From National Public Radio

Students from across the country and Canada gather in Los Angeles for the competition to top all competitions for blind and visually impaired students: The Braille Challenge. High-achieving students like Megan Bening (arm wrestling, left) compete for cash prizes in up to four categories, and compare notes on what it’s like to be in the majority for a change.

Making friends at school is a struggle, Megan says, which is hard to believe, given that she keeps the people around her constantly laughing.

The problem isn’t that sighted kids are mean, she says matter-of-factly; it’s that they are too nice. Paralyzed by political correctness, people often pretend that they haven’t noticed she’s blind, which adds a saccharine veneer to interaction.

“It doesn’t do any good to dance around the elephant in the room. It eats up too many brain cells,” she advises.

(Photo from NPR)

From The Boston Globe:

Park ranger John Manson, who has been blind since birth, retires after 30 years of service at Boston historical sites. Manson is recognized for his vast knowledge of historical trivia and for his intuitive knack for engaging his audiences in history.

“Take any event that happened in Faneuil Hall, from the time it was built in 1742, and he would have researched it on his own and known everything about it,” said Sheila Cooke-Kayser, who worked with Manson for 16 years. “And then by chatting with his audience, he would find connections and immediately be able to make it relevant to today’s world.”

In an extended interview on the CBS Evening News, New York Gov. David Paterson tells Katie Couric he’s been blind practically since birth, with no vision in his left eye and extremely limited vision in his right. His mother didn’t want him to learn Braille, insisting that he attend public school and get no special treatment.

As a result, Paterson must ‘read’ by listening to aides’ recorded messages on his phone, and relies heavily on memorization while making speeches.

On disability: “Being the first disabled governor who is able to display the disability and not have political ramifications that are negative is a real milestone.”

On employment: “I’m blind, but only 29 percent of blind people are employed in our society. Of the deaf people in our society, only 10 percent have jobs. And yet, in both cases, our educational performance exceeds the national average in our society.”

(Screen capture from CBS video)

From the Dallas Morning News, with video:

Some 1,000 people took to the streets of downtown Dallas to celebrate the competence and independence of people who are blind or have visual impairments.

The march, along a route of more than a mile, was sponsored by the National Federation of the Blind.

Rep. Pete Sessions (R-Texas) and other officials spoke about the lack of jobs and appropriate education for people who are blind. It is estimated that 70 percent of blind people do not have jobs; only about ten percent of blind children learn Braille in school, down from about 50 per cent in the 1960s.

From the video coverage:

The purpose [of the march] is so that the public will see us and understand that we are competent, independent people, that we are not ashamed to be blind, and we are marching toward a future where the blind are considered equal participants in American Society.
–Chris Danielsen, NFB spokesman

See also: First U.S. coin with readable Braille unveiled

From Associated Press/ABC News:

Jeffrey Lovitky’s successful lawsuit against the U.S. Treasury Department was fueled by his memory of the woman he loved.

He describes Sandra Welner (left) as a determined and brilliant woman who overcame significant obstacles and continued to work as a gynecologist after she lost her vision. Dr. Welner ran a clinic for women with disabilities at Washington Hospital Center and was a faculty member of Georgetown and Maryland University medical centers. She died in 2001.

Lovitky filed the lawsuit on behalf of the American Council of the Blind, arguing that the Treasury Department is violating the law by failing to design and issue currency that is readily distinguishable to people who are blind or have visual impairments.

A recent favorable ruling on the case by a federal appeals court could force the U.S. to redesign its money.

Earlier post here.

(AP photo)

From the Boston Globe, [Danbury, CT] News-Times:

In a Connecticut high school program described as unique in the state, students who can see are learning Braille alongside students with visual impairments.

The sighted students are building relationships with students who have visual impairments and becoming aware of the daily challenges they face, as well as learning the raised-dot alphabet,

“Getting to know the blind students gave me a newfound respect for them,” said sighted student Courtney Parente, 17. “By seeing how independent they are, it changed my whole perspective towards people with disabilities.”

See earlier post: Braille literacy drop called civil rights issue

From The New York Times:

Iraq, which has been in three wars in two decades, has a robust Paralympic team. Twelve of the 20 athletes who have qualified for the Paralympic games are disabled war veterans.

“As a country that participated in many wars since 1980, we have many disabled people,” said Ahmed Abid Hassan, a wheelchair fencing coach. “Our Paralympic team is better than our Olympic team.”

Above, Rasul Kadhim, a weight lifter with a paralyzed leg. (New York Times photo)