National Federation of the Blind Presidential Releases - English

April 2019

President Riccobono recaps our protest (#LetUsPlayUs) of In the Dark, a new show on The CW, and also discusses the Kenneth Jernigan Convention Scholarship for first timers, the Distinguished Educator of Blind Students Award, the new Blindness Experience Teaching Internship, our membership efforts, and more. 

March 2019

President Riccobono announces that preregistration for the 2019 National Convention is now open. He also discusses the Dr. Jacob Bolotin Awards, the Marrakesh Treaty, a new series of blind parent podcasts, our latest policy statements, NFB summer programs, the national scholarship program, the Jacobus tenBroek Disability Law Symposium, and the Dream Makers Circle.

Presidential Release #479, February, 2019

A monthly message from Mark A. Riccobono, President of the National Federation of the Blind, to be shared with every chapter of the organization.
Items covered in the February 2019 release include:
* Breaking news from the Washington Seminar #NFBInDC
* New and improved Federation website
* Promoting NFB summer programs
* Launch of pilot testing for HathiTrust access program
* A Dream Makers Circle update
* Thank you to chapters contributing to our monthly giving program
* Federation Family notes
* Customary endings

Presidential Release #479 English: January 2019

Presidential Release #479: January 2019 (English Audio)
The presidential release is a monthly audio message from President Mark A. Riccobono that highlights the current activities of the National Federation of the Blind. It is shared with every chapter of the organization.
Please listen now, or share at your upcoming meeting or event.
Listen to previous episodes at nfb.org/presidential-releases.
Items Covered
Happy New Year
World Braille Day January 4 
Consumer Electronics Show (next week in Las Vegas)
2019 National Convention (book your rooms now at the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino)
New NFB strategic plan (in February Braille Monitor)
Two new Aira plans for NFB members
2019 Washington Seminar (a message from John Paré)
Dream Makers Circle update
Federation Family notes
Customary endings 
Related Resources
2019 National Convention (Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino reservations— call 877-632-9001)
Subscribe to an NFB Aira plan—call 800-835-1934 or visit aira.io/nfb
Washington Seminar
Dream Makers Circle
Listen to the January 2019 Release

Presidential Release #478 English: December 2018

Presidential Release #478: December 2018 (English Audio)
The presidential release is a monthly audio message from President Mark A. Riccobono that highlights the current activities of the National Federation of the Blind. It is shared with every chapter of the organization.
Please listen now, or share at your upcoming meeting or event.
Listen to previous episodes at nfb.org/presidential-releases.
Items Covered
Holiday greetings
Thank you to the record number of blind voters who completed NFB's Blind Voter Survey
Op-ed in The Hill about 14c (American Nightmare: How Workers with Disabilities Are Denied Economic Prosperity)
Deadline for Washington Seminar rooms December 28
NFB-NEWSLINE® now available on the Amazon Echo
Federation Family notes
Customary endings
A special song from a blind choir from Guatemala
Related Resources
NFB-NEWSLINE skill for Amazon Echo
Washington Seminar information
American Nightmare: How Workers with Disabilities Are Denied Economic Prosperity
NFB Pre-authorized Contribution Plan
Dream Makers Circle
Listen to the December 2018 Release

Presidential Release #477: November 2018

Presidential Release #477: November 2018 (English Audio)
The presidential release is a monthly audio message from President Mark A. Riccobono that highlights the current activities of the National Federation of the Blind. It is shared with every chapter of the organization.
Please listen now, or share at your upcoming meeting or event.
Listen to previous episodes at nfb.org/presidential-releases.
Items Covered
Blind voters in the 2018 midterm elections and the need to capture data
Alameda County, California, and equal opportunity for participation by blind voters
Walmart being sued over the inaccessibility of self-service check-out kiosks
Letters in Braille from Santa Claus
Creating Facebook fundraisers
Federation Family notes
Customary endings
Related Resources
Santa Letters
2018 Midterm Elections Blind and Low-Vision Voter Experience Survey
Alameda County press release 
Walmart press release
NFB Pre-authorized Contribution Plan
Dream Makers Circle
Listen to the November 2018 Release

Presidential Release #476: October 2018

Presidential Release #476: October 2018 (English Audio)
The presidential release is a monthly audio message from President Mark A. Riccobono that highlights the current activities of the National Federation of the Blind. It is shared with every chapter of the organization.
Please listen now, or share at your upcoming meeting or event.
Listen to previous episodes at nfb.org/presidential-releases.
Items Covered
Meet the Blind Month and White Cane Awareness Day
Marrakesh Treaty Implementation Act
Ability One filing
Urging chapters to use the pledge at chapter meetings
Braille Readers Are Leaders contest
National Federation of the Blind night at Orioles Park
Federation Family notes
Customary endings
Related Resources
Meet the Blind Month
White Cane Awareness Day
US House of Representatives Passes Marrakesh Treaty Implementation Act
National Federation of the Blind Sues US AbilityOne Commission
Braille Readers Are Leaders contest
Video of President Riccobono's first pitch at the Orioles game
Listen to the October 2018 Release

Presidential Release #475

Presidential Release #475: September 2018 (English Audio)
The presidential release is a monthly audio message from President Mark A. Riccobono that highlights the current activities of the National Federation of the Blind. It is shared with every chapter of the organization.
Please listen now, or share at your upcoming meeting or event.
Listen to previous episodes at nfb.org/presidential-releases.
Items Covered
It is back-to-school season.
Thanks to our relationship with the American Action Fund, Braille calendars are now available.
Update on the status of ridesharing companies:
Lyft: We know there are some accessibility issues with CAPTCHA technology that impact submitting service animal complaints to Lyft for some people using iOS, and we have alerted Lyft to these concerns. In the meantime, Lyft does accept service animal complaints by telephone (844–250–3174). Also, we have raised several concerns to Lyft about the manner in which complaints are processed, and the outcomes of driver termination decisions based on the details that many of you have shared with our paralegals and attorneys. As for systemic numbers, our testing shows that service animal denials on Lyft are fluctuating at an average of 18 percent of test rides within a range of 14-25 percent during our testing period. That number should be considered in the context that Lyft’s overall ridership numbers appear to be in hyper growth, though we don’t have access to the exact growth numbers that Lyft closely keeps as a trade secret. We could more confidently make conclusions about the reliability of this statistic if we could increase the sample size of Lyft tests from our members over the coming quarters.
Uber: We have evidence suggesting that Uber is letting a significant number of drivers off with a warning when it should be automatically terminating those drivers. We have raised this concern to the third party monitor and may be heading to court in the coming months to enforce the settlement if we cannot get Uber to make some concessions and improvements on the manner in which it investigates and disciplines its drivers. In the meantime, we need you to continue testing. We urgently need you to share situations in which you complained to Uber with compelling objective evidence that the driver “knowingly” denied a service animal, such as witnesses, video footage, or text messages, and Uber nonetheless let the driver off with a warning.
Conclusion: Your reports of denials are all read by our legal team. We need you to continue sharing the anecdotal details of your experiences. Our team uses those anecdotes to look for fact patterns and new unanticipated problems. We need you to continue reporting all complaints to Uber/Lyft and participate in our testing program. Without your consistent reporting, the data may inaccurately show that discrimination is declining when in fact only the reporting of discrimination is declining. We know people are still being denied rides and that one denial is too many. We are actively speaking with both of these companies on a regular basis to advocate for improvements because neither company is reflecting the dramatic improvement that we would hope to see through our settlement and the monitoring work.
Our Pre-Authorized Contribution program (PAC Plan) allows us to give regularly to the National Federation of the Blind. This month we thanked some of the many chapters that regularly contribute.
October is Meet the Blind Month and October 15 is White Cane Awareness Day. This October is special because we are celebrating the tenth anniversary of our free white cane program, which distributes thousands of canes to blind people all over the United States each year. To celebrate this milestone, we’d love to hear your story about the moment you realized what a powerful tool for independence your white cane is. Share it with us on Twitter (@NFB_voice) or on Facebook (search for National Federation of the Blind). You may want to focus your Meet the Blind Month events on white cane awareness this year. Cane walks are always popular, or perhaps you could find ways to educate the public on the white cane law, which protects blind people who use white canes or guide dogs from discrimination. Keep watching our social media channels and our website for more Meet the Blind Month ideas, and let us know what your chapter or affiliate is doing by using the hashtag #MTBM. Stay tuned to social media, our website, and the Nation’s Blind Podcast for more about this October celebration of blind people traveling where we want and living the lives we want.
Federation Family notes
Customary endings 
Related Resources 
American Action Fund Braille calendars
Information on submitting complaints/comments to Uber and Lyft
NFB Twitter page (@NFB_voice)
#MTBM on Twitter
NFB Facebook page
Listen to the September 2018 Release

Presidential Release #474: August 2018

Presidential Release #474: August 2018 (English Audio)
The presidential release is a monthly audio message from President Mark A. Riccobono that highlights the current activities of the National Federation of the Blind. It is shared with every chapter of the organization.
Please listen now, or share at your upcoming meeting or event.
Listen to previous episodes at nfb.org/presidential-releases.
Items Covered
It's raining in Baltimore.
NFB EQ and NFB BELL Academy are taking place this week in the building. 
We had a successful AER strike July 26 through July 28 in Reno, Nevada. Unfortunately, accreditation is moving forward and they ambushed a resolution one of our members, who is also a member of AER, proposed.
Among our priorities is that AFB was named a central nonprofit entity by AbilityOne. NIB has been working with us.
We are looking to add staff members here in Baltimore. If you or someone you know want a career more than a job, want to work for the movement, and want to work in a demanding, high-energy, and highly motivated environment, email a resume and cover letter to HR@nfb.org. We have positions in events, front desk, access technology, advocacy, and membership.
The National Federation of the Blind is partnering with Kellogg’s Rice Krispies Treats® to create Braille and audio “Love Notes” so parents can share messages of love and encouragement with blind children. The “Love Notes” are an accessible version of the writable wrapper on Rice Krispies Treats®, which allows parents to include messages in their children’s lunchboxes. The new, accessible “Love Notes” are available in two forms: Braille stickers and re-recordable audio boxes. The Braille stickers are heart-shaped to match the space on Rice Krispies Treats® writable wrappers for written notes. Each Braille sticker sheet includes eight uplifting messages for parents to share with their children, such as “You’ve Got This” and “Love You Lots.” The re-recordable audio box holds a Rice Krispies Treat and, when opened, plays a 10-second pre-recorded message. The audio box messages can be re-recorded over a thousand times. A video has been produced to promote this partnership, featuring our members, Eme and Tabby Mitchell. The plan is to distribute over 6,000 sheets of Braille stickers and co-branded NFB/Kellogg’s Rice Krispies Treats® alphabet cards, as well as over 1,500 re-recordable audio boxes. A print/Braille “welcome letter” will go out in every delivery to reinforce the importance of Braille and ensure everyone gets the same welcome. The National Federation of the Blind will be prominently featured on the website about this program, including a link to subscribe to our Imagineering Our Future e-newsletter. Our participation in this initiative reflects our commitment to helping parents raise blind children who are prepared to be confident, happy, and productive members of society, as well as our emphasis on Braille literacy and accessibility. To check out the website and order "Love Notes" for your child, visit ricekrispies.com/lovenotes.
Federation family notes
Customary endings 
Related Resources 
Career opportunities
Resumes and cover letters (email to HR@nfb.org) 
Rice Krispies Treats® "Love Notes"
Listen to the August 2018 Release

Presidential Release #473: July 2018

Presidential Release #473: July 2018 (English Audio)
The presidential release is a monthly audio message from President Mark A. Riccobono that highlights the current activities of the National Federation of the Blind. It is shared with every chapter of the organization.
Please listen now, or share at your upcoming meeting or event.
Listen to previous episodes at nfb.org/presidential-releases.
Items Covered
It was a great convention! The numbers were great, energy was inspiring, and the discussions were thoughtful and meaningful as always.
The Presidential Report and Banquet Speech are posted on the website.
We have recorded a series of PSAs. These can be found on the NFB website, as well.
Announcement of location for 2019 convention (Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas, Nevada)
Greyhound Agreement
Dream Makers Circle participants announced
The Independence Market e-commerce site is down until further notice.
Job Fair at convention and job at the NFB
Federation Family notes
Customary endings 
Related Resources
2018 presidential report
2018 banquet speech
Convention highlights
PSAs
Professional Development and Research Institute on Blindness
Dr. Edward Bell (email)
Job openings at the NFB
Listen to the July 2018 Release