Moreover, accessible books are not abundant either. There is a limited number of inclusive/accessible activities for the visually impaired, which are as simple as a museum visit. Leisure: The lack of accessibility for the visually impaired is central to a number of the issues the blind or low visual individuals face. Having little to no opportunity to support oneself, blind or low vision individuals are incapacitated from their independence. This has a negative impact on the confidence and emotional well-being of the visually impaired, while it totally cripples their economic independence.
Considering the lack of accessible work and working spaces, one can already imagine why hiring a visually impaired individual would be considered a liability for a company. Just because the sighted cannot imagine their world without vision does not mean that the visually impaired have a sad or unhappy life because of their visual condition.įinding and keeping a job: Work is a whole different matter if you’re visually impaired. Blindness or low vision does not indicate the intelligence of the individual nor how sad their life is. However, such mishaps tend to be perceived by sighted individuals as the inability of the visually impaired to perform tasks, while, in reality, they stem from the inaccessibility of our world. Stumbling upon an office chair that wasn’t neatly tucked under the desk or knocking a glass off the table because it was left right on the edge, are small accidents that can happen and that’s okay. Societal stigma: Being blind in a world suited for the sighted, it means there will be multiple normal mishaps.
BLIND PEOPLE HOW TO
Moreover, not allowing a visually impaired individual perform a task by themselves, does not give them the room to learn how to do so independently.
Rushing to help the visually impaired without asking or being asked to do so, might make them feel helpless instead of independent. Blind people might perform a regular task slower but that doesn’t mean they’re incapable of completing it. Very frequently, this behavior holds the assumption that the blind or low vision individual requires assistance, although this might not reflect reality. Overly helpful individuals: It’s very common for sighted individuals, strangers, friends or family, to be overly excited to help a visually impaired person.
Most of this information is inaccessible for the blind and the visually impaired, inhibiting their independence, since access to information signifies autonomy. Timetables in train stations, signs indicating the right way or potential danger, a billboard advertising a new product in the market, these are all the visual types of information we all come across in our daily life. One glimpse around us is enough to make us realize how visual is most of the information in our environment. This article aims to shed light upon the challenges the visually impaired face just by living life and being the odd ones out.Īccess to information: The major sensory organ of a person is their eyes. That means that any individual different than the average, such as the visually impaired, faces difficulties because they’re not what is considered to be average. Is this case as simple in real life as in our minds, though? As one of Envision’s founders said in his TEDxGouda talk, we have built a world around us that serves the majority. Blind individuals are just like anyone else but they just can’t see. Having to deal with sight loss or low vision is merely one of the challenges that the visually impaired are facing when living life.
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