Announcer:
Live life you want. Nobody can stop you. Shoot for the sun and break on through.
The following message is brought to you by Mark Riccobono, President National Federation of the Blind.
Live the life you want. Yes, we know the truth..
Mark Riccobono:
Greetings fellow Federationists. Today is Tuesday, May 27th, 2026 and this is Presidential Release 561 and we are just in the final weeks before our 2026 National Convention. So a lot of the activity here at the national office is taken up with convention matters even though we are of course pursuing much of the advocacy and membership building work that we do on a daily basis.
I thought for the month of June I would talk on this release about the convention because we sometimes talk about it a lot and we take for granted maybe that everybody fully understands the weight importance significance of the convention even if they have not been there. So I thought I'd talk about it on this release and have it be a topic that really should be discussed at our chapter meetings on a regular basis, especially as we lead up to the convention.
Why do we spend so much time talking about the National Convention? Well, the easiest way to come back to why it's important is to look at the Constitution of the National Federation of the Blind and this is codified in Article five of the Constitution, which is titled Powers and Duties of the Convention, the Board of Directors and the President.
Section A of our Constitution, I'm just going to read it to you in its entirety because it articulates all of the important points. So Section A reads as follows: "Powers and duties of the convention. The convention is the Supreme Authority of the Federation. It is the legislature of the Federation.
As such, it has final authority with respect to all issues of policy. Its decisions shall be made after opportunity has been afforded for full and fair discussion. Delegates and members in attendance may participate in all convention discussions as a matter of right.
Any member of the Federation may make or second motions propose nominations serve on committees and is eligible for election to office except that only blind members may be elected to the national board. Voting and making motions by proxy are prohibited. Consistent with the Democratic character of the Federation, convention meetings shall be so conducted as to prevent parliamentary maneuvers which would have the effect of interfering with the expression of the will of the majority on any question or with the rights of the minority to full and fair presentation of their views.
The convention is not merely a gathering of representatives of separate state organizations. It is a meeting of the Federation at the national level in its character as a national organization. Committees of the Federation are committees of the national organization. The nominating committee shall consist of one member from each state affiliate represented at the convention and each state affiliate shall appoint its member to the committee.
From among the members of the committee the president shall appoint a chairperson". Now, this is what the constitution tells us about the convention and in one sense that's a very technical explanation, but it sets the stage for what we know of the National Convention today in 2026. The convention is the most concentrated time when we have blind leaders together committed to working together to further opportunities for the blind.
That doesn't mean we always agree. We get together, we debate things, we consider issues, we share information, and we try to formulate priorities for the overall movement based on what the majority of our members believe and feel would be appropriate for the benefit of all blind people.
But it's bringing this group of leaders together that helps us make these very strong decisions and set these priorities. And it's really important that the Constitution states that it's not merely a gathering of representatives from separate state organizations.
We come together as a national movement and we bring the diversity of blind people together from all different parts of the country with all different backgrounds in order to come to agreement about where we should go and how we should use our limited resources.
The convention gives us insight as members and leaders that we would not otherwise have because when we get together, we sometimes grapple with very difficult nuanced situations and we have to decide how to tackle those. Now we can look at those decisions later and question them and say, "We should have done this or that differently," but we come together to have those hard conversations.
As noted, the Constitution is very specific that proxy voting is prohibited in the Constitution. It's prohibited everywhere in the Federation. So this is important because we need to show up to have the conversations with each other and sometimes members say, "Well, I can't come to the convention and I feel a little left out because I'm not represented there," but that's not in fact the case.
Every state affiliate has a delegate at the convention and this delegate is often the president. So every member at the local level, whether they're at the convention or not, is represented by someone who has been designated, often elected to represent them at the convention. And if you don't know who the delegate is for your state affiliate, I would encourage you to discuss that at the chapter meeting, make sure every member knows who's going to represent your state affiliate at this year's convention.
Again, most often it's the president because the president is our chief executive, you might say, and in the affiliate. And so we want to be represented by our chief leader in the affiliate at the convention. The convention is a critical time for us to demonstrate the power base that we have as a movement to others.
And a good example is we invite government officials often to our convention and don't tell them, but they're not always the most interesting presentations that we get, but it's really important that they observe from being at our convention that we are a significant base of influence and power and that we have real passionate members who are serious about making things happen for blind people.
This is the same impression we get when people come to our national headquarters for the first time. They think, "Oh, I'm going to go to a little office suite somewhere to meet with this organization." And when they get to our headquarters facility, they know that they're dealing with an organization that is more significant and more impressive than they thought and they take blind people more seriously.
This happens at our convention as well. So we have the convention also as a vehicle for helping the public officials, the companies know that we are a significant force to be considered, dealt with and to be listened to. The convention is also a prime place to test new ideas. Of course, a lot of companies come with products that they're hoping we'll think are great ideas.
Sometimes we do. Some of us buy a lot of the products. Sometimes people get the hard news that the product they have is not something that blind people are looking for, but we also test new ideas as blind people.
Oftentimes we share thoughts and ideas about how things can be different. We innovate what needs to happen in our community. We provide feedback on research projects that are really based on the fact that blind people deserve dignity, respect, and that we can think and act for ourselves. So the convention is really one of the most powerful feedback opportunities that we have as a community anywhere in the world at any time during the year.
And of course, it is an important time for us to plan for how we're going to continue to build the organization. And we get a lot of benefit out of bringing blind people together so that we can share what's working in local communities. A lot of people don't think of it this way, but the convention also is one of the most important training experiences that exists in the country for blind people.
First of all, it's the one time in the year that blind people are definitely in the majority for the week, but this is an important opportunity for example, for newly blind individuals because they can benefit from being in this environment of high expectations, but also being surrounded by blind people who are ready and willing to share their experience, their knowledge and the techniques they use in this, what I'm going to call very safe environment, right?
It's a hotel, but you're surrounded by people that are willing to help you strike out and find things. I often tell the story about being at a national convention and having to rush off somewhere and there was a blind person who had never been on an escalator before and I had the opportunity to stop and work with them on riding the escalator, which for them was a big deal.
No one had expected them to ride the escalator. This was a young man in his twenties at the time. Blind students get to come to our convention and are surrounded by mentors and role models and their families get to benefit from not just knowing one or two blind people, but they get to talk to 10 and 20 and 100 blind people during the week, which helps give them a perspective on what's possible for their child, really significant and something you can't get in this concentrated fashion anywhere else at any time during the year.
And let's be real, we also get a very energizing effect by being together and getting that shot in the arm to remember what's possible for us in society because so much of the rest of the year we're fighting low expectations, we're dealing with inaccessibility and it can get sometimes a little depressing, a little discouraging and this is our opportunity to remember that we control our own destiny and we control what can happen for blind people going forward.
All of that's great, but one important thing to emphasize also is that the convention helps us forge bonds with blind people, not just in our local community or our state, but all over the country and often around the world. And this benefits us in so, so many ways. The convention creates an opportunity, a space that's very unique where we get to know each other and that means we can call on each other when we need expertise that blind people outside of our community have.
For all these reasons, and I'm sure probably a hundred others that those who have been to the convention can think of the convention is really central to our program as a civil rights membership organization. Now, if you're sitting in the chapter meeting and you're thinking, "Yeah, but I just can't come to the convention this year, what about me? " Well, first of all, remember that you are represented at the convention.
I don't want you to forget that. You should let your delegate know if you have particular feelings about issues that are going on or concerns, let it be known. Let your delegate know that. Secondly, there may be things that your chapter is dealing with that you're looking for information and expertise about. Encourage your delegate or someone from your chapter, empower them to bring that information back to seek it out at the convention.
A good example is in Baltimore for some time we've been dealing with the persistent issue of on-demand scooters and where they get placed in our communities, usually on curb cuts and in the middle of sidewalks and how to deal with that. Not a unique issue to Baltimore, but these scooters have come to other communities before they came here and they've come here before they're going elsewhere.
So if that's an issue for you or if there are other issues, find leaders chapters who are dealing with issues that are just now coming to your community and find out what's worked, what hasn't, what approaches have been effective so you can copy them and build on them for that matter.
So many other issues and areas that we have of commonality, but also where we can learn from each other. Every state has battles with the rehabilitation system in the state and different affiliates have taken different approaches. Some have been more effective than others.
You can urge your delegate or folks from your chapter to seek out folks that have been dealing with those issues and bring back information to the chapter so we can devise strategies locally. But it's not just empowering your delegate or members of your chapter who are going. You can be actively involved in the convention.
You can participate in our virtual convention experience, which will give you access to the general sessions, some additional sessions, and you'll be able to stay plugged into the discussions at the convention. Of course, it's not like being there in person, but at least helps you stay up to date on some of the primary things that are being discussed.
Also, we publish the agenda, especially the virtual convention experience. Put it on your calendar. You'll have access to things like the resolutions before they get discussed. They're made available online. Read them, consider them. If you have thoughts and opinions, share them with your delegate, but also be informed even though you are at home so you can help to set the priorities locally, as well as influencing the national discussion.
These are all things you can do and you can also after convention, write articles about the issues discussed. You can write articles to the Braille Monitor. If you think the convention maybe should have considered an issue or if there was a perspective that hasn't been shared about technology or some other aspect, use your virtual convention experience to inform the conversation throughout the Federation and use what you've learned to impact your chapter, but also what happens at the state convention.
Everybody virtual or in person can complete our convention survey to give feedback on what worked, what didn't work, what would you like to have experienced, what was particularly meaningful to you. The convention is like so many things in the Federation, an opportunity to build the connections within our organization and you can do that even if you're not coming to the convention.
Your chapter can organize listening parties. You can have discussions leading up to convention about the issues that are circulating in our community. You can host banquet parties to celebrate the accomplishments of the week but also enjoy some fellowship. One of the amazing things about the convention is it brings the great diversity of experience, background, perspectives together in one place and it allows each and every one of us through our affiliates to gain the benefit of coming together.
I hope that your chapter will take advantage of all that the convention offers both in person and virtually and that you'll use it as an opportunity to strengthen the role of your chapter in the National Federation of the Blind.
Now I should say that there are other things you can do and I would be remiss if I didn't remind you that we have our Give 25 spring fundraising campaign going on and in addition to asking members to donate, which we do encourage, what we're really looking for is for members to reach out and get others to donate to our Give 25 campaign, what we're calling our connectors.
We're encouraging each and every member to get four other people to give 25 to the National Federation of the Blind during the month of June so that we can significantly increase our reach to new donors and pull down matching funds that have been generously donated by the AIRA Corporation. You can get involved with our Give 25 efforts and become a connector. Go to nfb.org/give25 to get all the details and now truly is the time to promote that.
You'll only have up through a couple of days in July to get that done. Finally, related to convention, I want to say that as I have said many times on this release, nfb.org/convention is your source for all of the information about the convention, the virtual convention experience, which you should register for if you haven't already, if you're not going to the convention, nfb.org/convention.
The convention is more than a meeting we're obligated to have. It is a truly meaningful experience for those who have been able to participate. I know that there are dozens of members who can't make it this year and I'm really glad that we can put together the virtual experience so that you can at least have some participation in the convention.
I am definitely anticipating being with many of you in Austin, Texas in about six weeks. It's coming very fast. I have a lot of work to do to get ready for the convention and I do want to encourage you if you're going to be at the convention, please come by the presidential suite.
Melissa and I would love to get a moment to visit with you, say hello and definitely greet you along with the rest of our great hosts in Texas. For those of you who are not coming to the convention, I hope that you will be engaged in our convention activities and that you'll share your thoughts and experience via social media and otherwise I do finally want to wish all Federation members a great summer coming up.
This will be the last release before the convention and before August. August will be our next release. So we will not have a release in July, but we will have a lot of work to do this summer and a lot of things to discuss and I'm looking forward to advancing our movement and forging stronger bonds across our membership in Austin, Texas this summer.
Now, before we close this release, I thought we should have some customary endings and I thought it would be appropriate to offer you some in honor of Norma Crosby's article, Welcoming Us to Texas that was in the May Braille Monitor.
So here we go.
What did the rehab counselor say to the bat who came to her for advice?
Just hang in there.
What do you call the admirers of a famous bat?
His Fang Club.
And finally, what is the only thing smarter than a talking bat?
Well, that would be a spelling B.
Let's go build the National Federation of the Blind.
Announcer:
The preceding message was brought to you by Mark Riccobono, President, National Federation of the Blind, 410-659-9314. [email protected]. Follow President Riccobono on Mastodon. Just search for @[email protected]. Let's go build the National Federation of the Blind.