Tag: The American Council of the Blind

Blind LGBT Pride International Ends Affiliation with American Council of the Blind

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Blind LGBT Pride International (BPI) announced today that it has officially ended its affiliation with the American Council of the Blind (ACB), effective January 1, 2025. This decision reflects BPI’s unwavering commitment to championing human rights and advancing principles of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility (DEIA).

BPI has thrived during its affiliation with ACB, growing into a dynamic and self-sustaining organization. However, significant differences regarding DEIA priorities and ACB’s stance on critical human rights issues have led BPI to pursue independence.
“While we will always advocate for blind and low-vision individuals, the narrow approach taken by the American Council of the Blind compelled us to seek a path that aligns with our core mission,” said Anthony Corona, Vice President of BPI. “This independence empowers BPI to establish strategic partnerships within the LGBTQIA+ and blind and visually impaired (BVI) communities, both in the United States and around the world.”

Despite the separation, BPI remains committed to serving as a resource and subject-matter expert for ACB and other organizations when called upon. The organization will continue to offer safe spaces for communication, networking, referrals, and social connections, while expanding its advocacy efforts to create a more inclusive future.

In 2025, BPI will celebrate 25 years as the only global organization dedicated to supporting the unique intersectionality of LGBTQIA+ and BVI communities. This milestone offers an opportunity to honor past achievements and reaffirm its mission to foster inclusivity, equity, and belonging.

For more information about Blind LGBT Pride International, please visit
www.bpi.gay.

Media Contact:
Anthony Corona
He/Him
Vice President, Blind LGBT Pride International
media@Blindlgbtpride.org

Blind LGBT Pride International (BPI) Affirms Commitment to Human Rights by Opting Out of Jacksonville Convention

For Immediate Release:

Blind LGBT Pride International (BPI) Affirms Commitment to Human Rights by Opting Out of Jacksonville Convention

The American Council of the Blind (ACB), the parent organization of BPI, will hold their annual conference and convention in Jacksonville, FL, in July 2024. Amid Florida’s divisive and hostile political climate towards marginalized groups, including the LGBTQ+ community, BPI initially sought to collaborate with ACB to ensure a safe and inclusive convention experience. This effort included a human rights speaking demonstration at Jacksonville’s City Hall Park on July 8th, developed in conjunction with the Jacksonville Mayor’s office, the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion officer, and the Sheriff’s Department, to showcase Jacksonville’s commitment to human rights for all.

However, following actions taken by the ACB Board of Directors on January 30th, 2024, which retracted endorsement and support for the planned demonstration, BPI found it fundamentally critical to reassess its participation. The Board’s decisions signaled a departure from standing with marginalized members and advocating for collective human rights.

“In choosing to opt out of the Jacksonville convention, we assert our dedication to protecting and uplifting the rights of our transgender siblings, pregnant individuals, people of color, and everyone impacted by Florida’s unjust legislation,” stated Tristan Snyder, co-chair of BPI’s Advocacy committee.

After thorough discussion and reflection, BPI chooses to prioritize the well-being and rights of all marginalized communities by repealing our participation in this year’s ACB convention. This decision stems from a position of strength and a deep commitment to our core values.

“We encourage our community and allies to join us in this decision to stand in solidarity for human rights, demonstrating through our actions that we demand safe and inclusive environments for all.”

“BPI has been a proud affiliate and supportive partner of the American Council of the Blind since 2000,” says BPI President Leah Gardner.
“However, the recent actions of the ACB Board convey a message that the safety and dignity of all attendees do not hold as much importance as its relationships with grant and corporate sponsors. It is with a heavy heart that BPI must withdraw all programming and participation from ACB’s annual conference and convention. We will select a delegate to vote virtually at the conference and convention as the democratic process remains the best way to secure human rights. While we are deeply disappointed by the recent decisions of the ACB Board, we remain hopeful for a future where the dignity and safety of all convention attendees is paramount.”

For more information about Blind Lgbt Pride, please visit:
bpi.gay.

Blind Pride Walks in Las Vegas…Say What?!

BPI is walking in Las Vegas to raise money for the American Council of the Blind (ACB) and BPI!  Yes, we’re taking advantage of this year’s innovation to the ACB Walk fundraising, and donating half of our donations to Blind LGBT Pride International!  Both of these organizations are doing great work, and could very well use more funds to do even more great work!

 

Recently, at the national level, we’ve finally gotten the Treasury to make the next generation of paper currency tactilely identifiable for us, we’ve made some kind of noise mandatory so we all can hear a “quiet car” coming, and we’ve got the government working on medication labels that will allow us to know what and when a prescription drug should be taken.  Things we are still working on:  getting Medicare to pay for some of the expensive equipment we need to be able to live independently such as “reading machines”, making sure multi disabled kids are getting the skills needed to be educated and prepared for living and working independently to the extent possible, and working to reduce the 70 percent unemployment rate among blind and visually impaired people.  Believe it or not, there’s still a lot to do.

 

Here’s how you can participate:

1.  Sign up with the Blind Pride team, walk in Las Vegas or “virtually” anywhere on July 13, and raise money from your friends and family.  (Go to acb.org and follow the link to the Brenda Dillon Memorial Walk to register under the Blind Pride team.

or

2.  Donate to ACB and BPI by credit card online by going to https://walk.acb.org/donation#main-content, or by sending a check payable to ACB to :

American Council of the Blind

6300 Shingle Creek Parkway, Suite 195

Brooklyn Center, MN 55430

(please be sure to indicate that the check is for the Walk, and that President Guillermo Robles is the solicitor on the Blind Pride team)

 

For further questions, please visit our contact page at http://blindlgbtpride.org/contact and choose to write the President.

Seminar: Medicare Coverage of Low Vision Devices

YOU’RE INVITED!

 

Making it Clearer: Medicare Coverage of Low Vision Devices Pending Legislation, Policy Implications, and What You Can Do About It

 

A Free Teleseminar Jointly Hosted by:

 

The American Foundation for the Blind

 

and

 

The American Council of the Blind

 

Wednesday, March 12, 2014, 3:00 p.m., Eastern

 

***Sponsored by HumanWare***

 

For further information, contact:

 

Mark Richert, Esq.

Director, Public Policy, AFB

(202) 469-6833

MRichert@afb.net

 

You are invited to participate in a free national teleseminar jointly hosted by ACB and AFB to learn about recent activities in the U.S. Congress to promote Medicare coverage of low vision devices. We are grateful to HumanWare, www.HumanWare.com, a global leader in low vision and other assistive technologies, for their gracious support which is making this teleseminar possible.

 

There is no need to register or RSVP for this free teleseminar. To join the call, simply dial the toll-free number below at least ten minutes prior to the March 12, 3pm Eastern, start time. Dial:

1-866-939-3921

Tell the operator that you are joining the “low vision devices” call.

 

We look forward to a lively discussion with all who are interested in advancing the cause of Medicare coverage for low vision devices and other assistive technologies. During the teleseminar, topics to be covered will include pending legislation in Congress, the array of policy implications of a permanent change in the Medicare program, and how advocates can participate in the policy process.

 

Background

 

For decades, the vision loss community has been advocating for Medicare’s coverage of assistive technologies, particularly low vision devices. Currently, Medicare will not pay for any device that happens to use a lens, regardless of whether such device incorporates any other features. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), the federal agency responsible for the management of Medicare, has ruled that devices, such as low vision devices, that use a lens are excluded from coverage just as are eye glasses or contact lenses except in very narrow circumstances.

Now, for the first time, federal legislation would begin to change this unacceptable national policy by establishing a nationwide Medicare demonstration project to evaluate the fiscal impact of a permanent change in Medicare coverage to pay for low vision devices. The legislation, H.R. 3749, introduced by Reps. Carolyn Maloney (D-NY) and Gus Bilirakis (R-FL), would initiate a five-year demonstration project that would put low vision devices in the hands of Medicare beneficiaries who, after a clinical evaluation by an ophthalmologist or optometrist, can benefit from a low vision device and for whom such devices are medically necessary. The legislation is careful to require that the demonstration project be genuinely national in scope and is explicitly designed to yield reliable data and meaningful results. Once the legislation is enacted and the demonstration project is successfully completed, Congress will have significantly richer data upon which to consider changes to the Medicare program to make coverage of low vision devices, especially the most costly devices, a permanent feature of the program. Precisely how many individuals will receive low vision devices and how many physicians across the country will participate in the demo project will need to be determined by CMS, working in consultation with stakeholder groups, as it develops and implements the project. The legislation makes $12.5 million available for the project over five years.

Advocates are encouraged to contact your members of the United States Congress.