by Rebecca Kragnes
Since the drowning of seven-year-old Brianna Joy Nelson at the BLIND Inc. camp in Minneapolis a few months ago, a lot of focus has been placed on sighted assistance. Some ACB of Minnesota (ACBM) members were rather upset when Chuck Hamilton, Acting Director of Minnesota State Services for the Blind, said that people in ACBM “might seek more assistance from sighted people.” At first I was angry too, but the more I thought about it, the more I realized it was true. Using Metro Mobility, audio description, sighted guide, and asking for information from the public are all forms of sighted assistance. Some would even contend that use of a dog guide is also a form of sighted assistance. Although I wouldn’t go that far, the question is, “Is soliciting and using sighted assistance something we should be ashamed of?” My personal answer is no.
At a recent event, I wanted to know where and how people were lining up to see an exhibit. I asked a group of blind people, but they didn’t know. I then decided that asking a sighted person would be the most efficient way of getting the information I needed. Shortly thereafter, a blind woman confronted me about prefacing my question with, “Are you a sighted person?” I explained that the group of blind people I asked didn’t know. As I discussed my response to the confrontation with friends, I had a couple tell me that I should have said it was none of her business rather than explaining myself. I suspect I’m not the only one who feels like I have to defend my actions rather than acknowledging that I have my own set of standards. We know that we, as individuals, have diverse standards, so why try to pretend otherwise? The answer to this is that an organization for the blind has articulated that if we aren’t following their standards, we expect less of ourselves as blind people.
Is utilizing sighted assistance some kind of cop-out? Many times, it seems to be a more efficient and graceful way of accomplishing something. According to the previously mentioned organization for the blind, there are exceptions to what is considered independent. The first is that sometimes it is OK to ask another blind person for help. If one asks a blind person for directions, that’s OK, but substitute a sighted person as the one being asked, and suddenly it’s not so great anymore.
There are times when asking even a blind person is taboo. The most independent way to do something is to figure it out oneself. This means that rather than asking for anyone’s help or even a description of the order of a buffet line, it’s OK to put one’s fingers in the food and find out what is there. Ah, what are a few more germs anyway, and there are always napkins for messy fingers. Let’s hope that all blind people can use their mobility method of choice in one hand and carry food, drink, and utensils in the other. Either that, or perhaps they can skip using their mobility device and try not to bump into anything or anyone on their way to the table. Rather than asking someone about the line, he/she is supposed to blunder into the situation and find out for him/herself. It doesn’t matter that he/she might cut in front of or bump into someone else. I see neither of these things as acting graciously or gracefully.
A second caveat to the “as little sighted assistance as possible” rule is that the assistance is acceptable as long as the person is paid. Grocery shopping would be tedious if not impossible without sighted assistance. Store clerks are paid for what they do, so that is still considered independence. But put a volunteer or friend in the scenario instead of a store clerk, and suddenly the blind person is not independent. Disregard the fact that sighted people shop together all the time. It’s OK to have someone drive us around as long as they are paid, but if a friend wants to do us a favor, that’s somehow demeaning and is a sign of dependence. Never mind that friends drive for other sighted people who cannot or do not drive. According to this rule, it’s shameful to have a volunteer reader. I ask, “Why should blind people pay to do something that sighted people do every day for free?”
Using a guide dog reeks of dependence, according to this crowd. There are certainly times when people accredit too much to our dogs and underestimate blind people’s skills. However, I contend that there are advantages and disadvantages to both cane and dog. For instance, I wonder what makes a better impression walking into a job interview ... is it more professional to ask the dog to follow, or is it better to ask for an elbow or whack the interviewer’s legs with a cane?
Next let’s explore whether the standard-setters live up to their own standards. Those who impose the avoidance of sighted assistance on the rest of us are often against audio description. They believe that audio description is not important or even debasing to the blind. Imagine my shock when I heard a sighted person describing what was happening at the event mentioned above for a group of self-acclaimed independent blind individuals. Alas, he was being paid by their agency, so maybe it was OK. Almost everyone knows that some of the head honchos in this anti–sighted-assistance movement attend conventions with someone to lead them around at all times. Even locally where the bus is supposedly the only independent way to travel as a blind person, some of the “independent” blind administrators are often seen taking cabs. But these individuals have the funds to pay for help, so that’s all right. It even seems that there are blind Metro Mobility users who belong to organizations which want blind people disqualified from Metro Mobility.
Now that we’ve determined that the standard-setters do not always follow their own standards, I wonder how confusing all of this is to the sighted person who just wants to do the right thing! I’ve heard the stories of sighted people who have gotten their heads bitten off for asking blind people if they could be of assistance. Don’t get me wrong! I don’t always say yes to sighted help. There are times I want to do something myself, and I’ve been known to get more than a little firm if the sighted person doesn’t appropriately respond to a polite “no, thank you.” Grabbing me or my dog’s harness are other ways of getting me upset, especially on a bad day. Still, I try to keep in mind that if an individual finds contact with me to be unpleasant, someday this same person may walk away from me or another blind person instead of asking if help is desired.
Finally, I feel we all need to remind ourselves not to impose our standards on others. The mobility aid, type of transportation, and other methods of accomplishing daily living we choose make us neither superior nor inferior. Sometimes, especially when my self-esteem needs a little boost, I catch myself looking down upon the choices that others make. People have reasons for the choices they make, and we need to respect their personal decisions even when they differ from our own.