A Response to Colleen Roth, "Are Conservatives Welcome in the National Federation of the Blind?" Braille Monitor, January 2022
by Albert Elia
From the Editor: Albert Elia is a former scholarship winner who has taken to our cause and now works as part of a legal team that routinely and superbly defends the rights of blind people. He read Colleen Roth’s article, and though he wants to assure her that conservatives are indeed needed and welcome in the NFB, he stresses that our Federation is concerned more with our behavior than our beliefs. In all of this writing, when we go below the 30,000-foot level, we find that the difficulty is indeed in the detail. My hope is that, in working through the detail, we come to a place of tolerance and understanding, a tolerance that doesn’t depend solely on the movement of others but on our own kindness and respect for the frailty of being humans. Our Code of Conduct indeed mandates how we will behave toward others. Its spirit is to bring about an environment of tolerance and acceptance; only as a last resort is it punitive. Here is what Al has to say:
I agree wholeheartedly with Ms. Roth’s opening in her article in the January 2022 Braille Monitor, wherein she states that she believes “we should all treat each other with respect and welcome those who join with us.” However, in my opinion she goes on to state that she will not treat some members with the same respect that she treats others, and that is where the NFB draws the line regarding its expectations of the conduct of its members and leaders.
According to Ms. Roth’s article, she is “a very traditional Roman Catholic.” She indicates that because same-sex marriage “is not in keeping with the scriptures” she follows, she would refuse to introduce a same-sex couple as married at a Federation event. That is certainly her choice, but assuming Ms. Roth is in the habit of introducing married couples who are not part of a protected class, as a member and leader of the NFB who has pledged to uphold the NFB’s Code of Conduct, she must recognize that making that choice could disqualify her from leadership and may result in her sanction by the NFB. She would face similar sanction should she refuse to introduce a civilly-married mixed Catholic/Jewish opposite-sex couple as married on the grounds that such a marriage is invalid under Canon law. See Canons 1086 (invalidity of marriage between Catholic and non-baptized person), 1108 and 1125 (requirement of ecclesiastic celebrant and explicit permission by bishop for validity). In either case, she would be in violation of Section IV of the NFB Code of Conduct because her conduct “denigrates or shows aversion” toward the putative couple because of their “religion, sex, [or] sexual orientation.”
To be clear, the NFB Code of Conduct only regulates conduct, not thoughts or beliefs. Ms. Roth and others are welcome to participate and hold leadership positions in the NFB regardless of their beliefs. They may believe in the invalidity of same-sex marriage. They may believe in the invalidity of the lived experience of transgender persons or persons with other gender identities or expressions. They may believe in the invalidity of the lived experience of persons whose race is different from theirs or the invalidity of any beliefs not in keeping with their own. They may believe in Yahweh, Allah, or the Flying Spaghetti Monster as the one true God, or they may believe in no God at all. What they and no member or leader of the NFB may do is conduct themselves in accordance with any beliefs where such conduct “denigrates or shows hostility or aversion toward an individual, or their relatives, friends, or associates, because of their race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, age, disability, political affiliation, marital status, citizenship, genetic information, or any other characteristic protected by law.” It is that conduct, not the coincident belief that is prohibited.
In answer to Ms. Roth’s question: Yes, conservatives are welcome in the National Federation of the Blind, just as liberals and everyone in-between are welcome, as long as they abide by the Federation’s Code of Conduct. All members, leaders, and participants in the Federation must understand and recognize that their beliefs—no matter how deeply held—do not excuse them from complying with that Code of Conduct. Let us all conduct ourselves in a manner that is respectful to our shared humanity and our shared goals of security, equality, and opportunity.