Our annual Day in Annapolis and Legislative Reception was held on Thursday, January 22nd. It was one of the more memorable events for Federationists because of two special happenings.
The Maryland House of Delegates passed a Resolution commending Dr. Kenneth Jernigan for his years of leadership and work with the blind of Maryland and the nation. The Resolution was introduced by Delegate Elijah Cummings and cosponsored by Delegates William Bevan, Casper Taylor and Virginia Thomas. After Resolution 19 was passed, Dr. Jernigan addressed the Chamber. It is extremely rare that someone who is not a delegate is allowed to speak on the floor. It was a moment of great pride for all of us and Dr. Jernigan certainly deserved this special recognition.
Another added element to this day in Annapolis was the arrival of 12 inches of snow. Federationists are hearty dedicated spirits. We didn’t let the snow keep us down. Despite added difficulties, we visited the offices of all 188 delegates and senators and held our evening reception. It was a very successful day. We demonstrated the capabilities of blind people by our actions and the legislators heard our message. Now it is up to us to convince the legislators to enact our agenda. Our goals for the 1987 legislative session are described in the following memoranda.
PRIORITIES FOR THE 1987 SESSION
NATIONAL FEDERATION OF THE BLIND OF MARYLAND
January 22, 1987
TO:MEMBERS OF THE MARYLAND GENERAL ASSEMBLY
RE: THE BLIND: PRIORITIES FOR THE 1987 SESSION
One out of every five hundred of the U.S. population is blind, and fifty thousand people in our country become blind each year. Even more, the social effects of blindness magnify its impact to include families, relatives, friends, colleagues at work, and others. In short, millions of our citizens are affected to a considerable degree by laws and public policies concerning the blind. But despite its widespread impact, blindness is one of the most misunderstood conditions. So, we have formed the National Federation of the Blind to increase public understanding about blindness and to build greater awareness among the blind themselves.
The National Federation of the Blind of Maryland, an affiliate of the National Federation of the Blind, is a private sector voluntary organization maintained and controlled by the blind. It is a resource of knowledge and personal help with everyday problems for thousands of blind men and women. We are proud of our self-help philosophy and achievements. However, the blind of Maryland face serious obstacles to equality. Blind people in Maryland face enormous attitudinal barriers to employment. Blind children in Maryland receive an inadequate education. Blind people in Maryland have insufficient library services. Changes in law and public policy can remedy these problems. You can improve and enrich the lives of blind people in Maryland by taking the actions recommended in the following position papers.
MEMORANDUM #1
From: The National Federation of the Blind of Maryland To: Members of the Maryland General Assembly
Subject: Employment Discrimination Against the Blind (HB207) Date: January 22, 1987
The blind of Maryland has the ability and the ambition to compete in the workplace. But again, and again we are denied the chance to prove ourselves. You can help us unlock the door of employment opportunity and to take our rightful place as contributing members of our society. The members of the National Federation of the Blind of Maryland urge you to strengthen the White Cane Law by adding the Private Employer Amendment.
Blind people have the ability and desire to work. Yet, seventy seven percent of the working age blind population are unemployed. Why? The answer is discrimination.
Discrimination against the blind is not based on malice. It is based on fear, ignorance and misconceptions. A national survey of employers conducted in 1983 by Job Opportunities for the Blind shows that an overwhelming majority of employers who did not have any blind employees were afraid to hire us. Since the rate of unemployment among blind people has continued to increase since 1983, it is evident that employer attitudes have not improved. Employers listed such stereotypic fears as "a blind person will not be able to travel from his home to the workplace. A blind person will not be
able to climb stairs. Discrimination, whether it is based on fear or ignorance, is still
discrimination. It must be eliminated.
The Maryland General Assembly demonstrated a strong belief in civil rights for the blind by passing the White Cane Law in 1966. Throughout the succeeding years, the legislature further demonstrated this concern by adding amendments to strengthen this law. Members of the National Federation of the Blind of Maryland urge you to continue this record of strong protection for civil rights of blind persons by supporting the Private Employer Amendment to the White Cane Law.
The law currently prohibits discrimination on the basis of blindness by employers who receive public funds. The Maryland State Department of Planning estimates that public sector jobs represent only 25.6% of the total number of jobs in Maryland.
The blind must have the opportunity to compete for all the jobs in Maryland, no matter what the employer's source of funding or whether the job is in the public or private sector of the economy. We seek the same right to work as any other citizen in Maryland. The right to work is not just an economic necessity, it is a question of human dignity.
MEMORANDUM #2
From: National Federation of the Blind of Maryland To: Members of the Maryland General Assembly Subject: Education of Blind Children in Maryland Date: January 22, 1987
Children are the most important resource of our state. Therefore, the state must make every effort to make sure that every child in Maryland receives quality education. Blind children currently receive an inferior education. Educators stress the teaching of foreign languages and other forms of communication, yet they refuse to teach Braille to students with limited vision. This practice condemns a legally blind child to a life of illiteracy. However, this most unfortunate trend can be reversed by legislative leadership. Society reflects its values through its· laws. The Maryland General Assembly should go on record in support of the teaching of Braille.
Members of the National Federation of the Blind of Maryland ask your assistance in the following actions:
- The Maryland General Assembly should enact legislation that guarantees every blind student the opportunity to learn Braille.
- Please urge the Maryland State Department of Education to upgrade the standards for certification of vision teachers. Vision teachers should be required to pass a free correspondence course in Braille transcription offered by the Library of Congress.
Braille Instruction for Blind Children
Literacy, the ability to communicate effectively by reading and writing, is as important to blind children as it is to other children. Braille is to blind people as print is to sighted people. It is the only method of communication that gives the blind person the same advantages as print gives the sighted reader. For example, grammar, punctuation, and spelling are only learned well if a blind child can read Braille. It is not possible for a blind person, without the knowledge of Braille, to write or read material needed for quick reference (such as phone numbers, manuals, addresses). Verbal modes of communication (tapes, disks, talking machines or talking computers) can no longer replace Braille than radio or television can replace print.
Sadly, the problem of increasing illiteracy among the general student population has also become a problem among blind children. The teaching of Braille has been deemphasized throughout the nation, and Maryland is no exception. A misguided reliance upon technology and a false belief in the superiority of print has led to the situation in Maryland where legally blind children with some remaining visions have been denied the opportunity to learn Braille, even when they can only read print very slowly and with great difficulty. This has especially devastating effects for the child who will lose more vision later in life when Braille will be more difficult to learn and the instruction more
difficult to obtain. Even totally blind children have not escaped this damaging deemphasis in Braille instruction, often graduating from school with inferior reading and writing speed and skill.
The law needs to be changed to highlight Braille and make it clear that it is the policy of the state of Maryland that blind children have the right to an opportunity to become literate. Parents and educators must know that Braille is a viable option and that blind children have a right to instruction in its use. By presenting Braille as an option to all blind children, including the legally blind child with some remaining vision, the state of Maryland will be fulfilling a basic responsibility for the literacy and education of these children. It is important that a tone be set which encourages blind children to maximize their potential and recognize Braille as the effective and desirable reading method that it is.
MEMORANDUM #3
From: National Federation of the Blind of Maryland To: Members of the Maryland General Assembly
Subject: Parents' Rights in the Education of Their Blind and Handicapped Children Date: January 22, 1987
Parents have an important role in the education of their handicapped children. They often have information about their children's abilities and needs that no other professional can have. In recognition of this role, federal law guarantees that parents have the right to participate as equal partners in the development of their children's educational programs. Parents also have the right to act as advocates for their children.
In Maryland, education of handicapped children suffers from a lack of parents' involvement, due to the inadequate information provided by local education agencies. The members of the National Federation of the Blind of Maryland urge you to strengthen parents' rights by passing legislation that will require the local education agencies to adequately inform parents of their rights. This legislation will ensure that parents are informed of their rights before their children's programs are developed, rather than after decisions have been made.
Parents in Maryland
Federal law PL 94-142 is landmark legislation which guarantees the right of handicapped children to a free and appropriate education. To implement federal law, the state of Maryland passed the Special Programs for Exceptional Children Act.
This Act implements federal requirements which are not currently carried out with any consistency in Maryland. Maryland law on the education of the handicapped is very deficient in addressing the individual education program and specifically the parents' role in this process. The federal law intends for parents to be equal participants in this process of planning an educational program for their handicapped children. However, because this intent is not clear in Maryland law, procedures have developed which place
parents in the lesser roles of observer or advisor. Parents frequently attend Admission Review and Dismissal committee meetings and Individualized Education Program meetings unaware of who will be present and participating, and ignorant of their right to bring. someone with them. These are all rights they have under federal law but have not been made available to them because of the deficiencies in Maryland law which allow such rights to be overlooked.
Legislation requires the local education agencies to distribute information about parents' rights, and documenting the receipt of this information, is essential to remedy the inconsistencies cited above. Legislation requiring that the local education agencies provide parents with names of local contacts for consumer and advocacy groups is also important, since these groups are a source of unique information and assistance. As parents' rights to act as advocates increase, the quality of education available to their handicapped children will also increase.
MEMORANDUM #4
From: To:
National Federation of the Blind of Maryland Members of the Maryland General Assembly
Subject: The Crisis in Library Services for the Blind Date: January 22, 1987
The Maryland State Library for the Blind and Physically Handicapped, located at 1715 N. Charles Street, Baltimore, Maryland 21201, is a state-wide system that should serve the more than ten thousand blind and physically handicapped children, adults, and senior citizens of Maryland. This library program is crucial to blind people because it is often the only source of information for people who cannot read what they want when they want to read it. The program suffers from lack of space, lack of books and other materials, and lack of staff. This is the time for action because the lease on the present dilapidated facility expires in June 1987.
The members of the National Federation of the Blind of Maryland request your assistance with the following three actions:
- Please urge Governor Schaeffer to eliminate the bureaucratic delays and to recommend a supplemental appropriation of funds for the new building.
- Please urge Governor Schaeffer to recommend additional expenditures for additional staff positions.
- Please urge the Superintendent, Maryland State Department of Education, to make structural changes in his department, so that the Library for. the Blind and Physically Handicapped receives greater priority and visibility.
Library Services for the Blind in Maryland
It is a mistake to compare library services for the blind and physically handicapped with library services for the general public. Printed material is available everywhere- in newspapers, magazines, bookstores, billboards, circulars, newsletters, and advertisements. It is quite possible for a literate sighted person to read for pleasure and enlightenment without ever setting foot in a public library. Most sighted readers value their libraries as an additional source of information "the frosting on the cake."
It is not like that for blind and physically handicapped people. There is only one newsstand in the country that carries one braille periodical. Most bookstores now carry a few abridged versions of books on cassettes. A few volunteer organizations produce textbooks on tape. But, as a practical matter, blind and physically handicapped people must depend exclusively on the library for the blind to meet their reading needs. The library is not "the frosting on the cake" for blind and physically handicapped people who use it. It is their cake, their bread, their primary defense against intellectual starvation.
Blind and physically handicapped library patrons often live more than one hundred miles from their library. Therefore, the library serves its borrowers by mailing materials to them. The need to provide service through the mail and the lack of face-to-face contact between librarians and their patrons makes this service truly unique.
How well does the Maryland State Library for the Blind and Physically Handicapped meet the challenge? Let's look at what a good library for the blind should be and compare it with the current situation in Maryland.
Administratively, a good library for the blind and physically handicapped should be highly visible. Its director should report to the head of the state library system with no administrative levels in between. It should have its own clearly defined budget with the overwhelming majority of funds coming from stable state sources. Its staff should be large enough to permit some staff time to be devoted to development of its collection of books. It should also act as the state repository for educational materials for blind school children throughout Maryland.
The Maryland State Library for the Blind and Physically Handicapped is administratively buried deep within the Public Library section of the Maryland State Library. There are several administrative layers between the director of the Maryland State Library for the Blind and Physically Handicapped and the head of the state library system. The director of the Library for the Blind and physically handicapped does not control its budget. The staff of the Library for the Blind and Physically Handicapped is barely large enough to handle the routine shipping and receiving of books. There simply is not time or money to engage in aggressive collection development or effective community outreach. The budget is not only inadequate but also structured so that an increasing proportion of the Library's funding comes from federal sources which are vulnerable to budget cuts.
A good library for the blind and physically handicapped should be housed in a well planned spacious building. It should be located in an area with easy access to public transportation and good parking facilities. There should be a shipping and receiving area designed for the efficient movement of books in and out of the building. Workrooms are needed for processing books and repairing equipment. Soundproof recording studios, a control room, and braille production and duplication facilities should be part of the design. Space should be set aside for the public to visit the library and examine aids and appliances for the blind and physically handicapped, as well as space to read. Above all, the library should have space to expand its collection to twice its size.
The Maryland State Library for the Blind and Physically Handicapped leases space in a ramshackle building with none of the features described above. The building leaks, plaster falls from the ceiling, roaches and rodents inhabit the premises, and the air conditioning does not work most of the time. Volunteers and staff must work in cramped quarters in space which is neither pleasant nor efficient. Above all, the Library is far too small. It has less than 17,000 square feet of space, much of it in an unusable condition.
A good library should make collection development one of its top priorities. The Library of Congress, National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped, provides several hundred titles to the Maryland State Library for the Blind and Physically Handicapped each year. The books from the Library of Congress should be regarded as a base from which to begin producing and acquiring books. A good library for the blind and physically handicapped should acquire or produce at least as many books each year as the Library of Congress does. This is especially true of books on Maryland subjects.
The Maryland State Library for the Blind and Physically handicapped continues to be perceived as little more than the Maryland distribution center for books from the Library of Congress. Administrative decisions are made based on this restrictive and unimaginative perspective. As a result, this library not only fails to increase its collection; it actually returns books to the Library of Congress each year because of lack of space. Although there is reason to evaluate the collection each year and weed out little used materials, such decisions should be based solely on the merit of the items in question and not on space limitations.
What can be done to make the Maryland State Library for the Blind and Physically Handicapped into the service it should be?
A new or remodeled building is essential. Conditions in the current facility discourage patrons from visiting the Library. The staff is limited in its ability to respond creatively to patron needs because so much time must be spent struggling to function under shamefully inadequate working conditions. A new building should be planned which contains at least 50,000 square feet of space.
At least five new staff positions should be created within the next three years. The most critical need is for a person to manage the technical aspects of computerizing the service. The Library is not getting the full benefit of the money spent on automation because no one is available fulltime to oversee its operation.
Increased coordination of volunteer efforts could expand the effectiveness and scope of library services without adding to the cost. One staff member works with volunteers as time permits, but more could be done if she were free to devote herself fulltime to recruiting, training, and utilizing volunteers.
Current staff can barely fill routine fill patron requests. They are not able to search for hard-to-find items outside the library collection. The Library would be much more effective if a staff member could devote full time to learning about resources and could have funds to purchase additional available materials.
Borrowers should be able to request rapid production of essential documents in a usable format. It is not reasonable to expect current staff to oversee the production of recorded and braille documents in addition to their already heavy responsibilities.
The Library budget should also be increased to provide raw materials for book production. Volunteers are available to transcribe books into braille or onto cassettes, but they cannot be expected to provide paper, binding material, cassettes, and mailers in addition to their labor.
Implementation of the above recommendations will require only a small investment, but it will give over 10,000 blind and physically handicapped people access to more of the information that is so easily available to the majority of Maryland's citizens.