WHEREAS, the Mayor of the District of Columbia ( Marion Berry) has proposed that all handicapped and elderly residents of the District be eligible to ride
free on the Metro Public Transit System;
WHEREAS, a common misconception about the blind is the belief that we need special concessions such as free public transit services;
WHEREAS, the National Federation of the Blind of Maryland has adopted a long- standing policy, declaring that blind individuals must have equal opportunity
in all areas, which also means carrying equal responsibility; and
WHEREAS, providing free public transportation for the blind violates this principle of equality by preventing blind persons from assuming financial responsibility
for obtaining the services they need, thus perpetuating the misconception that blind persons are second- class: Now, therefore,
BE IT RESOLVED by the National Federation of the Blind of Maryland assembled this 1st day of November, 1981, in the City of Grantsville, Maryland, that
the National Federation of the Blind of Maryland condemns and deplores Mayor Marion Berry’s irresponsible proposal and commends the National Federation
of the Blind of the District of Columbia for outstanding leadership in opposing this ill- conceived plan; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a more appropriate policy for Metro would be to adopt an aggressive program of employing blind persons through an affirmative
action program rather than giving us free rides on buses and subways, when few of us have jobs to go to in the first place.