President's Column

by Corbb O'Connor

(Editor's Note: President O'Connor delivered the following rousing report at our annual state convention in November, 2024.)

One year ago, you elected me as president. I felt humbled, excited, and nervous. As Steve Jacobson will tell you, I hemmed and hawed for weeks about taking on the leadership of this vibrant organization. As a blind parent privileged to have a career that keeps me traveling frequently, I feared that I didn’t have the time in my schedule to give this role the attention that it deserved.

By the time we got to convention, I’d planned out the hours each week, and I knew that I had a fantastic team of chapter presidents, board members, committee chairs, committed members, and eager volunteers.

One of the first tasks as president – after learning the mechanics of holding a constitutionally-approved meeting to ensure our board was fully elected, which, let me tell you, was truly a gift to have such a wonderfully large contingent of members present at a December board meeting – one of the first tasks was to identify a coordinator for our BELL Academy. I could have picked one person, but I also know one of the concerns that I’ve heard from many of you was that we don’t cast a wide enough net for those tasked with carrying out our programs. So, I set about creating a position description and application process.

Looking back, my fear about taking on this role came from a lack of a position description for the role of president. Well, that’s not totally true. Our bylaws provide some guidance here. 

Article 4, Section 1 states, “The duties of each officer shall be those ordinarily associated with that office, and all officers shall be voting members of the Board of Directors.”

Not too specific.

It makes sense, though, why we don’t have a job description for the president. When our organization was founded in 1920, we were busy. We were busy keeping blind people safe during a pandemic, yes, but we were also helping blind people live independently at home. When we couldn’t get people to rent to us, we managed the upkeep of a home for the blind. We were busy building a national organization. And, as you heard in the audio documentary of our first 100 years, the list goes on.

Today, we’re still busy 104 years later. 

Despite our crowded list of priorities and meetings, let’s pause for just a moment to write a position description for the role of president.

The President of the National Federation of the Blind of Minnesota serves as the primary leader, spokesperson, and advocate for the organization. Guided by its bylaws, the president ensures the organization’s goals, as defined by the mission, purpose, and resolutions of the NFBMN, are achieved. The role requires dedication to promoting the full integration of blind individuals into all aspects of society and advancing the interest and rights of blind Minnesotans.

All aspects of society. 

No wonder we are all busy.

Let’s look at the bullet points.

Lead NFBMN in alignment with the principles and mission of the NFB. Develop and articulate a clear vision and strategic plan for the organization’s growth and impact in Minnesota.

Hey, wait a second, we did that. 

This past January, more than four dozen members gathered in a crowded, hot multipurpose room to talk about what we wanted to do this year. Thanks to our secretary, Dave Andrews, I have that big list. 

• Add Friday morning to the convention agenda
• Host our chapter meetings in public spaces
• Tell more of our stories at chapter meetings
• Help people find services while BLIND, Inc. reboots

We may not yet have had the chance to run an airplane evacuation drill, host a car wash, or throw out the first pitch at a Twins game, but we did improve Uber and Lyft service in Minnesota. Support the increased training for teachers of blind students, move our board meetings around the state, and invest our finances differently.

Let’s go back to that job description. Oversee the management of the affiliate through its programs, services, and initiatives. The president also gets the joy of cultivating local leaders. Strong advocates like our chapter president Jan Bailey and the fantastic team in our Rochester Chapter. They have worked at the local level to build strong connections with elected officials. Our Days at the Capitol and Washington Seminars are great times to have meetings, but it’s these relationships at the local level that make it easier for us to find leaders like Minnesota Representative Kim Hicks, chief House author of our parents bill. 

You know, “she arranged the hearing, the meeting, she arranged the menu, the venue, the seating.” Okay, maybe not. But we were all “in the room where it happened.”

Seriously, Representative Hicks spoke passionately about our cause, and she put the spotlight on the critical cause of disabled parents and our dignity. Not only that, but Hockey-mom Kallie and hockey-player Serina Decker scored a big goal for blind parents in their testimony.

After more meetings and hearings, and with other legislators willing to go the extra mile to make it happen, the language passed the legislature. Soon afterward, Governor Tim Walz signed it into law. And this past August 1, Minnesota began a new era in protecting the rights of disabled parents.

No longer may courts limit custody, parenting time, or adoption of a child on the basis of a parent's disability; That’s right, blindness or otherwise. Disabled parents in Minnesota no longer need to fear that their disability could be the reason protective services is called upon them.

In the National Federation of the Blind of Minnesota we also protect the rights of children. If specific behaviors or other factors make it necessary to limit parental rights, courts must consider the use of supportive parenting services. A blind parent who hasn’t yet found the transformative power of a membership organization like ours will no longer lose out on time with their kiddo. 

We set a strategy in January to teach more nonvisual skills. Now, parents who are blind or have low vision will first have the chance to learn nonvisual techniques, receive mentoring, or take parenting classes before limitations or denials take effect. 

We are transforming how blind people perceive themselves and what they can accomplish. Blindness does not define our parenting any more than race, religion, sexual orientation, or other characteristic defines others’ parenting.

 We’re not the only ones who believe this, though. Senator John Hoffman of Coon Rapids believes in our capacities. Representative Kim Hicks of Rochester knows blindness is not the characteristic that defines us or our future. And many other legislators—who listened to us and gave their active support at important points in what was a very long and winding legislative process—they know low expectations create obstacles between blind people and our dreams. Most importantly, you, our members were key in making this victory possible. Our collective power, determination, and diversity achieved this dream…that parents with disabilities receive equal respect.

You know that you can live the lives you want, and this team effort is why we need the National Federation of the Blind.

Our brand is one that’s recognized. The Minnesota Commission of the Deaf, DeafBlind & Hard of Hearing knows we are the authentic voice in blindness. The Commission advocated for legislation that made a start in the accessibility of prescription labels, and they consulted us—the organized blind movement—at every step. We are now working closely with the Department of Health as they begin the several-years-long process of implementing braille labels on prescription medication. 

Braille is beautiful, and we know that not every print-disabled Minnesotan can read the six-dot code. With nearly 100 assembled here today, we are a community of blind people that’s as diverse as America. As such, we will continue to push for other forms of nonvisual access to the important information on these labels, like large print, screen-readable apps, and spoken audio.

Government affairs is just one area of our work overseen by the president. Let’s go back to that job description.

• Promote active member involvement and facilitate opportunities for professional growth within NFBMN…like when we hosted Tracy Soforenko in this room last August to build our knowledge of membership development.
• Act as the primary spokesperson for NFBMN, representing the organization to government entities, community groups, external stakeholders, and the media.

Oh yes, the media. After the work of our Metro Chapter earlier this year, seconded by our At-Large and Rochester Chapters, I don’t think that I can ever doubt the power of one resolution. I don’t know about you, but when I heard the news about rideshare leaving the Twin Cities, I momentarily felt powerless. A resolution was the way to proceed, but who would read it if we passed it? Little did I know that Jennifer Dunnam, who ably chairs our government affairs committee, knew just whom to send the document: Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey’s press office.

What started as a live-radio interview on MPR News’ "Minnesota Today" soon became a segment on FOX9. Then, it was off to the races. Our members were on live radio, prime-time TV, online-only news sites, and even the traditional print newspaper. This list is too great to skip: Bring Me the News, AOL, FIOR Reports, twice on KARE11, KSTP, again on MPR News, The Pioneer Press, twice in The Star-Tribune, The Bharat Express News, and twice on WCCO.

Our powerful, inviting voices told the stories of blind parents, working professionals, restaurant lovers, and seniors unwilling to be isolated who needed alternatives to a dwindling number of fixed-route buses and trains in Minnesota. At-Large President Dave Andrews knew that a Twin Cities problem was truly a Minnesota problem, and we rallied together with a unified voice. Our efforts contributed to the ability that each of us had to take a Lyft or Uber to this hotel today. We’re grateful to the mayor for his belief in blind people, we’re grateful for a statewide solution, and we’re still not done with rideshare companies. We didn’t work this hard to keep companies in the state only to see them deny rides to our guide-dog using members. 

In partnership with our national organization, Minnesota was on the ground in San Francisco picketing, chanting, and declaring, (Judy help me out): hey-hey-ho-ho rideshare denials have got to go!

More than running across town for press conferences and media interviews, though, the president of our organization is responsible for inspiring and mobilizing members, partners, and supporters to advance the organization’s mission. He, she, or they get to work closely with the Board of Directors to develop organizational policies, establish objectives, and monitor progress. The president must also wear learning shades and explore a playground with young tweenagers watching and giggling.

That’s right, at our NFB-BELL Academy this summer, I donned learning shades for the first time in 10 years encouraged along by giggles from a 12-year-old likely taking pleasure in my discomfort.

My training at one of those NFB structured discovery centers—it doesn’t matter which one—oh wait, LCB grads, speak up—but what Pam Allen didn’t tell me is that one day, I’d be eight feet in the air on a lattice of ropes desperately trying to remember where I put my cane and when I could get back down. 

Just as I thought there would be relief, though, I found myself pretending that I’d intended to hug that tree, check out the size of a nearby shed, and not be at all scared that I’d be clocked in the head by someone on the swing set. My how the tables had turned from instructor to student in that blistering-hot July sunshine.

With support from generous members, including our student division, this two-week program came about because we know too many blind kids whose teachers refuse to teach the basic skill of literacy, and it’s a program that also encourages what the so-called professionals term “activities of daily living.” Now, I’m sure they intend this as cooking, sewing, and washing dishes. We agree, but activities of daily living do include fun, you know? Activities like figuring out how to find playground equipment…and how to find your way back.

Sam Flax and Elizabeth Rouse transformed a classroom into a catalyst for change. The students entered a world of excitement as blind people volunteered to read tales of great adventure, rhymes from Doctor Seuss, and—most importantly—an entire chapter book. In a state that says blind kids will read at half the speed of their counterparts and thinks blind kids only need braille embossers for 90 days at a time because they’re just too expensive, this group saw that braille readers can accomplish the same things as their sighted peers in the same amount of time. 

Now, I’m excited to tell you, those students are still reading every week with our team, now even faster and with more confidence. 

Our BELL coordinator and teacher turned posterboards into plunge pools. That’s right—never doubt what happens when you put six large foam circles on a board, then ask a nine-year-old to use his body to form the f-o-r contraction. He had been upright, then he fell straight forward as though someone had hit him with the body-binding curse Petrificus Totalus from Harry Potter! Not wanting to be outdone, I’m pretty sure there are still some bruises on me as I realized being four times that age didn’t give me any competitive advantages.

Our competitive advantage in this organization sits squarely in our core values: the belief in blind people, yes, but also our willingness to lead courageously, to champion collective action, to foster inclusion, and to dream big. These values are the task of our entire organization, especially our leaders who give of their time and talents to serve on the board of directors. Steve, Jennifer, Dave, Mike, Kotumu, Yadiel, and Jan, you’re a team of doers. What the group assembled here today might not know about you, though, are the ways that you confer, contemplate, counsel, and challenge me, one another, and our organization. The role of president is more often than not the job of putting more ideas forward than can possibly be achieved and having a willingness to let good ideas fall so greater ideas can rise up.

No position description would be complete without one, final line: other duties as assigned by the membership. 

The bylaws say that this role of president is to “be those ordinarily associated with that office.” For our movement to grow, for our communities to see us as equals, and for the world to build with accessibility in mind, we must go beyond these seven words from our bylaws. In January, I challenged you to come up with some wacky ideas, and you rose to the occasion.

So, this next year, I call upon you to add to this position description…just don’t be surprised when I exercise quite a bit of delegation! 

Thank you.