Having had the pleasure of working around several people with disabilities over the years, I have gained an appreciation for the difficulties they face … whether it be trying to maneuver around the halls of the West Virginia State Capitol in a wheelchair or reading textbooks if blind.

Two weeks ago Inside Higher Ed reported on a lawsuit brought by the National Federation for the Blind and the American Council of the Blind against Arizona State University for implementing a pilot program that will use Amazon’s new Kindle e-reader to distribute books to students.  Why the lawsuit?  While the Kindle can translate digital books into audio, “users can access the feature only through on-screen menus that are not accessible to the blind.” (Emphasis in original.)

The article intrigued me because West Virginia has a chapter of a little-known organization, Recording For the Blind and Dyslexic (RFB&D), which takes textbooks and converts them into audio form with the help of volunteer readers.  The audio texts are then made available to blind and dyslexic individuals.

I encourage each of you to learn more about RFB&D and consider attending the local chapter’s Black, White and Read All Over Ball at Huntington’s Big Sandy Superstore Arena on 25 September 2009.