Braille Monitor 8-9/98, Contents
The Braille Monitor
Vol. 41, No. 8 August/September
1998
Barbara Pierce, Editor
Published in inkprint, in Braille, on cassette, and
the World Wide Web and FTP on the Internet
THE NATIONAL FEDERATION OF THE BLIND
Marc Maurer, President
National Office
1800 Johnson Street
Baltimore, Maryland 21230
NFB Net BBS: (612) 696-1975
Web HomePage Address: http//www.nfb.org
Letters to the President, address changes,
The Hunt for History
The Hunt for History
by Barbara Pierce
For some time now the National Federation of the
Blind has been building the most complete collection possible on the subject of blindness.
For years we have routinely gathered every book, recording, or video with any connection
to blindness that we could find. Long or short, constructive or unconstructive, well done
or badly done: we want a copy.
We are always happy to receive material from
Young Braille Readers
Matthew Jin (WA)
Young Braille Readers and
Their Friends Take Note
From the Editor: From November 1 to February 1
every year a growing number of elementary and secondary school students who read Braille
take part in the Braille Readers Are Leaders contest sponsored by the National
Organization of Parents of Blind Children and the National Association to Promote the Use
of Braille. Flex your fingers, kids; the 1999 contest is about to begin.
Each spring, after the contest ends, the letters
Life Insurance
Life Insurance
Life insurance constitutes a very special gift to
the National Federation of the Blind. A relatively easy and direct form of planned giving
is a new life insurance policy. You can make the NFB the beneficiary and owner of a life
insurance policy and receive a tax deduction on the premium you pay.
For example, at age fifty you purchase a $10,000
whole life insurance policy on yourself and designate the NFB as beneficiary and owner of
Ruling in Maxi-Aids Case
Judge Spatt's Ruling in
the Maxi-Aids Case
From the Editor: The preceding article provides a
summary of activity up to the first week of July in the lawsuit brought by Marvin Sandler
and Independent Living Aids (ILA) against Elliot Zaretsky, his three children, and
Maxi-Aids. Following the jury's decision resoundingly in favor of Independent Living Aids,
the Zaretskys' attorney, Mark Mulholland, made several motions for reconsideration of
Benign Discrimination
The Naked Truth about
Benign Discrimination
by Michael Baillif
From the Editor: Michael Baillif is an attorney
working in New York City. Until recently he lived and worked in the nation's capital,
where anything can happen and eventually will. In the following article he reflects on the
significance of one of the more bizarre incidents to occur recently on the diplomatic
scene.
This is what he says:
Have you ever had a dream in which you found
Page Sets Sights
Homer Page
Page Sets Sights on County
Treasurer
Democrats Eye Only Elected Seat in County
Government Held by a Republican
by Jason Gewirtz and Kristin Dizon
From the Editor: Homer Page is a longtime leader
in the National Federation of the Blind and an experienced politician. He is about to take
part in yet another election in Boulder, Colorado. The following article giving the
details appeared in the June 11, 1998, Boulder Daily Camera.
Homer Page is challenging Republican incumbent
New Mexico School Update
New Mexico School Update
From the Editor: For some time now we have been
following the situation at the New Mexico School for the Visually Handicapped (NMSVH).
(See the October, 1996, issue of the Braille Monitor for details.) In May of this year the
U.S. Justice Department finally released its report on the school. It makes discouraging,
if not distressing, reading. In recent months some hopeful signs have appeared. The Board
of Regents is now radically different from the one that looked the other way when the
The NFB Makes the Difference
Seville Allen
Different Roads: The NFB
Makes the Difference
by Seville Allen
From the Editor: The following article first
appeared in the Spring, 1998, issue of the Vigilant, the publication of the National
Federation of the Blind of Virginia. Seville Allen edits that publication. She is a
longtime Federationist and a leader of the NFB of Virginia. This is what she says:
We hadn't seen each other since that day in June,
Taking Out the Garbage
Taking Out the Garbage
by Kathy McGillivray
From the Editor: The following article first
appeared in the Spring, 1998, issue of the Minnesota Bulletin, a publication of the NFB of
Minnesota. Kathy McGillivray is a Disability Specialist in the Disability Services
department at the University of Minnesota. As Kathy's experience shows, NFB philosophy and
self-confidence come to a person in varied and interesting ways. This is what she says:
The day had finally arrived. The last box had