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When the 40th annual national convention of the American Council of the Blind was called into session by its president, Paul Edwards, on July 1, 2001, at the Polk County Convention Center in Des Moines, Iowa, the air was charged with emotion. Just about a thousand people were gathered in the convention center, some were busy situating their guide dogs, some folded up mobility canes as they settled back for an evening of speeches, reminiscences, awards, and shared pride and anticipation. Once again old friends exchanged greetings. First-timers, sheltered by their colleagues from local chapters and state affiliates, were astonished to be in the midst of so many other people who were blind and visually impaired.
During the first week of July in the first year of the 21st century, ACB celebrated 40 years of growth and accomplishment, renewed its commitment to people who are blind and visually impaired in the USA and across the world, debated and passed 28 resolutions to instruct its staff and representatives during the coming year, discussed and rejected all but one of the proposed changes to its constitution and bylaws, and elected a slate of new officers to carry the organization into the new millennium.
The members of the Iowa Council of the United Blind were perfect hosts for the hundreds of blind people who came from near and far to conduct the business of ACB, to sample the hospitality of the midwest, to see the newest in assistive technology, and to learn from one another how to live well as blind people in the 21st century.
In this convention issue, we will not attempt to recap every single convention event, to quote from every speech, or even present the pros and cons of every floor debate. Once again this year, Jonathan Mosen, manager of ACB Radio, was on the floor, broadcasting via the Internet to the world during every convention session. That minute-to-minute live coverage will remain available and accessible on ACB's web site, www.acb.org. Alternatively, Jay Doudna and Mike Duke have created a set of 21 audiocassettes which contain all of the essential convention events, and Sharon Lovering and others at ACB's national office can duplicate any or all of those tapes for ACB members to purchase and to listen, and re-listen to, during this and future years. (Sorry, folks, no banquet tape this year.) We encourage you to take advantage of both these options for accessing all the regular and special sessions of the ACB national convention.
We have envisioned this convention issue of "The Braille Forum" as a collage capturing the essential images of the national convention of 2001. There are photographs and descriptive captions on every page of this issue of the "Forum." In addition, we have attempted in our daily summaries to capture the flavor of the days and evenings, to preserve in print and braille the most memorable quotes, and to summarize the 40th convention of the leading consumer organization of blind people in the USA and the world in ways that communicate who we are at this point in our history, where we have been as a group of people who are blind and visually impaired, and where we plan and expect to go in the future.
We hope that our readers enjoy this special convention issue of "The Braille Forum." If you were among the fortunate blind and visually impaired men and women lucky enough to spend the first week of July with friends and colleagues in the beautiful, welcoming city of Des Moines, perhaps this issue will serve as a keepsake for you. If you could not attend the convention, we hope the flavor of that event which we attempt to capture with words and the excellent photography of Ken Nichols will make you feel as if you had been there and inspire you to visit ACB.org to listen yourselves to the speeches, the debates, the celebrations, and the retrospectives. We look forward to seeing many of you at the 41st ACB convention next year in Houston.
(Editor's Note: Thanks to Bay State Council "Baylines" for allowing us to reprint this article.)
Summer vacations generally are spent doing one or more of the following: spending time with friends, seeing a new place, having an adventure or two, or possibly learning new things. I was lucky to have done it all at the 2001 ACB national convention, which was held in Des Moines, Iowa. The convention took place from June 30th through July 7th.
Since this was my first convention, it was definitely an adventure. I have heard about past conventions from people who have attended, and I always wanted to go. Work, school, and other commitments prevented me from going until this year, when I was determined. Baxter, my guide dog, and I took off for the unknown on Friday, hoping to be settled before the rush. All went off without a hitch.
When I decided to attend the convention, I gave it a great deal of thought. Looking at the many events, luncheons, activities, and speakers was overwhelming. I finally decided that I was going to take it as it came, and sample a little of everything. This strategy worked out very well, as I think I had a well rounded experience, and I now know what to expect at future conventions.
One of the initial things which struck me was that I never saw so many blind and visually impaired people in one place in my life!!! Canes tapping, dogs everywhere! It was exciting being there, listening to people, meeting old friends, finding out who was there whom I knew from e-mail and "The Braille Forum." It was awe-inspiring. I could finally put voices to all the names I have heard for so long.
If I were to tell everything I did, it would definitely take up much more space than is available in this issue. But I will attempt to give you some of the highlights.
Since I have a deep love for my guide dog and am committed to GDUI as an organization, I wanted to participate in some of the events which were sponsored by that affiliate. I attended the GDUI luncheon, spent time in the GDUI suite and attended the business meeting. A friend was working as a guide dog empathizer and was not able to fill her shift one day, so I decided to jump in. This gave me the opportunity to talk to other guide dog users and be a friendly ear when they were experiencing stress for various reasons. This was a wonderful experience, and GDUI can count on me to do this again next year!
Of course this was an exciting year, as ACB officers were being elected. Listening to candidates' speeches, meeting them and finding out where they stood on the many important issues facing ACB, and just being a part of the whole process was amazing. The tension and excitement was almost a living thing. The week, and the actual day of the election was more exciting than I can express in words. To see the process firsthand made it so much more real.
One lesson I learned is, never stand in the hallway and say that you were at loose ends. You will immediately be put to work doing something!! Our president, Judi Cannon, was there one night when I walked out into the hall of the Marriott and mentioned that I had nothing planned. I was escorted to the press room where I was recruited to collate and staple the next day's edition of the Corn Silk Sentinel, the convention newspaper. I was there till approximately 2 a.m. and had a ball!! The noise was loud, conversation over the sound of Braille printers was lively, and I had the time of my life!!! Thanks Judi!
One of the wonderful aspects of the convention is that you get to see part of the country to which you may not normally go. I went on a tour sponsored by ACB which visited the site of the movie "The Bridges of Madison County." We saw the house which was the setting for the film, as well as three of the covered bridges. During the bus ride, a local tour guide gave us some of the colorful history of the area, and even sang to us! It was fun!!
I did strike out on my own one night and went to the Des Moines Symphony's concert at the capital and saw the fireworks for the 4th of July celebration. One thing about Des Moines is that the people are the friendliest I have ever met! Their hospitality, both at the convention and on the streets and skywalks, was something that they should be very proud of.
Well, I am sure there are several more pages I could write, but I will close by saying, if you want to find friends, have an adventure, learn something new, and generally have a great time, come to an ACB convention!! It will meet and exceed your expectations!!! See you all in Houston!
"Forty years ago, an organization was created out of dissent and disappointment. For many there was sadness at leaving friends behind, as well as a sense of vindication and elation that their principles would triumph. Tonight we come together to celebrate four decades of growth and accomplishment ... a year of progress as well as uncertainty, a year of consolidation and reform."
Edwards went on to discuss the FCC's adoption of the video description rule and lawsuits brought by the television industry and the NFB in an attempt to stop implementation of the rule.
"We expect to prevail," Edwards said, "because we are right."
On Sunday evening, as he drew toward the conclusion of the final convention address of his six-year tenure, Paul Edwards said, "I want to thank, particularly, Gayle Krause, my best friend, without whom I could not have done this job. She makes sure that I look good and supports me in so many other ways. She is my right hand and sometimes my left one too."
CAPTION: Sen. Tom Harkin of Iowa presents the keynote speech.
Harkin said, "I pledge to you that I will fight for the funding necessary to help every American who is blind to achieve independence."
In speaking about the Mi Casa legislation, introduced once again in this session of Congress, he said, "Money that comes through Medicaid should go directly to the individual who needs the health care."
About the progress that blind people and all people with disabilities have achieved because of laws like the ADA and IDEA, Harkin said, "We must never forget that prohibiting discrimination is not the same as ensuring equal opportunity. There is a great deal more to be done."
CAPTION: Cathie Skivers and Carl Augusto pose for the camera.
Augusto, CEO of the American Foundation for the Blind, said upon presenting CCB's Access Award to Skivers, who had been unable to attend the awards ceremony in March, "Cathie has been such a powerhouse within California, and within the ACB, and she has been such a part of the fight to make banking accessible to people who are blind and visually impaired, that we wanted to do it all over again."
"We chose to recognize a woman who was so courageous during the formation of ACB," Charlson said. "We recognize Marie Boring for her contributions as the first editor of 'The Braille Forum' in 1962."
Megivern read from the manuscript of the history of ACB: "In 1959," Megivern read and summarized, "Marie Boring expressed her obvious pleasure over the fact that all five of the officers of the North Carolina Federation were dedicated independents (i.e., that they voted not to side with the TenBroek- Jernigan group)." She had declined appointment to the original editorial board of the 'Free Press' because of her position as President of the North Carolina Federation but was still very much involved.
In fact, in her letter congratulating Hollis Liggett on his article as a real masterpiece, she acknowledged, "I shall probably be much more outspoken from now on than I was when I was president of the NCFB." She remarked in passing, "The latest phrase my parakeet has learned is to say, 'TenBroek must go!'"
On April 21, 1960, she wrote the fateful letter that initiated the whole process that got North Carolina thrown out of the Federation. She wrote, "...We could not accept a bill that conceded that blind workers are second- rate employees."
That's what got her thrown out.
On October 20, 1960, she wrote to Floyd Qualls to say that she was delighted with the latest issue of the "Free Press": "I had been a little apprehensive as to how Hollis would handle the North Carolina story, but he did a superb job."
She said she was still trying to figure out why TenBroek was so ruthless in his attacks against the women who would not fall at his feet. "Whatever the cause, it is obvious that he has a special fear of women who think for themselves..." The four she was referring to were herself, Juliet Bindt Esterly, M.J. (Hills) Schmitt, and Alma Murphey.
NABS more than tripled its membership during 2000-2001.
CAPTION: Paul Edwards presents David Armijo with a charter for the ACB of New Mexico.
In accepting the charter, Armijo thanked many who, through the Durward McDaniel fund, provided the financial assistance that allowed representatives of the new affiliate to attend their first ACB national convention.
Richard Bird told the audience, "We've been dealing with governments that are downsizing, restricted funding, and indifference from state licensing agencies ...We're still plagued by vocational rehabilitation departments that are more concerned about budgets than about employing blind people."
"Operating a vending facility," he continued with the authoritative voice of one who has been there, and done that: "Operating a vending facility gives you professional freedom and personal rewards."
"The program would not be what it is today without the direct support of ACB through the years," Bird and others on the panel concurred.
CAPTION: Richard Bird and Julie Carroll paused for a picture before going to their next meetings.
The future of the book is promising for people who cannot read standard print, says the panel. Jim Fruchterman, of Benetech, described Bookshare.org, an Internet site where people will be able to share their scanned books with anyone who wants to borrow them. William Jolley, Executive Director of the DAISY Consortium, came all the way from Australia to talk about the DAISY standard. "At the DAISY Consortium," Jolley said, "our vision is that all public information is available to people with disabilities at the same time and at no greater cost in an accessible, feature-rich, navigable format." (See the September 2001 Braille Forum for a reprint of the paper that Jolley presented.)
Kandace Foreman of Potomac Talking Book demonstrated a new technology that can allow a person reading a book to link to online sites for more information.
Mark Richert of the American Foundation for the Blind asked his listeners to imagine a world where every textbook would be available in an alternate format appropriate for each student's needs at the same time as it becomes available to sighted students. That day, he said, is within reach because of the collaborative efforts of blindness organizations, consumer groups, and textbook publishers working together in the Solutions Forum.
CAPTION: Photo of Frank Kurt Cylke, Director of NLS.
Frank Kurt Cylke, Director of the NLS, told the audience that the NLS will be providing digital books to blind patrons within seven years. Because the complexity of the delivery system in the USA has required the library service to move more slowly, Americans have had to wait longer than their blind and visually impaired counterparts in other parts of the developed world, Cylke said. "Our situation is this: We have 700,000 individuals who have Talking Book machines in their hands. We circulate 23 million books. It's a very, very complex problem to present to you a seamless library program and to make the change [to digital books]. It's absolutely irresponsible to begin to deliver books [now]. We have to provide the machines on which those books are played, and they're very expensive. The problem to us is a $153 million problem."
Which delivery mechanism will be selected for the NLS digital talking books is still under discussion. "I'm very impressed," Cylke said, "that the average NLS consumer is reading 35 books a year, while the average sighted American reads only about three books each year."
The AFB Careers and Technology Information Bank, maintained by Jay Leventhal, allows blind representatives of hundreds of professions to share with others the technologies and the techniques they use to get their jobs done. The Careers and Technology Information Bank get-together at each summer's ACB convention is a place for old friends to get together and career- seekers as well as counselors to meet blind professionals who are eager to share all the tricks of their trades.
More than 1,500 people attended this year's convention.
This kind of machine is already making accessible voting a reality for visually impaired voters in Texas, Colorado, and several other states.
CAPTION: ACB treasurer Pat Beattie presents her report to the convention.
During the course of the convention, ACB affiliates made contributions to the organization which totaled nearly $30,000. Beattie was delighted to receive each of these generous contributions.
"There is no excuse why every voting booth in America doesn't have an accessible voting machine," said Jim Dickson, of the American Association of People with Disabilities (AAPD). Dickson, along with Reeder, Brunson, and Culver, discussed access to voting for people who are blind and visually impaired and urged listeners to go home and advocate at the local level for independent verifiable voting systems accessible to all.
"ACB's national office is your instrument. It's your ability to focus in on issues and give us a mandate each year through our resolutions process, to make a difference in the lives of blind people by the actions we take at the national office. You have an opportunity not only in July but throughout the year to communicate with us and to help us help you by making sure that what we do meets the needs of this organization," Charlie Crawford, ACB Executive Director, told the convention.
"On local issues, the combination of whatever expertise we could lend from the national office and your talents and your dedication and your zeal at the local level is changing the face of your states," Crawford continued. "That is real. You are the power; we are the instrument. So don't let anyone tell you that this organization is either small or ineffectual. If they tell you that, suggest to them they join up and change the world with ACB!"
Crawford concluded, "Otis Stephens talked earlier this morning about an organization that doesn't look back but cares about the past, an organization that's in touch with itself in the present and an organization that's effective not only today but tomorrow. You are the reason for that. A big round of applause for everyone in ACB. Thanks!"
Karaoke Night was a fund-raiser for the Randolph-Sheppard Vendors of America.
"ACB communicates with our members and with the world through all our publications, including "The Braille Forum," the ACB web site, and ACB Radio," Charlson, chair of the board of publications, said. "We have so much to be proud of."
The Candidates' Forum, which takes place on the eve of each national election, is sponsored by the Board of Publications, and has been moderated for several years by Jay Doudna. This summer, more than two dozen questions were submitted by members and collected in the convention press room.
CAPTION: Brian Charlson listens intently to the question during the Candidates' Forum.
CAPTION: Chris Gray looks ahead to tomorrow's session before the forum.
CAPTION: Steve Speicher chuckles at a joke.
CAPTION: Kim Waegele, Enji Wu and Sarah Blake sing before the session on Friday morning.
CAPTION: Alan Beatty entertains the audience with a song about a squirrel in a church.
Beatty brought the house down with a similar rendition at the Tuesday evening FIA Showcase.
CAPTION: Ed Bradley and Chris Gray stand waiting for their cue at the banquet.
Skip Hayes, Julie Carroll, Billie Jean Keith, Terry Pacheco, Pat Beattie, Susan Crawford and Barbara Hayes ring their bells to encourage people to buy tickets. The raffle raised more than $7,500 to benefit ACB's scholarship program. $11,000 in prize money was given away. Winners included ACB of Maryland (4th prize); Yvonne Schnitzler (3rd prize); M. J. Schmitt and Jean Mann (who shared 2nd prize); and Karen Eisenstadt, the big winner of the $10,000 first prize. Tickets are already on sale for next year's big raffle, so see your affiliate president to purchase your own lucky tickets for the 2002 drawing in Houston.
Awardees:
CAPTION: Michael Richman presents John Taylor of Iowa with the George Card Award.
CAPTION: Dawn Christensen presents Sandy Sanderson with the Durward K. McDaniel Ambassador Award.
One of the more popular features of an ACB convention is the exhibit hall. It's the place to go to check out the latest in assistive technology, accessible pedestrian signals, and more.
CAPTION: Jonathan Mosen interviews an exhibitor at the Novax booth.
CAPTION: Paul Edwards and Gordon Dingle pose with a staff member at the Freedom Scientific booth.
Greetings to all members and friends of the American Council of the Blind. My name is Reese Robrahn. I was the first treasurer and the second president of ACB.
Since most of you probably haven't even heard the name, Reese Robrahn, I will give you some brief biographical information. In 1946, I graduated from law school and passed the Kansas bar. At the same time, I ran for the office of county attorney in my own county in Burlington, KS. But, after my first two-year term, my wife and I decided to move to Topeka, the capital city of Kansas. There I practiced law for a number of years, and ultimately ran for a position as judge. I served in that capacity for eight years, after which we moved to the Washington, DC area, where I came on staff with ACB, in charge of governmental affairs.
Now, I'm not going to talk much about why the founders of ACB left the National Federation of the Blind because you can read all about that in great detail in the History of ACB which will be published soon. I will only say this, that the founders finally came to the conclusion that it was an exercise in futility to continue to try to reform the National Federation of the Blind. You see, its leadership stated publicly that it believed that such an organization had to be conducted along the lines of a military establishment, and that every decision, every policy, all expenditure of funds, even those who should be elected to the board of directors, would come down from the top, from the headquarters, and that the troops were to comply submissively. If anyone dared to publicly criticize or disagree with the decisions that came from above, ways were found to punish the dissidents.
So, when ACB members wrote their constitution and bylaws, they put provisions there to guarantee the integrity of democratic procedures in ACB. A primary example of ACB's democracy can be found in the way we deal with our elections. Instead of giving each affiliate one vote, regardless of the size of the affiliate, the framers of ACB's constitution provided that an affiliate would have one vote for every 25 of its certified members, up to a total of 25 votes. In addition, and perhaps even more important -- was the fact that every ACB member who is personally present at a convention has the right to an individual vote on every matter brought before the electorate, including the elections [for board members and officers]. Those provisions have stood ACB in good stead in all of these years.
How many of you know the motto of ACB? It is: Promoting independence and effective participation in society. What better way is there to accomplish those ends than for visually impaired people to be employed, to engage in the professions or to become home-makers and raise families? Therefore, it was a natural evolutionary step for ACB to decide to admit special interest groups as affiliates, that is to say, groups of people who were bonded together because of employment or profession. Some of the earliest such affiliates were the American Blind Lawyers Association and the Visually Impaired Secretarial Transcribers' Association. I attribute this step taken by ACB as one of the sources of the rapid growth of the organization in the following years.
Of course, when ACB was first organized, the income of the organization was very, very limited. It came from dues from the affiliate members, from the few small gifts, and from the sale of greeting cards. Alma Murphey, from the Missouri organization, called me one day and told me that there was an organization in Kansas City which raised funds for an orphanage through the operation of thrift stores, which gathered used or unwanted clothing, and even some small household appliances, which were [then] sold in the thrift stores. Well, it was not long after contacting that organization that ACB entered into a contract with those people to operate similar thrift stores for ACB. And it was not long before the income of ACB began to grow tremendously. This [income] permitted ACB to establish a Washington, DC office and to employ a paid staff. It also made it possible for ACB to release "The Braille Forum" magazine in braille and on tape and in large print. It enabled ACB to really accomplish great things in the years that followed.
As president of ACB, I had the privilege of experiencing opportunities which I would never otherwise have been able to enjoy. I am talking about being designated as one of the United States delegates to the World Council for the Welfare of the Blind, which met one year in New Delhi, India, and in another year, in Moscow, USSR, with a sojourn out to Yerevan, Armenia. It provided me the opportunity to serve on a number of committees, and to be designated as a board member for the American Foundation for the Blind.
It provided me with the opportunity, as a staff member, to lead disabled people to a sit-in at the office of Joseph Califano, then the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Resources. This was to protest the refusal of the department to issue final regulations for the Rehabilitation Act of 1974, which contained civil rights provisions for disabled people in the federal government and in any agency that received federal financial assistance.
Well, after these regulations were adopted and published, I had the opportunity to participate in many, many workshops to educate disabled people on their civil rights under that act.
Now, I am going to digress a bit and move from the first decade of the existence of ACB to the period of time when I served on the staff of ACB. I decided, after seeing what could be accomplished with the civil rights provisions of the Rehabilitation Act of 1974, that perhaps the greatest thing that could be done for blind people and any disabled people would be to accomplish civil rights protections for disabled people throughout society. There's an organization in Washington, DC, known as the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights. This is a loosely knit organization comprised of many organizations, including women's groups, church groups, unions, the NAACP, Jewish groups, Hispanic groups, and the list goes on and on. I made it a point to start attending every meeting of that organization and to become acquainted with its leaders. I have reference to one leader, a lawyer in DC, a longtime civil rights leader Joe Raugh, and particularly to a black lawyer from Baltimore whose name was Clarence Mitchell. Clarence Mitchell marched in the years of great turmoil in Alabama and Mississippi, and was thrown in jail many times. In later years, Clarence Mitchell became so well known and so well liked around Capitol Hill, they frequently referred to him as "the 101st Senator." Clarence Mitchell was a gentle, soft-spoken person, but when he spoke, people listened. He was fond of reminding people that disability was no respecter of race, national origin, creed, gender, the rich or the poor.
During the first term of Ronald Reagan, the Voting Rights Act was coming up for re-enactment. Reagan was dragging his heels on the inclusion of some of the provisions of the existing act, and he objected to the inclusion of some new provisions being proposed. Therefore, the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights planned and organized a rally on Capitol Hill. It was reported that the rally involved about 250,000 people. I was one of 10 people chosen to speak to that throng of people, and, as I sat on the platform with my wife, awaiting my turn to speak, the full realization came upon me that, yes, at last, all of the civil rights groups were supportive of achieving civil rights for disabled people throughout society. So, about eight years later, the Americans with Disabilities Act was adopted by Congress and signed by the President, and I don't think that would have been possible without the support of the civil rights community that had been represented on that platform that day.
Now, I'm going to digress further to tell you about the time that the Iowa people decided to form an organization to become affiliated with ACB. The word got around of the place of the meeting, the date and the time. Also, the word got around that members of the National Federation of the Blind were going to crash the meeting and disrupt it to the point that there could not be any organizational business carried on. Well, the planners of the meeting employed a retired policeman to guard the door, and he was instructed to admit only those people who had a card proving their right to enter, to join the group inside. While the NFB people on the outside were making a lot of noise, the meeting progressed on the inside, and in a relatively short time, an organization was created. And it was decided at the conclusion of the meeting, that we would throw open the doors and invite the National Federation of the Blind people on the outside to join us in some refreshments (soft drinks, coffee and cookies). We did that, and I'll have to confess that I did not hear one loud or unpleasant discussion from those interlopers! They were completely taken by surprise.
Thank you very much for permitting me to talk with you this morning. There is much, much more to tell, but I'm already over time. I hope that all of you have a learning experience here, that you have a great time and a great convention. Thank you again.
Every decade in the history of the American Council of the Blind was unique and included many important events in the development of the ACB and its effectiveness as an organization. My reflections are going to be based on my own memory and a little bit of historic investigation in terms of digging through some of the tables of contents in "The Braille Forum."
I'm going to begin by breaking the era down into major events that happened during that time. For example, the first part of ACB's history, beginning in 1970, was devoted to rapid growth within the American Council of the Blind. That was followed by the establishment of a sound financial base, in order to have continued existence and effective programs. Then we moved on to expand our organization into a multi-faceted organization, expanding to look effectively into a wide variety of legislative and advocacy issues, and to take part in the then-growing coalition movement. Finally, changes took place as the American Council of the Blind moved from an organization which, because of its history, did tend to look back a bit, to an organization with the introduction of new leadership that, while still looking at our origins, moved us to become an organization that looked more into the future. This era was marked by the introduction to leadership of people who had not been part of the civil war within the National Federation of the Blind.
In 1970, a "Braille Forum" article indicated that, with the acceptance of Alabama, the American Council of the Blind had reached the point where it had 23 affiliates. A scant seven years later, ACB had its 50th affiliate. That growth continued on well into the 1980s and certainly is continuing to this very day.
In the '80s, growth took on a slightly different nature, in that we admitted reorganized affiliates, some of which were former affiliates of the NFB -- such as California, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Washington, and others.
Part of the rapid growth of the American Council of the Blind from the late 1960s and on into the 1970s and '80s, came about through the notion of special-interest affiliates -- organizations which were not bounded by geography but were, instead, based on some common interest of the members. We had teachers, lawyers, secretaries, computer programmers, students, the list goes on.
I was never a member of the National Federation of the Blind myself, and therefore, I was not involved or close to the difficulties which the founders of this organization had. I came into the American Council of the Blind in late 1969, because I was invited to come as a speaker. This technique was used quite a bit by Durward McDaniel, the national representative of the organization at the time; he would invite people to have contact with the organization in some other capacity and in the process to become interested in ACB. It was a very effective technique.
I had been asked to speak in my then capacity as president of the American Blind Bowling Association, and coincidentally, I was also asked to attend a meeting of blind lawyers who were thinking about forming an organization, to deal with the unique and common problems of blind lawyers. Indeed, ABLA was formed after that meeting in Charlotte, N.C., and I attended the meetings of that association for the next several years.
In those days, the special-interest affiliates met during the first half of [convention] week; we would adjourn and then the general sessions would take place during the second half of the week. I decided, after a few years, that since I had to go to wherever the national convention happened to be taking place anyway, I might as well stay and attend the organizational meetings of the ACB.
As I became more interested in ACB as an organization, I assisted the then very small national staff with convention planning. I also served as the chairman of the budget committee. In those days, the budget was very small, it wasn't prepared ahead of time, so it was necessary at the board meetings to sit up until the wee hours of the morning, working in braille, to come up with figures to make a budget respectably balanced -- not to exceed, say, $100,000.
In 1978, I was nominated for the position of president. I was elected in a contested election, the other candidate being one of the original members of the organization. The term that I served was an unusual one in that it was three years. I entered the presidency in 1978, and in 1980, the constitution and bylaws committee introduced an amendment to make our elections staggered. In order to implement this new rule, the terms of the officers were extended one year, in order to get this [new] process started, so that meant I was scheduled to stay in office until 1981.
During the late 1970s as our growth slowed somewhat and the ACB became interested in a wider variety of issues, one of the areas it turned to was taking part in the then emerging coalition movement. As a result, the ACB joined with the American Coalition of Citizens with Disabilities, the Affiliated Leadership League, the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights, the Save our Security Coalition, and we took on much work in conjunction with the National Accreditation Council (NAC). The National Accreditation Council was opposed very fiercely by the National Federation of the Blind, the apparent reason being, in fact, that the NAC was not controlled by the Federation.
In 1978, we took a major step forward with the thrift store-generated income. We did not own the thrift stores, although our name was being used. We had very little authority in the management of the stores, but it was essential for us to be able to monitor our interests to make sure we were getting what we were entitled to. In order to do that the ACB formed a separate entity, the American Council of the Blind Enterprises and Services (ACBES). One of the first steps this newly formed organization took was to hire a recently blinded CPA from the Minneapolis area named James Olsen. He had served as a volunteer for ACBES before that, and he came on board as a professional staffperson. Ladies and gentlemen, I say frankly, over the years, Jim Olsen has been worth millions to this organization.
At the time I became more active in the ACB, I was serving on the staff of the Small Business Administration in Washington, DC. In 1981, when Durward McDaniel retired from his position as the national representative for ACB, I was asked by the search committee to consider the position for myself, and I made the decision to make a profound career change, to come to work for this growing organization. During subsequent years, the ACB continued to forge relationships with other blindness groups internationally, and it was my pleasure to take part in the committee that negotiated the merger of the World Council with the International Federation of the Blind, to form the World Blind Union.
I'm going to conclude my presentation by just running through some of the topics I have found to be covered in the pages of "The Braille Forum" for those years. Do some of these sound familiar?:
"Free Matter Threatened; Internal Revenue Service Establishes Program for Hiring Blind Workers; The Braille Forum on Cassette; Sports Achievements for the Blind; Blind Children in Public Schools; The ACB Hospital Indemnity Plan; Blind People as Jurors; The Adding of a Legislative Specialist (as ACB developed a staff); Curb Cuts and Blind Pedestrians; Audible Traffic Signals; The Amendment of the Rehabilitation Act (and the delay in issuing regulations); Amendment of the Wagner-O'Day Act (to become the Javits-Wagner- O'Day Act); Federal Aviation Regulations (concerning the transportation of disabled people); Suit by the American Council of the Blind to Enforce Regulations under the Randolph-Sheppard Act; the list goes on and on and on...
"The Cane Mutiny in the Friendly Skies:" That was the title given to an article by Kathleen Megivern on the subject of canes on airplanes. And, another --"There Must Be a Better Way to Conduct ACB Elections" by Robert McLean, and there are many others...
Ladies and gentlemen, it's an ongoing process indeed. Every term, every decade is unique. What's happening has been a wonderful part of my life and still continues to be a wonderful part of my life. I have enjoyed it, and I hope that those who have been connected with ACB have received the [same kinds of] benefits and the pride that I have.
I would just like to say at the outset of my remarks that I was recruited into this organization by people like Jack Lewis of Georgia and Ned Freeman, who was a good friend of mine back in the 1960s when I was teaching at Georgia Southern College in Statesboro, Ga. For about 34 years now, I have been at the University of Tennessee, and I attended my first national convention in 1973, which was held in Knoxville.
Although the history of a dynamic organization like the American Council of the Blind can't be neatly compartmentalized into individual decades, we recognize distinct aspects of change, growth, accomplishment and challenge that mark the 1960s, '70s, '80s, and '90s, and now the new millennium. You heard from Reese Robrahn about the early years of ACB, the challenges associated with the founding of a new national organization and the aftermath of a bitter internal conflict that fundamentally divided the National Federation of the Blind, a conflict that could not be resolved in spite of determined efforts by many people. You heard from Oral Miller about the dynamic growth of ACB in the 1970s and its progress toward financial stability.
CAPTION: LeRoy Saunders leans over to give Otis Stephens some news.
By the beginning of the 1980s, ACB had moved from an organization maintained and operated entirely by volunteers, the membership, to a unique entity still governed by its members, but supported and to an increasing degree, represented by professional staff, which by 1980 had permanent offices in Washington, DC, Rochester, NY, and Minneapolis, MN. By the time of Durward McDaniel's retirement and Oral Miller's appointment as national representative in 1981, the national office staff had expanded beyond one professional and a secretary, to include a director of governmental affairs, and additional support personnel. "The Braille Forum," edited by Mary Ballard, was produced in her home office in Rochester, N.Y. The Forum staff consisted of Mary and two part-time assistants, and by this time, it was being published in braille, in large print, and on cassette, on a monthly basis. Jim Olsen administered ACBES, with the assistance of a small staff in the Minneapolis office. The success of the thrift stores, following the creation of ACBES in 1978, enabled ACB to continue to expand its professional and support staff, and its services, well into the 1980s. In addition, ACB in 1981, inaugurated the Floyd Qualls Memorial Scholarship program. Floyd Qualls was a very popular ACB president, as many of you will remember, and on his death, there was a strong impulse to establish the scholarship program, and you see how it has grown since that time. We witnessed yesterday the ongoing growth and success of the scholarship initiative which was begun 20 years ago at the national convention in St. Louis.
During the 1980s we greatly expanded our advocacy efforts. I can give you just a couple of examples because of the limitations on time: Many of you will remember the success of the "Playboy" magazine litigation, in which ACB championed the First Amendment rights of blind persons to obtain braille publications without interference from censors who apparently thought it was their responsibility to protect us against artistic expression which they thought inappropriate for our delicate sensibilities -- the kind of paternalism that we had fought against in so many areas of our lives. ACB also initiated, in collaboration with the Randolph-Sheppard Vendors of America, a number of lawsuits aimed at retaining the integrity of the Randolph-Sheppard Act and its long-recognized priority for blind vendors. The suit against McDonald's was initiated in 1987 and it marked a major commitment on ACB's part toward ensuring the employment rights of blind vendors.
We became active in the negotiated rule-making process, better known as reg-neg, in the late '80s, through our active participation in administrative hearings held in conjunction with the formulation of regulations designed to implement air-carrier access legislation. We made it clear in those hearings, and Charlie Hodge and I, and Oral Miller participated pretty actively in those hearings, that, while we opposed the demand for exit row seating of blind persons on commercial flights, we strongly supported the rights of blind air travelers. We urged more uniform training of airline personnel, to enable them to provide efficient assistance to blind persons who request it, and to avoid undue restrictions on the options available to blind airline passengers. Our concerns were heard and did exert influence on the regulations that were adopted in the late 1980s.
In 1981, with the appointment of Oral Miller as national representative, ACB elected Grant Mack as president of our organization. I served as first vice president during Grant's six years as president, having served previously as a member of the board of directors. Grant had also served a short period of time on the board of directors before he was elected as president. We had great national conventions during that period, as many of you will remember: St. Louis in 1981, with the great tribute to Durward McDaniel upon the occasion of his retirement; Atlanta in 1982, with some terrific entertainment and some lively elections; Phoenix in 1983; Philadelphia. Remember the "Ring the bell for Philadelphia," that Mae Davidow gave us in 1984? Las Vegas in 1985, one of the best attended conventions we ever had; Knoxville in 1986; Los Angeles in 1987, another huge convention. Little Rock in 1988; and Richmond in 1989. Just one measure of the growth of ACB from the early 1970s into the mid and late 1980s is seen in the fact that, when we held our national convention in Knoxville in 1973, almost all those attending were housed in the Hyatt Regency Hotel, one hotel, with only a small number of people staying in the old Andrew Johnson Hotel nearby; in 1986, by contrast, ACB required four hotels, including the Hyatt, the Hilton, the Holiday Inn, and the Radisson, with shuttle service between the hotels. To me, that was a graphic illustration of the growth of this organization.
Grant Mack was an energetic and innovative president. As many of you know, Grant became blind in middle age and moved very quickly, almost without missing a beat, from driving his own automobile to traveling with his own guide dog. He remained active as an insurance executive in Salt Lake City following his loss of eyesight. He also learned braille. He used to carry braille books around with him on trips, just for pleasure reading, and he used braille extensively, thereby demonstrating vividly the practical value of braille, not only for people who had used it all their lives, but for newly blinded adults as well.
Now it's important to point out that the 1980s were not free of problems for ACB. The thrift store income, so important for the ongoing operation of ACB programs and services, is somewhat influenced by economic trends. It seems that the stronger our national economy, the weaker the performance of thrift stores. It's not an absolute rule, but there does seem to be some parallel. So, as we experienced prosperity in the mid-1980s, thrift store performance began to lag. By this time also, ACB had added a lot of staff; we had as many as nine full-time employees working in the national office during this time. We had begun to conduct national leadership seminars, both in Washington, and regionally, for our members. We had begun to try to provide limited financial assistance to a few of our affiliates. All of these factors contributed to a financial crisis that came upon us in the mid-1980s. Many of you will remember how difficult that period was. It was regrettably necessary for the officers and board of directors to impose severe cuts in ACB operations, including salary and working hours reductions for core professional staff and lay-offs of some support staff. The professional staff members, moreover, like Scott Marshall, Barbara Nelson, Laura Oftedahl, left the national office for more attractive positions elsewhere, and their positions were not filled. By the time of my election as president at the Los Angeles convention in 1987, the national office had been reduced to three professional staff members, Oral Miller, Roberta Douglas, and Stephanie Cooper, with very limited secretarial supports.
By this time, Oral Miller was performing the general duties of national representative and also the duties previously performed by Scott Marshall, as director of governmental affairs. Oral also served, de facto, as legal advisor to the organization on matters of bequests, preparation of amicus briefs, development of litigation strategy and so on.
Roberta Douglas became our director of development. We undertook many initiatives during this period, including the resumption of a national membership fund-raising letter which many of you responded to in great fashion; the development of corporate grant proposals, and we began to get some of those grants in the late '80s; and participation in the Combined Federal Campaign, through which federal employees designate portions of their charitable contributions to specific non-profit organizations. At one time during these critical years, ACB received close to $100,000 through the Combined Federal Campaign.
Our board of directors actively supported these efforts, and one of our members, Ken Morlock of Ohio, served very capably as a volunteer as chair of our development committee. In addition, ACB borrowed money from affiliates that were very generous in coming forth with the needed funds. We also borrowed from individual members and their families. These organizations and individuals took notes and within a relatively short time were fully repaid with interest.
But this strong evidence of support by our affiliates, by our members and friends, together with the several fund-raising initiatives, did make it possible for us to move out from the financial doldrums toward the end of the decade of the 1980s, and to begin to restore ACB services. By the late 1980s, we had seen a turn-around, but things were not where they should have been.
Tomorrow you will hear from LeRoy Saunders, who served as ACB president from 1989 to 1995. He will tell you about ACB's very important decision early in the decade of the 1990s to terminate its association with the Arlis- Henderson Management Company and to take full control of the management of our thrift stores. That was a major step.
So, as you can see, the decade of the 1980s was one of great progress, serious challenge, temporary setback, and later, resurgence for ACB. Through this period of financial adversity, ACB, I am convinced, became a more unified organization. Our determination was tested and, I'm pleased to say with confidence, that we passed that test.
Paul Edwards served as first vice president during my single term as president. He continued in that position until his election as president in 1995, and LeRoy Saunders, who served as treasurer during my two-year term, was elected president in 1989. So, you see, the leadership of the organization is ongoing and is building year by year, term by term.
Let me say in closing that I have always regarded it as a great honor and privilege to take part in the vital work of ACB. This is a great organization that has faced and effectively met many challenges. It has contributed significantly to bettering the lives of thousands of blind persons, down through the years. I am confident that ACB will continue to meet these challenges and to represent blind people in a positive and constructive way in the new millennium.
I want to tell you, from the outset, that nobody makes things happen without other people helping, and a lot of the time, it's impossible to recognize all the people that have assisted you. But I want you to know that, as I go through a few of the things that we accomplished during my six years, it took a good board who was willing to support me and give me the opportunity to do some things, it took an excellent staff in the Washington office, it took over a hundred people who served on committees to get our job done.
First, I want to tell you about my becoming president. Being president of this organization was not on my agenda. I'm a person who really prefers to work behind the scenes, not necessarily out in front, and I was shocked when Otis Stephens called me and said, "LeRoy, I'm not going to run for another term because of various reasons, and I want you to run for president."
I said, "Otis, I don't want that job."
He said, "I know. But I think you'll do a good job."
Well, the next thing I knew, a few other people started to encourage me, and so, consequently, I did throw my hat into the ring.
I think that I was the first low-vision person to be president of this organization. And I can tell you that there were some people out there who did think I saw too well to be president, but I told them the job didn't pay enough for me to put on a blindfold when I went to work!
The ironic part of that is that I think I was also the first ACB president to start sending out both braille and large print to everybody that I corresponded with. And, of course, later I was able to add cassettes, and computer disks.
The first thing I had to do as president was to find a new editor. Mary Ballard had decided to stop serving as editor, and at the time, Chris Gray was chair of the BOP, so we had a search committee made up of Chris, and Paul Edwards and myself, and we hired Nolan Crabb in the early winter after I became president.
Money was short at that time and that certainly affected lots of things, but I did, gradually, start to get the office computerized. We did have a Romeo, and I bought a Juliet, so the office could begin to send things out in alternate formats as well.
Later on, when money became available, I could get more professional staffpersons hired in the national office. Two people, in particular, that I think really did an excellent job for us were Paul Schroeder and Julie Carroll.
I can tell you that one of my proudest moments as president of ACB was the celebration of the first year of the Americans with Disabilities Act. I was standing out there on the lawn in front of the White House, and they were introducing the people that were up on the podium -- the dignitaries, I guess you would say -- and, of course, they were cabinet people. And, out of the clear blue sky, they introduced Paul Schroeder.
I was able to reinstitute the presidents' meetings which had been discontinued because of funding shortages. I had the first meeting in Oklahoma City, where I did something a little different. I got out the database, and I searched for how many people received "The Braille Forum" in each state. Then, I compared that number to the number representing the membership for each state. And I let the presidents know that they weren't doing a very good job at recruiting members if the number of "Braille Forum" subscriptions was substantially larger than that for membership.
One of the things that was suggested, first, as I remember it, by Steve Speicher, was the idea of creating a long-range plan. Steve said, "You know, we really need to sit down and do some strategy work to put this organization in a position to know where it's headed."
I went to the board of directors and got authorization to do that. I had quotes from different consultants who do that kind of thing and hired a person named Bob Behrendt. It took us a couple of years, and I put together nine people who represented a cross-section of the organization. We reported constantly to the board of directors, and our final draft was presented to the board before we presented one for actual approval by the whole organization, so they could have input and we could capture that input and make changes accordingly. In Greensboro, N.C., this long-range plan was accepted, and we made the change of creating the position of executive director.
We have followed that original plan to a great extent, and it surely has helped us.
Also, we put together a history committee and hired Jim Megivern, who is here. I was so pleased when I heard that we have signed the contract for its publication.
I was fortunate in that I could make a couple of trips to foreign countries, and Oral Miller was the one who really got these set up. We went to Japan, and to Russia, and to Germany. And, folks, if I hadn't been president of this organization, I probably would not have had the opportunity to do that kind of traveling.
I worked with the World Blind Union as well. Just before Otis Stephens left the position of president, Kenneth Jernigan set up a group called the Joint Organization Effort (JOE). When Otis had reviewed this with the board, they were not at a point where they would let us become involved. But, eventually, the board did allow me to represent us at those meetings, and Otis also went along. I think the real outcome of that was that we were able to persuade other people who were members of the North American/Caribbean Section of the WBU that ACB was, in fact, a viable organization. And, believe it or not -- and it really shocked one particular person --we won quite a few votes in that organization.
Let me just say to you that I, personally, thoroughly enjoyed being president of this organization. I felt like my main expertise was in administration, and I tried to use that to make some things happen that hadn't happened before. Without all of the help that I got, I couldn't have done it. The thing I enjoyed most about being president was the people.
I didn't really enjoy running the meetings, so I let the officers do it. While they were doing that, I was out talking to people. And that's what I thoroughly enjoyed doing.
Ladies and gentlemen, it was a true pleasure being president of this organization.
From the close of its 2000 national convention in Louisville, Ky., through its 2001 national convention in Des Moines, Iowa, ACB proudly welcomed in to the ranks of its honor roll of life members a bumper crop of 22 new ACB life members. Half of this impressive number of new life members can be accounted for through the generous actions of two of ACB's affiliates, the Randolph-Sheppard Vendors of America (RSVA), and the Virginia Association of the Blind (VAB). RSVA honored its current president and five of its former presidents with ACB life memberships. The recipients were: Terry J. Camardelle of Harvey, La., RSVA's current president, and former RSVA presidents Raymond Washburn of Oklahoma City, Okla., George Abbott of Rockville, Md., Gene Hiesler of Grandview, Texas, Wally Menning of Salem, Ore., and Homer Steele of Marshall, Ill., whose ACB life membership plaque was presented shortly before his untimely death in late July 2001.
VAB honored five of its key members with ACB life memberships. They were Terrie Hepler of Chesapeake, Ron Hepler of Chesapeake, Ezekiel Hinant of Portsmouth, Christine Cutchins of Virginia Beach, and Dave Benjamin of Portsmouth. The Mississippi Council of the Blind honored its former president, Michael Smitherman of Jackson, and longtime stalwart member, Howard Stevens of Gulfport, with ACB life memberships. Howard Stevens had been presented his ACB life membership plaque shortly prior to his untimely death in late May 2001.
At its ACB Day festivities in April 2001, the Badger Association of the Blind proudly presented its member and former ACB national secretary, Karen Perzentka of Madison, with her ACB life membership plaque. Several chapters of the Tennessee Council of the Blind in conjunction with a group of anonymous friends purchased and presented an ACB life membership plaque to Dot Taylor of Memphis.
In addition, several individuals purchased their own ACB life memberships. In his capacity as dedicated and loving husband, ACB's executive director and life member, Charlie Crawford, purchased and presented to his wife, Susan H. Crawford of Silver Spring, Md., her new ACB life membership plaque. Two longtime ACB friends and colleagues from South Dakota, Dawn (Brush) Flewwellin of Aberdeen and Rochelle Foley of Sioux Falls, met their mutual challenge to each other by purchasing their own ACB life memberships in the same year. Similarly, a well-known ACB married couple, Marcia (Nigro) Dresser of West Hartford, Conn., and her husband, Stephen A. Dresser, purchased life memberships for one another. And last but not least, Martin Lee Sr. of Philadelphia, Pa., and Karey Karkalits of Fort Myers, Fla., stepped forward to purchase their own ACB life memberships.
The honor roll of ACB life members has now, with these 22 new additions included, grown to a total of 154, an ever-growing and impressive total. As a life member myself, I wish to gratefully thank all of the affiliates who honored their important key members with life memberships as well as all of those individuals who showed their dedication to ACB's goals and objectives by stepping forward and meeting the challenge by becoming life members at their own expense.
We as ACB life members look forward with great anticipation to another bumper crop of new ACB life members joining our ranks in the upcoming year.
CAPTION: Paul Edwards presents Dot Taylor with her life membership certificate.
CAPTION: Janice Gable and Dot Taylor kiss Paul Edwards in thanks for their life memberships.
Thank you for allowing Bank of America to showcase their Talking ATM at the 40th annual convention of the American Council of the Blind in Des Moines, Iowa this past July. We appreciated the overwhelming positive response our Talking ATM received. This event allowed us to solicit and receive comments from a diverse group of users with a wide range of ATM experiences. We sincerely appreciated all of the comments we received. We understand that customer feedback is critical to ensuring that we continue to meet the needs of our customers. Among other learnings and insights we have gained, our Des Moines experiences have reinforced to us that an accurate audible ATM tutorial is critical to providing independent access to Talking ATMs.
Thank you again for sharing this experience with us. We hope to have the opportunity to participate at the 41st annual convention in 2002.
(Editor's Note: This publication reflects adopted ACB resolutions only. ACB resolutions which were referred, tabled, or withdrawn are not included in this publication. This accounts for the missing numbers.)
Resolution 2001-01 urges state affiliates of the American Council of the Blind to work with their state insurance commissioners and state legislatures to insure availability of automobile liability insurance for blind automobile owners at competitive rates. Staff is directed to assist with implementation.
Resolution 2001-02 commends the staff of the American Council of the Blind (ACB) for opposing those judicial nominees whose records indicate a strong likelihood that their judicial decisions would be detrimental to the civil rights of Americans who are blind or visually impaired, and cites the nomination of Jeffrey D. Sutton to the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit as an example of a recent nomination which ACB finds it necessary to oppose.
Resolution 2001-03 directs that the ACB 2002 convention program include a general session program item addressing the issues of Braille unification.
Resolution 2001-04 supports the passage of S.928, and promotes development and passage of either amendments to S.928 or a separate bill modeled on the concept and language of S.928 which will redress the negative impact of the Supreme Court's Garrett decision by requiring that state governments receiving federal financial assistance must, as a condition of entitlement to receive such assistance, affirmatively consent to being sued in federal court for money damages for alleged violations of Title I of the ADA.
Resolution 2001-06 calls on the Rehabilitation Services Administration (RSA) of the U.S. Department of Education and the National Council of State Agencies for the Blind (NCSAB) to bring to the attention of the White House and the Domestic Policy Council, the unacceptable conduct of Department of Veterans Affairs personnel in failing to comply with the priority provisions of the Randolph-Sheppard Act as amended by forestalling implementation of management directive 7632. The resolution also calls upon state affiliates of ACB to demand that state licensing agencies for blind vendors apply for permits to operate vending facilities in appropriate and economically viable VA locations.
Resolution 2001-07 notes that ACB has adopted 13 principles for rehabilitation which it urges the Rehabilitation Services Administration, and the state agencies that receive federal funding from the RSA, to adopt; demands that Joanne M. Wilson, who is President Bush's nominee for the post of Commissioner of RSA, actively support the 13 principles as a part of her confirmation process, and in the event Ms. Wilson will not agree to the 13 principles, directs that ACB oppose the confirmation of Ms. Wilson.
Resolution 2001-10 notes that the staff of ACB has undertaken to draft a proposed model state law which would provide waiver of the state's Eleventh Amendment immunity, and compel the state to consent to be sued for money damages in actions brought under Title I of the Americans with Disabilities Act, and calls upon ACB's state affiliates to seek introduction, and passage, of the proposed model state law, in their respective states.
Resolution 2001-11 commends the adoption of strong disability access standards which include rigorous requirements for information access and other technology-based access accommodations for people who are blind or visually impaired, and encourages aggressive monitoring of the complaint investigation, determination, and enforcement processes required of the various federal procuring agencies affected by the new 508 regulations.
Resolution 2001-12 urges state affiliates of the American Council of the Blind, and their chapters, to initiate ongoing dialogue with county election supervisors, county commissioners, state election officials, secretaries of state, and, when appropriate, state legislators, for the purpose of making changes to insure that accessible voting systems are available in all precincts; and adopts principles setting forth standards for private, independent, and verifiable ballots.
Resolution 2001-13 thanks the Association of American Publishers (AAP) for its partnership and cooperation in achieving consensus and agreement concerning federal legislation which would increase access to elementary and secondary school textbooks and related instructional materials by students with disabilities, and supports passage of the legislation.
Resolution 2001-14 promotes the purpose and value of Section 255 of the Telecommunications Act of 1996 and offers the assistance of the American Council of the Blind to its members and affiliates in filing appropriate complaints when telecommunications equipment and services are inaccessible.
Resolution 2001-15 seeks the cooperation and assistance of the National Association of Insurance Commissioners in drafting and disseminating model legislation to all 50 states, which would prohibit discrimination on the basis of blindness in determining eligibility for, and cost of, long-term care insurance, and disability insurance.
Resolution 2001-16 urges Congress to amend existing copyright law to expand the exemption categories set forth in the Chaffee amendment to include large print as a valid specialized format.
Resolution 2001-17 expresses ACB's support for the Medicare Vision Rehabilitation Services Act of 2001, and sets forth enhancements to the legislation recommended by ACB.
Resolution 2001-18 commends the ACB Advocacy Services Committee and the ACB staff for their efforts to protect the rights of Americans who are blind or visually impaired to receive "equally effective communications" through descriptive video services (DVS) and reaffirms ACB's decision to commit time and resources to pursue litigation relevant to the protection of these rights.
Resolution 2001-19 outlines changes which ACB will include in its legislative strategy to incorporate into the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act during its re-authorization.
Resolution 2001-20 supports efforts by the International Federation of Guide Dog Schools to advocate for reasonable exemptions, such as those in place in Hawaii, Australia and New Zealand, to permit guide dogs with appropriate identification, regardless of their country of origin, to accompany their blind handlers into, and out of, the United Kingdom.
Resolution 2001-21 promotes adoption by the Department of Justice of an amended definition within ADA regulations clarifying the role of animals trained to perform physical tasks to mitigate a person's disability, and places ACB on record as joining with a number of other advocacy organizations to educate the general public concerning the role of "assistance animals" as well as the rights and responsibilities of their handlers under the ADA.
Resolution 2001-23 supports legislation which mandates that all states must provide, with all deliberate speed, access to private, independent and verifiable ballots for persons who have disabilities, whether the state accepts federal funds for the modernization of election systems and procedures.
Resolution 2001-24 urges the National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped to convene a task force, which will explore promotional and training avenues to keep the art of transcription of musical notation into Braille alive and growing, and requests that two special interest affiliates of the American Council of the Blind, the Braille Revival League and Friends in Art of ACB, assist ACB and NLS in bringing other major Braille transcription groups into the process of increasing the amount of braille music available.
Resolution 2001-25 notes that RSA distributed a letter requiring impartiality in implementation of training required under the Randolph- Sheppard Act, to all RSA Regional Directors, State Licensing Agency Directors, and grantee universities, and calls upon the Secretary of the United States Department of Education and the Assistant Secretary for Special Education and Rehabilitation Services to investigate and take appropriate action with respect to the practices of the Rehabilitation Services Administration in its management of programs and its application of policies as they relate to the Randolph-Sheppard Program.
Resolution 2001-26 supports the definition of active participation proposed by the Randolph-Sheppard Vendors of America to the National Council of State Agencies for the Blind and the Rehabilitation Services Administration.
Resolution 2001-27 places ACB on record as not endorsing the Unified English Braille Code (UEBC) until satisfied that wide-ranging input has been received, considered and evaluated from consumers in North America, opposes adoption of the UEBC if proposed for adoption at the 2003 quadrennial meeting of the International Council on English Braille (ICEB), suggests that the adoption of the UEBC should be postponed until the ICEB's 2007 quadrennial meeting, and urges the board of the ICEB to consider papers prepared by Abraham Nemeth and Christopher Gray, and review the proposals of the Universal Braille System (UBS), before making a decision on a unified code.
Resolution 2001-28 creates a Task Force on Accessible Voting to assist the members of the American Council of the Blind by developing and implementing strategies to insure that people who are blind or visually impaired will have access to a private, independent, and verifiable ballot, and prescribes make-up, duties and timeliness for the task force.
Resolution 2001-29 strongly asserts that, while blindfold training should be an option for blindness rehabilitation training, it should not be a mandatory requirement in all cases, and the refusal to consent to training under blindfold should not automatically result in the termination of facility-based rehabilitation training.
Resolution 2001-30 wholeheartedly thanks and commends the host committee for its fine work in hosting the 2001 ACB national convention.
Resolution 2001-31 expresses thanks and appreciation for the services and accommodations provided to ACB members during the 2001 ACB national convention by the downtown Des Moines hotels, the Polk County Convention Center, the City of Des Moines, and the Des Moines Police Department.
Resolution 2001-32 expresses ACB's appreciation to all volunteers who worked to assist the attendees of the 2001 ACB national convention.
The hotel in Houston is the Adam's Mark, located at 2900 Briarpark Drive, Houston, TX 77042. The reservation number is (800) 444-2326. The rate is $65 per night plus tax for single and double, and $75 per night plus tax for triple and quad rooms. The overflow hotel is the Westchase Hilton and Towers, located diagonally across the street from the Adam's Mark. The room rate is also $65 per night plus tax. The phone number is (713) 974-1000.
The dates for the convention are Saturday, June 29 to Saturday, July 6, 2002. The winter meetings are February 16-18.
PRESIDENT
CHRISTOPHER GRAY
94 RAMONA AVE.
SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94103
FIRST VICE PRESIDENT
STEPHEN SPEICHER
825 M ST., SUITE 216
LINCOLN, NE 68508
SECOND VICE PRESIDENT
M.J. SCHMITT
1027 DUNLOP AVE
FOREST PARK, IL 60130
SECRETARY
DONNA SELIGER
3912 SE 5TH ST
DES MOINES, IA 50315
TREASURER
ARDIS BAZYN
500 S. 3RD ST. #H
BURBANK, CA 91502
IMMEDIATE PAST PRESIDENT
Paul Edwards
20330 NE 20th Ct.
Miami, FL 33179