Reports
Activities Report
August 2006
NEW MAILING ADDRESS
Effective immediately, please use the following address when sending material to the AEBC:
P.O. Box 20262
RPO Town Centre
Kelowna, BC V1Y 9H2.AEBC MEETS WITH THE MINISTER OF NATIONAL REVENUE CONCERNING NEW SYSTEM OF BLINDNESS VERIFICATION
Beryl Williams & Judy Prociuk met with the Honourable Carol Skelton, Minister of National Revenue, concerning the need for a method of blindness verification by the federal government, as provided for in membership resolution 2005-08, so that we do not need to obtain a doctor's letter each time we wish to qualify for programs and services.
2005-08: Registered blindness identification:
Therefore, be it resolved at this Convention in Ottawa, April 2005, that the Alliance for Equality of Blind Canadians [AEBC] actively advocate, through all appropriate Government authorities, for the provision of an appropriate system of registration for Canadians, who fall within the eligibility criteria required for all current and future public and private exemptions, benefits and services available to them across Canada.
After a wide-ranging discussion on various options, Ms. Skelton said she would send the four recommendations from AEBC's brief to the health minister as well as to the minister of HRDC and would then get back to us by e-mail. For further background on this issue, please see AEBC's Brief on our website at: http://www.blindcanadians.ca/press_releases/index.php?BriefID=33.
AEBC ACTIVE IN ONTARIO HUMAN RIGHTS FIGHT
The introduction of Bill 107: the Human Rights Code Amendment Act into the Ontario Legislature has prompted considerable controversy among human rights advocates in Ontario. The Bill is designed to overhaul the way in which human rights complaints are dealt with in Ontario. Both sides agree the Ontario Human Rights Commission could use improvement. Supporters of the Bill believe the proposed new system will greatly streamline the consideration of individual complaints and give more time for work on systemic cases, while opponents fear the new system will only weaken the current level of protection and make it tougher for complainants to gain redress from discrimination.
Three days of public hearings took place in August in London, Ottawa and Thunder Bay respectively, and further hearings are to be scheduled in Toronto this fall. The AEBC has applied to appear at the Toronto hearings, and is currently preparing a Brief, which will be available soon in the Briefs section of our website, www.blindcanadians.ca , or by requesting a copy directly by writing: info@blindcanadians.ca or calling toll free at: 1-800-561-4774.
AEBC ACTIVE IN HUMAN RIGHTS CASES
Making use of the legal protection that is in place is important in enforcing our rights. As a human rights organization, the AEBC is called upon from time to time to assist both members and non-members in pursuing cases before human rights commissions or the courts.
In previous Activities Reports, we have reported on AEBC's involvement with the Via Rail case, a decision on which is expected some time this fall. We are also currently involved in cases regarding inaccessibility of Canada's electoral system, access to the education system, the extent to which a driver's licence can be considered a bona fide occupational requirement, and access to commercial websites. For further information, please contact John Rae at: rae@blindcanadians.ca.
DRAFT UN CONVENTION ADOPTED
On August 25, 2006, the Draft UN Convention on the Rights and Dignity of Persons with Disabilities was adopted in New York.
DPI Chair, Venus Ilagan commented: "At the beginning of the current negotiations process DPI made clear our view that there were no human rights to which disabled people do not lay claim. The draft instrument accepted here today recognizes and entrenches our rights in the UN Human Rights framework, and in this way is a huge victory for us all."
The final text should be available shortly, and the next step is adoption by the UN General Assembly, after which the process of gaining ratification by nation states must be secured.
AEBC Toronto Chapter HOLDS SUCCESSFUL Benefit Concert
On Sunday, June 11, 2006," Two Just Women and Just Two Men," showcased the talents of four accomplished Toronto area folk performers at Hughs Room - Eve Goldberg, Nancy White, Wendell Ferguson and Holmes Hooke. The evening included a Silent Auction of a guitar autographed by all four performers, courtesy of Long & McQuade's Bloor Street store, along with a range of other items. Everyone present thoroughly enjoyed all of these talented performers .
REMINDERS
- AEBC's new Membership Contest, as mentioned in the June Activities Report, will run from October 1st to December 15, 2006. For further details, visit the June Activities Report on the AEBC website, www.blindcanadians.ca , or contact Devon Wilkins at: wilkins@blindcanadians.ca.
- The End Exclusion initiative is still seeking YOUR STORIES to help build an Inclusive and Accessible Canada. End Exclusion is a joint initiative of the Council of Canadians with Disabilities (CCD) and the Canadian Association for Community Living (CACL). For further details, please visit the website, www.endexclusion.ca.
- The following AEBC national Committees and Working Groups could still benefit from some additional members - services, elections, conference, employment, and fund development. Please forward names to John Rae at: rae@blindcanadians.ca.
- The AEBC's Informal Mentoring Program is still looking for more individuals who would be interested in meeting one-on-one, in a group or online to offer support to new or existing members who are isolated or struggling with challenges due to their vision loss. Please contact our national office at 1-800-561-4774 or email info@blindcanadians.ca to get involved.
- AEBC's plan to show "BLIND PEOPLE IN ACTION" is still in need of more photos of individuals participating at work, at school, in their homes, or in their communities. Please send photos of yourself, preferably scanned and by e-mail to: lois@blindcanadians.ca
- The Canadian Blind Monitor (CBM) can now be obtained in larger font size, in addition to regular print, Braille, audio cassette, and CD-ROM. Just contact Lois Benko at lois@blindcanadians.ca, and specify the font size or format you prefer to receive.
- The 2007 AEBC Conference and AGM will be held at the Harbour Towers Hotel, Victoria, during the Victoria Day long weekend, Thursday-Sunday, May 17-20, 2007.
RESPONSE FROM CNIB
The June Activities Report contained the AEBC's letter to Jim Sanders, President and CEO of CNIB. Here is Mr. Sanders' response:
July 13, 2006
Dear Mr. Rae:
Thank you for your letter of July 11 concerning CNIB's new look and direction and the materials we have distributed about our brand activities. As always, we appreciate receiving feedback from our stakeholder groups, and in particular from consumers.
Let me try to address each of your points in turn.
1. You had asked about the development process around our new brand, and who was asked to participate.
We involved a variety of people in the three-year period in which we developed the new brand, including employees, volunteers, donors, board members, the general public and CNIB clients. Clients were involved at every stage, from initial focus groups and discussion forums that helped us to understand the principles behind our new brand, to testing of the visual identity and tagline, and our decision to move to our new name, CNIB. We also had clients on our Brand Steering Committee, which provided leadership and direction for the entire process.
2. You asked about CNIB's new Public Service Announcements (PSAs) for television and wanted to see the text.
It is unfortunate, but the written version of these public service announcements that went out earlier this year as a casting call did not have enough information to provide proper context. The text was also a draft only.
In fact, there is little text in the PSAs, as most of the action is visual in nature. The text/voice over says simply this: "Not everyone who looks blind is totally blind. Nine out of ten people we serve have some vision. CNIB: Vision health, vision hope."
The tone we were aiming for is respectful while still being humorous and thought-provoking. A variety of elements went into achieving this tone, from the look on the actors' faces to the music used, but the basic message is to challenge the idea that most people with vision loss are completely blind, and that CNIB won't serve you if you have some vision. A secondary part of the message is to affirm that people have the right to carry a white cane, even if they have some vision.
These PSAs are airing right now on just about every television station in Canada, so I encourage AEBC members to have a look at them for themselves. We are extremely pleased with the feedback we have received so far about the PSAs. We have had new people calling to sign up for service immediately after they saw the spots on television. We have had clients who have low vision writing in and thanking us, because they feel we've gone a long way towards battling the misconceptions they face every day. Almost all of the feedback we've received has been positive so far.
3. You asked about the time we spent on the new branding initiative compared to the need to improve existing services. You also asked how we planned to reach out to a wider range of individuals without negatively affecting services to current users.
I strongly believe what I have said many times previously. If CNIB did not go through this exercise, we would have faced a diminished future, one in which we would not be able to provide many services at all.
In fact, a large part of why CNIB went through this process is because we hope to safeguard and improve our current services. With increased visibility from CNIB's brand - by all accounts long overdue - we believe that new corporate and government partnerships and new funding opportunities will put us in a much better position to provide our programs and services for clients.
At the same time, we have been working for some time now to improve CNIB's service delivery model, to keep up with the increasing demands we anticipate from the growth in age-related macular degeneration and Canada's aging population in years ahead. We have made a number of changes to improve our service down the road. For example, we now have a new national call centre with a single-source 1-800 number which people can call for more information. Our Client Relations Management System will also streamline our service and create efficiencies.
As you know, CNIB has gone through some difficult times financially in recent years, and change will not happen overnight. But we are working hard to turn things around, and our new brand will be one of the major tools we use to make this happen.
4. You asked "Has CNIB become ashamed that it was created to serve blind persons?" This was in relation to our decision to start using the term "vision loss" to reinforce the idea that CNIB helps people with many degrees of vision loss.
Of course not. As you know, CNIB has always been proud of its history, including our well-known incorporation in 1918 in order to serve Canada's war-blinded as they returned from World War I.
The problem is that most people who are completely blind already know about CNIB. They are not the ones we need to reach to make them aware of our programs and services. It is the majority - the vast majority, 90% - of people with vision loss who don't know about us that we are not reaching. It is far too common that people go without service simply because they do not know that CNIB can help them - and this is extremely unfortunate. This is why we will be using the term "vision loss" more often, a term that includes people with all degrees of visual impairment.
5. You asked about the production of our new national newsmagazine in Braille, and if we are considering alternative-format versions of our new national e-newsletter.
CNIB Vision, our national news magazine, will be available in a Braille version (the other formats available are accessible print, audio CD and DAISY, and the publication will also be available online). CNIB Vision TODAY will be produced accessibly as well, but only in an electronic format. As it is a monthly publication, it would not be cost effective in terms of human or financial resources to make it available in hard copy print either.
6. You asked "Has CNIB developed a strategy to expand the provision of services to Canadians who are blind, deaf-blind and partially sighted by regular, community service providers outside the traditional charity model?"
The answer is yes but unfortunately the progress is slow. In the past three years we have been successful in having the Canadian public library community endorse a report outlining how a nationwide equitable library system for all Canadians with a print disability could be served through a combination of local public libraries, the Library and Archives of Canada and CNIB. Money was allocated in the February 2005 federal budget that will allow the Library and Archives of Canada to coordinate the implementation of this mainstreaming of alternate library services.
CNIB actively advocates to provincial departments of health to have vision rehabilitation services placed within a continuum of vision care services as are other health services such as physiotherapy.
As many of your members might know, CNIB is working with AEBC and the Canadian Council on Disabilities to ensure CRTC monies allocated to improve the accessibility of telecommunications are used for mainstream solutions.
John, I hope this has answered your questions, but please feel free to contact me directly should you wish to discuss anything further.
Best regards,
Jim Sanders President and CEO
CNIBUPCOMING MEETINGS
- Sept. 21-22, CCD meetings on a possible Canadians with Disabilities Act, and Research, Ottawa
- Oct. 19-21, Outlook Okanagan 2006 Conference, Kelowna
- Oct. 26-27, HARD-WIRING INCLUSION a Conference about Building an Accessible ICT World, Winnipeg
- Nov. 2, End Exclusion event on Parliament Hill, Ottawa
- Nov. 3-4, CCD National Council meeting, Ottawa
- Nov. 4, Quiet Car Conference, Baltimore
- Nov. 10-12, NEADS National Conference, Ottawa
- Nov. 27, CRTC Public Hearing to consider certain aspects of the regulatory framework for over-the- air television, Gatineau
- Nov. 28-30, Court Challenges Conference, Winnipeg
- June 18-21, 2007, 11th International Conference on Mobility and Transport for Elderly and Disabled Persons (TRANSED) , Montréal,
