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Welcome to the home of the National Federation of the Blind of Wisconsin.
Our Mission:
The mission of the National Federation of the Blind is to achieve widespread emotional acceptance and intellectual understanding that the real problem of blindness is not the loss of eyesight but the misconceptions and lack of information which exist. We do this by bringing blind people together to share successes, to support each other in times of failure, and to create imaginative solutions.
Access to book on Amazon’s new Kindle 2 E-Book Reader!
As many of you know, we are engaged in a campaign to obtain access for the blind and others with print disabilities to e-books available for Amazon’s new Kindle 2 e-book reader. The new reader, which Amazon is working to make fully accessible to the blind, has the ability to use text-to-speech to read these e-books aloud; but under pressure from the Authors Guild, Amazon has announced that authors and publishers will be allowed to disable the text-to-speech function.
The National Federation of the blind has joined with over twenty other organizations to create the reading Rights Coalition, which has set up an on-line petition to urge the Authors Guild and Amazon to reverse course. Please read and sign the petition here:
http://www.thepetitionsite.com/1/We-Want-To-Read
Please note: If you are using screen access technology, the first three fields on the form to sign the petition may not be announced.
They are, in order:
1. a drop-down menu from which to select your prefix (Mr., Mrs., etc.).
2. an edit field for your first name.
3. an edit field for your last name.
The rest of the fields should announce themselves as you tab to them. If you still have trouble filling out the form, please send the following information to readingrights@nfb.org and we will be happy to sign on your behalf. You will need to send us your name, address, e-mail address, and any personal comments you would like to make about this issue. Thank you so much for your participation in this critically important effort.
I Can Do More: Louis Braille Bicentennial Silver Dollar
Learn more about the 2009 Louis Braille Bicentennial Silver Dollar, which was released on March 26, 2009. Proceeds from the coin will go to the National Federation of the Blind’s Braille Readers are Leaders campaign, which is devoted to reversing the downward trend in Braille literacy. You can order your coin today at www.usmint.gov.
Change with a Dollar
You can make change with a Dollar!
Reading Rights Coalition to Protest Authors Guild
The Reading Rights Coalition, which represents people who cannot read print, will protest the threatened removal of the text-to-speech function from e-books for the Amazon Kindle 2 outside the Authors Guild headquarters in New York City at 31 East 32nd Street on April 7, 2009, from noon to 2:00 p.m. The coalition includes the blind, people with dyslexia, people with learning or processing issues, seniors losing vision, people with spinal cord injuries, people recovering from strokes, and many others for whom the addition of text-to-speech on the Kindle 2 promised for the first time easy, mainstream access to over 255,000 books. For more information, please see the official press release on the protest.
Louis Braille Coin Will be Launched into Space
National Federation of the Blind and NASA Confirm Historic Flight
Baltimore, Maryland (March 26, 2009): In a surprise announcement at the launch ceremony for the new Louis Braille Bicentennial Silver Dollar, NASA announced that the new commemorative coin celebrating the life and work of the inventor of the reading code for the blind will fly on a future space shuttle mission. The announcement, by NASA Deputy Administrator for Educational Programs Dr. Joyce Winterton, came at the end of the official event announcing the availability of this beautiful new coin, which will help the National Federation of the Blind to increase Braille literacy in the United States.
Dr. Marc Maurer, President of the National Federation of the Blind,
said: “The Louis Braille Bicentennial Silver Dollar symbolizes the power of knowledge and future opportunities for blind children across America. It is therefore fitting that this historic coin will be part of a mission to uncover the secrets of the universe. Perhaps someday a Braille reader will also be part of such a mission.”
Dr. Joyce Winterton said: “NASA believes strongly in the importance of educational opportunities for everyone, and that is why we have partnered with the National Federation of the Blind to help create programs that enhance scientific study for blind youth. Launching the first coin ever to contain tactile, readable Braille into space symbolizes NASA’s commitment to the spread of knowledge by every means and to every individual.”
The Louis Braille Bicentennial Silver Dollar goes on sale to the general public at noon today. Those interested in ordering a coin should visit www.usmint.gov or call 1-800-USA-MINT (872-6468). For more information about the National Federation of the Blind and the Braille Readers are Leaders campaign, visit www.braille.org.
Register for Braille Reading Pals!
Braille Reading Pals is an early literacy program that gently encourages and rewards parents for reading daily with their blind or low vision children ages infant-7 (or older if the children have developmental delays) who are not yet reading. Sponsored by the NFB Jernigan Institute, this free two-month spring program begins May 1 and concludes June 30. For more information about the program, visit the Braille Reading Pals home page. Registration ends on April 27, 2009, so sign up online today!
Daniel “Rudy” Ruettiger to Serve as National Ambassador for Braille Literacy
Baltimore, Maryland (February 18, 2009): The National Federation of the Blind (NFB), the nation’s leading advocate for Braille literacy, announced today that Daniel “Rudy” Ruettiger, a motivational speaker and former collegiate football player best known as the inspiration for the motion picture Rudy, will serve as a National Ambassador for Braille literacy. As an ambassador, Ruettiger will help advance the NFB’s Braille Readers are Leaders campaign, a national initiative to promote the importance of reading and writing Braille for blind children and adults. The Braille Readers are Leaders campaign kicked off in July of 2008 with the unveiling of the design of a commemorative coin to be released on March 26, 2009, in recognition of the two hundredth anniversary of the birth of Louis Braille (1809-1852), the inventor of the reading and writing code for the blind that bears his name. Learn more…
What Does Braille Mean to You?
Do you love Braille? Has Braille made a difference in your life? If so, please send us an audio or video clip answering the question, “What does Braille mean to me?” We welcome anyone who has discovered the love for Braille to submit an entry—Braille readers, teachers, transcribers, proofreaders,
Check out NFB ShareBraille!
The National Federation of the Blind, as part of its Braille Readers are Leaders Literacy Campaign, has committed to an unprecedented effort to increase literacy among the blind. One of the campaign goals is to make Braille resources more available through online sharing of materials, enhanced production methods, and improved distribution. NFB ShareBraille is designed to help in meeting this goal by encouraging blind people to trade Braille books and build their personal library. Frequently, Braille materials in good condition are discarded because a new home for the materials cannot be found. NFB ShareBraille now offers a way for a community to close that gap and keep Braille reading materials circulating. Build your Braille library and help others do the same—share Braille and build literacy.
NFB ShareBraille is a free service provided by the National Federation of the Blind to promote the use and vitality of Braille. To trade your Braille books or to request books from other NFB ShareBraille users, simply create a free account and start exploring the available titles.
www.nfbsharebraille.org
Happy Reading!
The NFB on Twitter!
You can now follow the latest news and information from the National Federation of the Blind, the Voice of the Nation’s Blind, on Twitter. To follow our Twitter updates, go to www.twitter.com/NFB_voice. You’ll need to join Twitter if you don’t have an account.
Twitter is a social networking site that allows you to keep track of your friends, family, and interests online. In addition to signing up for Web updates for the National Federation of the Blind, you can also opt to receive our Twitter updates via text message on your mobile phone. And while you’re at it, follow the 2009 Braille Readers are Leaders campaign as well, by going to www.twitter.com/brailleliteracy.
We hope lots of you will follow our new Twitter feed—and don’t hesitate to send us a direct message if you have questions or comments about what you read.
