States Department of Labor, which seeks to provide valuable information about jobs across the country;
and whereas JOB encourages blind persons to use their individual skills and talents in every imaginable field ... and since the program began in 1980, JOB has helped blind persons find jobs while also providing employers throughout Maryland with information on blindness and on improving the climate for the employment of the blind both now and in the future;
and whereas • Maryland is pleased to join with the proud members and supporters of the National Federation of the Blind of Maryland in celebrating a concept which has such a positive influence in the lives of all our citizens.
Now, therefore, I, William Donald Schaefer, Governor of the state of Maryland, do hereby proclaim October, 1987, as Job Opportunities for the Blind month in Maryland, and do commend this. observance to all citizens. Given under my hand and the great seal of the state of Maryland. This 1st day of October. One thousand nine hundred and eighty seven. William Donald Schaefer, Governor."
MARYLAND GENERAL ASSEMBLY
legislature
Let us turn to the legislature. January 23, 1987, was a day of pride and recognition for the National Federation of the Blind. Dr. Jernigan was not only recognized by the House of Delegates through Resolution 19, but also was granted the extremely rare opportunity to address the members from the floor of the House. The blind have recognized Dr. Jernigan' s leadership and courage for many years. It is especially significant when the legislature gives this well deserved recognition.
Over the years, we made many friends in the legislature through our days in Annapolis, our receptions and constituent contacts. This year many legislators gained new respect for our dedication and tenacity because we continued our plans despite a record 15 inches of snow.
THE MEDIA
Coverage in the media is important to us because it brings recognition. We never know who will read or see our information, needing it now or at a future date. Several articles on Braille appeared in newspapers throughout the state such as the Baltimore Sun, the Columbia Flyer and the Montgomery Journal. Dr. Richard Welsh felt compelled to answer Mary Ellen Reihing's letter to the editor in the Baltimore Sun showing that he was threatened by our activities.
Who can measure how many parents of blind children learned about the Federation through the excellent coverage of our Parents' seminar in April, both on television and in the press? Who can measure how many people heard the talk show interviews featuring federationists on such powerful radio stations as WTOP, WANN AND WCBC? How many people learned about the Library for the Blind through our feature in the Baltimore Sun, Letters to the Editor, from blind patrons, and two television news stories that were arranged through the efforts of the National Federation of the Blind of Maryland? Who can measure how many people will see and hear our message because of the excellent publicity and press coverage of this convention?
We may not think of the Braille Spectator as media coverage, but it is because it, too, spreads our philosophy of blindness. The Fall 1987 issue of the Braille Spectator will have a circulation of over 1,100 copies. This is exactly as it should be. We want more blind persons to learn about our organization as we continue to grow. The impact of the Spectator goes beyond the blind community. Mrs. Minnie Kenny has been reading the Braille Spectator since she accepted the Employment award for the National Security Agency at last year's convention in Columbia. After reading Al Maneki's article "Braille on the Job", Summer 1987, she asked Al to submit it for publication in a personnel bulletin that will highlight employee productivity. This bulletin goes to every Agency employee so it has a substantial circulation.
ADVOCACY
Recognition is a tool to reach our goal of equality. We are changing what it means to be blind in Maryland. As we fight each individual battle against discrimination, we tear down the barriers to first class citizenship for all of us. Remember the Patrick Gormley case? Pat wanted to rent an apartment. The landlord didn't want a blind tenant until the NFB changed her mind and reminded her of the law. This was not just a victory for Pat, but for all of us.
Expertise and information are two of the greatest resources of the Federation. Over and over, social security representatives turn to Mr. Gashel for information concerning social security rules that apply to blindness. The NFB, not BISM, has the expertise in social security issues. Ron and Audrey Burns had an overpayment problem. With our assistance, Ron and Audrey won their appeal.
The agencies established to help blind persons are often the greatest offenders of discrimination. DVR, the Maryland State Human Relations Commission and the "experts in education" are but a few of the agencies we dealt with during the past year. DVR discriminates against us by denying services.
The James Story case is one example. James is a student at Frostburg State University. In the 1986 academic year, DVR decided that James was eligible for only $200 of funding for readers and that he was ineligible for everything else. The 1987 academic year will be different for James because of the assistance of the NFB. James has the same meager income he had last year, but the threat of an appeal helped DVR find $2,400 to assist Mr. Story with his education.
In 1985, three Federationists, Leslie Johnson, Arthur Segal and Martha Rowe, filed employment discrimination complaints with the Maryland Human Relations Commission against the Baltimore Gas and Electric Company. This commission knows very little about blindness. It still has not made a finding in this case. We are documenting the delays and we will reform the system.
BRAILLE
Education of blind children in Maryland is changing ever so slowly, but it is changing. Why? Because of the efforts of the NFB. Thanks to our efforts in the legislature, more people are learning of the importance of Braille. Vision teachers will find it more difficult to deny Braille to students because more people are watching their actions. Thanks to Barbara Cheadle and our Parents' Division, blind children in Baltimore city now have a transitional class which will tremendously improve their chances to learn basic literacy skills.
Two years ago, we began to demand that the Maryland State Department of Education give parents clear accurate information about their rights to participate in the development of their child's Individualized Education Plan. As usual, the Department of Education said change was unnecessary and they opposed our bill. However, later they admitted that clarification was needed. New COMAR regulations adopting our ideas will be available for public comment this fall. Parents of all handicapped children in Maryland will benefit from the efforts of the National Federation of the Blind.
MARYLAND LIBRARY FOR THE BLIND
Did any other organization of the blind bring the plight of the Library for the Blind to the attention of the governor, comptroller and state treasurer by attending the Board of Public Works meeting? It is not every day that blind people have a chance to talk to the governor directly about a particular issue such as the library. We did, and we are responsible for his visit to the library building. It is evident that the Departments of Education, State Planning and General Services recognize the National Federation of the Blind of Maryland. We foiled their plan for stagnation. Thanks to our efforts, the signing of the lease for the facility housing the library was postponed for a month which helped get the best deal possible from a bad landlord.
A golden opportunity was lost in August when Governor Schaefer visited the Maryland State Library for the Blind. Instead of seizing the opportunity, Mr. Finney apparently chose to play the role of the subservient bureaucrat, by saying to the Governor, "Really now, everything is just fine, and we are all doing the best job we can."
To prevent this kind of tragedy from happening again, I have appointed a library committee, which I will chair for the time being, to meet periodically with Mr. Finney to plan for the proper growth and development of the library.
The state library system abounds with inertia and ignorance about the library for the blind. A library for the blind must provide more than "a little leisure reading", or "some of the classics", for blind persons to while away their time. A library for the blind must do more than just house the books produced by the National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped, Library of Congress. Instead, a library for the blind should be able to furnish students with timely research materials, should be able to offer professionals specialized journals, documents, and manuals. We need a library for the blind that can produce "information on demand." We can have such a library for the blind in Maryland, if we continue to take every opportunity, as individuals and as an organization, to make our case to the public and to the bureaucracy that was meant to serve us.
BLIND INDUSTRIES AND SERVICES OF MARYLAND
Over the years, we have achieved a measure of success with the programs at Blind Industries and Services of Maryland, because BISM is an autonomous agency with a single function. Unlike the Division of Vocational Rehabilitation, which can elude public demands for better service by encasing itself in layers of bureaucracy and pleading powerlessness over its own programs, BISM has no place to hide. BISM must confront the blind consumers it serves. Those of us old enough to remember John McCraw know how tirelessly he worked both as President of the National Federation of the Blind of Maryland and as Chairman of the BISM Board of Trustees to improve these programs.
During the past year, with a new administration managing BISM, we have started to witness a rapid decline in the quality
of its services. Key personnel in rehabilitation and job placement have been released, suggesting to us a de-emphasis of these activities, and that blind persons who need training and job placement can no longer look to BISM for help. The first prerequisite to improving services for the blind is most certainly not the complete elimination of programs by an autonomous agency whose sole purpose is service to the blind. While the needed course of action may be uncertain, it is clear that affairs at BISM will require some serious attention during the next year.
THE FUTURE In all of this activity, our goals are clear. We want blind vendors to be rid of set-a-side, and to operate independent businesses; we want blind children to grow up free from the burdens and scars of discrimination, and unshackled from the bonds of illiteracy; we want to do away with the sheltered shop system, or at least to reform it so that blind employees are paid the minimum wage and treated with decency and respect; we want the elderly who face the prospect of blindness to have the proper training in adaptive skills so that they may continue with their productive lives; we want an unemployment rate as low or lower than the national unemployment rate for the general public; and we want all people to understand and to say from the bottom of their hearts that it is indeed respectable to be blind. We will not reach these goals tomorrow, or next year, or perhaps not even in our lifetime. But we have made progress, and we will continue to make progress, for we have acquired the skills of working within the establishment, and we have developed the art of influencing public policy.
We are organized to promote the general welfare of the entire blind community. We are unified in a people's movement which espouses the philosophy that blindness is normal and unlimiting, given training and opportunity. From our unity we draw our strength. From our common philosophy we draw inspiration and courage. Let us continue to work together for our common goals. We have all of the ingredients for success in the National Federation of the Blind.