So, did you think about the question from my last post? In your mind’s eye, what do you see when you think of someone who is blind or partially sighted?
In my adolescent years, we lived near the office of Vision Australia. Sometimes at the railway station I would catch sight of people who were blind coming or going from there. In my memory, they were nearly all young or middle aged men. I knew they were blind because they wore dark glasses and used white canes. I don’t recall seeing any person with a guide dog.
Until my own sight challenges, this was my image of what a blind person looked like – a male wearing dark glasses and using a white cane. I had never even heard the current politically correct term “partially sighted”.
This image has undergone a considerable change since my own vision loss. Personal connections with other people who have diminished sight has expanded and improved my original and misinformed perception. People who are blind or partially sighted come in all shapes and sizes and from many varied backgrounds. Blindness doesn’t discriminate when it comes to age, race or gender.
This became very clear to me when Lyle and I undertook our series of white cane walks across Canada. In the course of those walks we encountered literally hundreds of people who were coping with the challenges of vision loss. Some used a white cane, some were guided with their hand tucked to the elbow of a friend or family member. A few were assisted by a guide dog. The youngest participant on our walks was a four-year old boy. The oldest was a ninety-nine year old woman. We didn’t require any registration for our walks so we were never sure just who would come to participate.
I do remember a walk at Sault Saint Marie. We had arrived early and were waiting by the water when a group of well-dressed men arrived – all wearing dark glasses. Was this to be our group for the day’s walk? As it turned out – no! This was simply a group of business men ready to join a function on a waiting boat launch. Unless you are paying attention or know who to expect, there really isn’t much difference in the physical appearance of someone who is blind from someone who is fully sighted.
So, what does a blind person look like? There is no one answer. Without the accompanying cane or dog-guide, someone who can’t see could look like anyone else. There is no one defining physical feature. Perhaps that is why I use my white cane or wear my low vision ID badge. There are some situations when it is helpful for me to be identified as a person with a visual challenge.
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