Nise article but, here is no issue of public holiday. I think so! Really a good for creat avairness in the society.
On 10/15/12, Syed Imran <[email protected]> wrote: > Is it declared as public holiday? Can I take off? > > -----Original Message----- > From: AccessIndia [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf > Of srinivas.karnati > Sent: 15 October 2012 05:36 > To: [email protected] > Subject: [AI] 15th October. white cane safety day > > Hello accesindian! Friends! Good morning to all of you. Today is 15th > October. Today we are celebrating white cane safety day here is a history > of > the day. > > > > > > WHITE STICK AS SYMBOL OF BLINDNESS - HISTORY > > (From RNIB reference library information file) > > An Englishman and a Frenchwoman both claim to have originated the idea. > > 1921 - James Biggs of Bristol (as he claims in New Beacon article, Dec. > 1937, pp. 320/321) thought of idea of painting his stick white -- wrote to > various institutions, Chief Constables, newspapers, magazines, etc... > > 1930 - First reference in New Beacon (December, p. 265) to white stick - > "In > Paris, the Prefect of Police is supporting the idea that blind pedestrians > shall carry white sticks" > > 1931 - February - Mlle Guilly d'Herbemont, with the assistance of one of > the > editors of l'Echo de Paris launched national white stick movement in > France. > > 1931 - Taken up by British Press - West Ham Rotary Club's offer to supply > white sticks to blind people in the area accepted - in May, the BBC > broadcast the suggestion that all blind persons should be provided with a > white stick, which should be nationally recognised by the public > > 1932 - National Institute for the Blind started stocking and selling white > sticks > > WHITE CANE SAFETY DAY > > By provision of P.L. 88-628, 88th Congress, 2d Session, October 15 to be > proclaimed each year by the President of the United States as White Cane > Safety Day. First such proclamation issued by Lyndon B. Johnson on October > 6, 1964. (Ref.: NOB, Dec. 1964, 58 (10), 332.) > > October 15, 1970 was declared International White Cane Safety Day for the > first time by the President of the International Federation of the Blind. > This date was adopted at the first quinquennial convention of the IFB, held > in Colombo on October 4, 1969. (Ref.: Braille International, July 1971, > 4(2), 14-18.) > > First celebrated in United Kingdom 15 October 1979. (Ref.: New Beacon, > September 1979, 63(749), 232.) > > ****** > > > > (Viewpoint, June 1991) > > The White Cane - A Commemoration by Dr. A Mutter > > (Editor's note) > > The white cane is now recognised as the blind person's mobility aid the > world over. Ever since US President Lyndon S. Johnson first proclaimed it > in > 1964, "White Cane Day" has become the day of the year to publicise the > needs > and achievements of blind people everywhere. What follows is an > appreciation > of Peguilly d'Herbemont, the French woman who was responsible for > introducing the white cane 60 years ago. She was a lady of French high > society who devoted much of her time and fortune to the welfare of the > blind. The writer of the article, himself blind, taught for a time in the > mid-30s at Worcester College for the Blind, later joining the German > Diplomatic Service and finishing up as First Secretary to the German > Legation in Berne, Switzerland. The article is reproduced by kind > permission > of the German Federation of the Blind, in whose organ it first appeared in > January of this year. It is based on a book commemorating the originator of > the white cane who died in her 92nd year, on 28th February 1980, by > Mireille > Oblin-Briere who met our heroine towards the end of her long life. She was > so moved by her story that she set it down before her memories faded > altogether and her papers and records were lost to the world. > > Peguilly d'Herbemont was born on 25th June 1888 into an old French noble > family of the same name. In her youth she led the conventional and > protected > existence, devoid of great activity, of a girl from a "good family", an > existence reminiscent of the life of the aristocracy before the French > Revolution. She never visited a public school, but was educated by German > and English governesses and convent sisters. Her movements were restricted > and were mainly confined to the family positions in Paris and Belgium, but > she spent most of her time at the castle of Charmois not far from Verdun. A > lyrical strain in her nature led her to write quite sensitive poetry, > reminiscent of Verlaine. Her biographer sees their origin in a secret love > affair which was never revealed. In time, this became subsumed by a > passionate love of nature and the sympathy to her less favoured fellow > human > beings. > > In the process of helping individual blind people across the road, > Mademoiselle d'Herbemont was made aware by narrow scrapes which almost led > to accidents, of the precarious situation of the visually impaired brought > about by the steadily increasing traffic on the roads. She first spoke > about > measures to protect the blind against street hazards to her mother in 1930, > but she was of the opinion that it was unfit for a lady of good society to > create a public outcry and advised her to stick to the transcription of > books, a popular pastime of ladies of rank at the time. > > But the idea did not leave her. The urgent wish to encourage the > integration > of the blind into society by providing them with a means of moving about > more freely without endangering others, and at the same time attracting the > attention of passers-by ready to offer assistance, caused her to take the, > for her class, unusual step of writing to the editor of the Paris daily > "Echo de Paris" in which she suggested issuing the blind of the Paris > region > with white sticks similar to those used by the traffic police. > > The editor took up the idea, published it in November 1930 and saw to it > that the relevant authorities acted with atypical speed. Thus it was that > the white cane received official backing, and on 7th February 1931 Peguilly > d'Herbemont, during a small celebration in the presence of the minister of > war, Maginot, as well as the ministers of education and health, was able to > present the President of the French Blind Veterans and a representative of > the civilian blind each with a white stick as a first step of its > recognition as the official means of protection in traffic. > > The occasion and the idea provoking it received great public attention from > the press. On the one hand the idea, while not exactly ingenious, had to be > conceived; on the other, the matter was ridiculed by suggesting that the > victims of marital infidelity should be issued with yellow canes because > their distraught feelings might put them at risk in traffic. But there was > general agreement that this was an altruistic gesture at a time of ruthless > competition and unlimited pleasure seeking. > > Each middle has its reverse side. Peguilly d'Herbemont was not destined to > rest easy on the fruits of her ingenuity. Whereas the emphasis on the war > veterans and the restriction to Paris and the Department Seine were > undoubtedly intended to be a beginning only, nation-wide protests soon > started to the effect that all French blind should be issued with a white > cane and that the employment of the blind was also a 'field of honour' . > > A few weeks after the introduction of the white cane a tragic accident > helped to complicate matters. The attempt of crossing the Champs-Elysées > along the pedestrian strip under the protection of a white cane ended in a > fatal accident, when Doctor Racine was run over and fatally injured by a > wild-cat driver. Doctor Racine had just qualified as a medical practitioner > after many years and left a mother and a wife with two children without > means of subsistence. > > > > Left extremist circles tried to exploit the situation by ascribing the > fault > to the white cane and to make political capital out of the contrast between > the needy blind and the prosperous initiator of the white cane. > > Despite a serious illness - a tubercular infection which caused her to seek > a cure in Montana for four years - she returned to her life's work of > distributing white canes wherever she could. In gratitude for a successful > operation in Lausanne, Switzerland, she distributed 100 white canes to > blind > people of the Canton in 1938, and initiated the introduction of a new > symbol > of blindness in a country where hitherto only the yellow arm band had been > recognised. Over the years, the blind person's cane has changed shape and > size, material of construction and method of use, but not colour. Peguilly > d'Herbemont, who avoided publicity all her life, received many private > expressions of gratitude; in 1947 she was decorated with the Legion of > Honour, and in 1976 received the Freedom of the City of Paris. > > (New Beacon, September 1979) > > ¨ October 15, White Cane Day in many countries is to be celebrated this > year > for the first time in the United Kingdom. The object of the exercise is to > stimulate the general public to a better understanding of blindness and > visual handicap, and to make people more aware of the white cane as a > mobility aid. > > *************************** > > (New Beacon, December 15th 1937) > > HOW I OVERCAME MY BLINDNESS." > > This series of articles is intended to show how the many difficulties > attendant on blindness can be overcome in following various occupations and > professions > > IV.- An ex-Photographer > > By James Biggs > > Before I can tell you how I have tried to overcome the handicap of > blindness, I must tell you something of my tastes and habits before I lost > my sight. As a youngster I was very keen on athletics (gymnasium, cycling, > swimming, rowing, etc.), and I helped to start the Y.M.C.A. Swimming and > Chess Clubs, Winning medals and prizes in various events. Despite these > sporting proclivities, however, it was decided that music should be my > profession. Organ pedals were fitted to my piano for home practice, and at > the age of 22 I obtained Royal Academy diplomas for both piano playing and > teaching, and organised concerts and played a good deal in public. In turn > I > became organist and deputy organist at two or three city churches. > Nevertheless, I was destined for another profession. Amateur photography > had > always occupied a good deal of my spare time and gradually I drifted into > professional photography. I began by doing trade work and corporation work; > I took series of photographs for contractors erecting large buildings, for > libraries, for a University from foundation to completion, in fact all > kinds > of technical and general work. Eventually I became manager of the > photographic department of a very large firm, and later still a firm's > operator traveller, taking military groups, hospitals, etc., and > undertaking > all kinds of photography up and down the country for three provincial > newspapers, which meant travelling from Leeds to Plymouth and from London > to > Tenby and most of the towns between. > > It was about this time that the "crash" came. Whilst taking the place of a > man at the Front employed by a Leeds firm, I received accidentally a > violent > blow in the right eye, which resulted in detachment of the retina and after > several weeks in hospital, the sight of this eye went completely. I carried > on for some six months, when the other eye became affected, and altogether > I > was nearly eight months on my back with scarcely any movement. The sight > ultimately went from that eye also, and for a time this seemed the end of > things. A "black-out"! Up against a stone wall, at a "dead-end." It seemed > terrible at the time, and I knew then why many commit suicide in similar > circumstances. But after sympathetic talks with the kindly house surgeon > and the practical advice of a cheerful Grenadier Guardsman who had also > become blind, I determined to make the best of a bad job, take a firm grip > of things and "carry on. " The soldier said" What's the use to worry? > There > are scores worse off than you, however bad it seems now. You may be poor, > but you can be happy. Worrying won't make things better. Try to see all the > fun you can in everything, and above all, don't bleat your troubles to > other > people they've got enough of their own." All this was splendid counsel, and > I followed it. It reminds one of the very practical Americanism "Quit > squawking." This saying, by the way, was quoted recently by a noted London > preacher on the Radio. > > It was now just like beginning life all over again, but I formed many new > friendships, and after a time things gradually settled down. The soldier > had > taught me the Braille alphabet, and still taking his advice, I got cheerful > yarns from the splendid assortment of books in the National Library. It is > not fully appreciated what a blessing to the blind community this library > is, with its vast variety of books on innumerable subjects. The only > improvement I can suggest is that many of the "maudlin,'' miserable, > depressing tales should be burned. The blind want cheerful reading and not > doleful, dreary stuff. > > Another piece of the soldier's advice was: "Try to cultivate independence. > Go out by yourself as much as possible. Going about with others makes you > lose your nerve when alone." Soon after starting on my travels, it > occurred > to me that if my stick were painted white it would help matters. So I tried > it, and the result was eminently satisfactory. I advised others to do the > same, and those who did so found equal benefit. Then I started writing > about > white sticks to various institutions, to Chief Constables, newspapers, > magazines, motor journals M.P.'s, including the Minister of Transport; then > to newspapers abroad, in Canada, the United States, Australia, New Zealand, > France, Egypt and other countries; also to the Safety First Association, to > Rotary Clubs and similar organisations; and I got the BBC to broadcast the > idea. The organisations I have mentioned took the matter up so heartily > that > the white stick movement rapidly spread, for whoever tried the white stick > found it most useful, and now, after 17 years, white sticks are in use over > a large part of the world, and at least 35 per cent of the British blind > are > making use of them. It is very gratifying to me to see the scheme spreading > and I receive many letters from those who have proved the value of the > white > stick. Strange as it may seem, some sections of the blind appear to object > to it at first, but when they have given it a trial they are as keen as > anyone. > > In addition to being totally blind, I am stone-deaf in the left ear, and > suffer from vertigo which tends to make me always veer to the left in > walking, and a few years ago, to make matters still worse, a severe attack > of sciatica came on, making movement extremely difficult. After trying many > so-called cures, including an expensive course of electrical treatment, > without effect, my son, who is in the Navy, suggested physical exercise in > the form of "army jerks," moderate at first but gradually increasing, and > carried out regularly night and morning. This effected a complete cure, and > I am now able to do my old trick of holding out a bucket of coal or water > at > arm's length on my little finger. Not bad for all old crock of 70! I have > been asked to demonstrate these exercises to other sufferers, who derive > benefit from them. > > A matter regarding myself that I have never heard other blind people speak > of is this. When I am asleep, sight is fully restored to me in dreams. > Recent incidents and those of years ago are brought vividly to life. Light > and colour are there as distinct as when sighted. Old friends are > recognised, street scenes, buildings, etc. The anxiety of steering the > choir > through a difficult anthem, pulling out the stops and turning over the > pages > of music, or dodging about getting the best position for some royal > procession, everything is seen clearly and distinctly. I wonder if other > blind people get this sensation, and I also wonder what people who have > never seen dream about. > > > > Let me mention one or two of my "gadgets." For accurate timing I have a > cheap metal clock with the glass removed, and little blob of solder put on > the rim opposite 12, 3, 6 and 9, with file marks by the other figures. If > the clock is hung on a curved dresser hook by your favourite seat and hung > on the bed rail at night, you can get the time to a minute and correct it > by > the radio. And what a God-send the radio is! An ever-ready companion, > waiting at an instant's notice to read to you, lecture to you on travel and > all manner of useful subjects, and supply you with a never ending selection > of music. I often hear piano pieces that I used to struggle with, > faultlessly rendered on the exquisite studio pianos, to say nothing of the > scores of records. Sighted people do not know the value of the radio to the > blind. > > For ordinary correspondence I have had made a light wooden frame to fit > over > a Braille writing-frame with 22 piano wires stretched about half an inch > apart and a little above the surface of the paper. This prevents the > breaking of the pencil point and the wires "give" for h's or g's. > > Chess and cards are useful for spare time, and I now practise hands of > "long > crib" when alone. This is better than "Patience." Instead of using 5 or 6 > cards as in ordinary crib, we tried 9, later 12 and after discarding 4 and > turning up 1, you have 9 cards to count. The highest you can have in > ordinary crib is 29, but in the 12 you may hold anything from 4 to 180. > This > makes it most interesting. > > In getting about I have made many new friends, and some say, "You always > seem very cheerful, but then you have nothing to worry about, I suppose." > They spoke truly," You seem so cheerful."If they only knew! But trying to > cultivate that spirit of cheerfulness is the only way to keep going. Keep > your mind occupied with something all the time, and don't brood over your > troubles. Get out in God's fresh air as much as possible. "Quit squawking" > and always carry a White stick! And finally, just think over this little > quotation: "Turn your face to the sunshine and the shadows will fall > behind." > > > > Search for old postings at: > http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]/ > > To unsubscribe send a message to > [email protected] > with the subject unsubscribe. > > To change your subscription to digest mode or make any other changes, > please > visit the list home page at > http://accessindia.org.in/mailman/listinfo/accessindia_accessindia.org.in > > > > Search for old postings at: > http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]/ > > To unsubscribe send a message to > [email protected] > with the subject unsubscribe. > > To change your subscription to digest mode or make any other changes, please > visit the list home page at > http://accessindia.org.in/mailman/listinfo/accessindia_accessindia.org.in > > Search for old postings at: http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]/ To unsubscribe send a message to [email protected] with the subject unsubscribe. 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