About Blindness

Seeing how the world might look...
Legal blindness is defined as a visual acuity of not greater than 20/200 in the better eye with best correction or a visual field of less than 20 degrees, and it manifests itself as tunnel vision, no central vision, cloudy or extremely blurred vision, just shadows, or no vision at all. The measurement of legal blindness, 20/200, means that a person who is blind must be 20 feet or closer to see an object that a person with normal visual acuity can clearly see at 200 feet.

Many different types of visual impairments are caused by conditions such as diabetes, retinitis pigmentosa, cataracts, and macular degeneration. People who are blind succeed in the workplace because of access technology, special fixtures and equipment that compensate for various types of visual loss. They develop alternate techniques to accomplish tasks with their remaining senses, such as reading Braille or identifying objects and landmarks by their sense of touch. Low vision devices are also instrumental in maximizing residual vision, not only for work, but also for other aspects of life. Some low vision solutions involve only a hand-held magnifier, the introduction of increased lighting or an adjustment of the background against which a person is working. More complex solutions such as miniature telescope lenses mounted onto eyeglasses or devices to magnify text or the visual field are common.

The following illustrations show some of the more common causes of low vision.

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Approaching people who are blind...

Using inoffensive language
How does a person respectfully treat people who are blind? Language. Emphasize "people" first, before the disability, to avoid negative connotations or patronizing language. For example:

Use:  People with disabilities,  instead of:  The disabled or handicapped

Use:  People who are blind,  instead of:  Blind people

Use:  Has (specify the disability),  instead of:  Afflicted with

Use:  Born with (specify the disability),  instead of:  Has a birth defect

Use:  Uses a wheelchair,  instead of:  Confined to a wheelchair

Use:  People who are deaf,  instead of:  Deaf and dumb, deaf-mute, or hearing impaired people

Use:  Products created by people who are blind,  instead of:  Blind-made products

Making a difference through awareness
Armed with awareness, society can make a difference in the lives of people who are blind. The Jewish Guild for the Blind published the following tips as a behavioral guide for sighted people interacting with people who are blind:

• Introduce yourself. Not everyone recognizes voices or remembers them.
  
• Don't shout. Visually impaired or blind does not mean hearing impaired.
  
• Don't leave a person who is blind talking to himself/herself. Let him/her know when you are leaving.
  
• Don't use hand signals. People with severe visual disabilities can't see waving or pointing hands.
  
• Don't omit words like, "See" or "Look"... People with visual disabilities are not offended by these words and understand that these words are part of normal conversation.
  
• Do feel free to photograph blind or visually impaired persons. Everyone likes to capture special moments to save and show to others.
  
• Do speak directly to a person who is blind. Don't speak to a family member or friend and ignore a blind person. He/she can speak for him/herself.
  
• Don't push, pull or grab a person who is blind. This can cause accidents and is often embarrassing.  
  
• Do offer your arm for assistance. A person who is blind would rather take your arm than have you take his arm.
  
• Don't rearrange furniture or personal items. Being independent means being set in your ways about where things belong. Please tell a person who is blind if you move something.
  
• Don't leave cabinet or closet doors partially open. This is unsafe and can cause accidents.
  
• Don't think more or brighter light is always better. More light may cause glare, which can make vision worse.
  
• Do use color contrast like black and white. Contrasting colors, black and white or light and dark help objects or shapes stand out.
  
• Do remember that vision changes can be a result of weather conditions. Sometimes a person with visual disabilities sees better on cloudy days than on sunny days.

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Providing additional resources about blindness
There are hundreds of private and government agencies serving people who are blind or visually impaired in the United States. For additional information about blindness, click on one of the following links:

• American Council of the Blind promotes effective participation of people who are blind in all aspects of society. Acts as national information clearinghouse.  www.acb.org/
• American Foundation for the Blind works to enable people who are blind or visually impaired to achieve equality of access and opportunity that will ensure freedom of choice in their lives.  www.afb.org
• National Federation of the Blind works to improve social and economic conditions of people who are blind. Provides evaluations of existing programs and assistance in establishing new ones.  www.nfb.org
• Blind Veterans Association works to promote the affairs of  veterans who are blind. www.bva.org 
• Jewish Guild for the Blind helps people who are blind or visually impaired, and who may have additional disabilities, achieve lives of dignity and independence. www.jgb.org/  

Adaptive, assistive and Web technology

• Screen reading and magnification software, Braille note takers/embossers/displays, scanning and reading software www.abledata.com
• Guidelines and techniques for web designers, Web Accessibility Initiative www.w3.org/WAI/
• Section 508 - the Federal IT Accessibility Initiative: Standards, Training, Programs and other Resources www.section508.gov/