AFB Blog

“I was five years old when I lost my vision,” begins Kirk Adams’ essay published in the November 1 edition of the Seattle Times. The op-ed is an autobiographical account of Kirk’s own employment journey, interspersed with the employment-driven initiatives being undertaken by the American Foundation for the Blind. Kirk outlines how he learned how to use a cane and read braille at a young age, his pursuit of multiple secondary degrees, and the frustrations he experienced of prospective…

Over a two-day period falling roughly halfway through National Disability Employment Awareness Month, the American Foundation for the Blind held its second employment summit at AT&T’s Dallas headquarters. Fifty-five influencers from various blindness organizations and companies interested in disability inclusion in the workplace participated in the invitation-only summit. Nine major companies were represented, including: AIG Life and Retirement Apple AT&T Bank of America Deloitte…

AFB Director of Knowledge Advancement Programs Megan Aragon was recently a guest on the Reid My Mind podcast. She discusses her own journey with blindness, the advent of the Blind Leaders Development Program, and other assorted topics. The episode is titled “The Making of Blind Leaders.” The Reid My Mind podcast collects stories and profiles of compelling people impacted by all degrees of blindness and disability. Additionally, Producer and Host Thomas Reid explores his own experiences in his…

AFB is on BuzzFeed! In light of October as National Disability Employment Awareness Month, we wanted to spread awareness of some truly great leaders who are blind or visually impaired, that audiences might not be so familiar with. Helen Keller, rightfully, is perhaps the best-known example setter of an individual who left her mark on the world as a leader in political and social change (including and especially her work with the American Foundation for the Blind). But there are countless other…

NBC’s syndicated series “This Is Us” consistently ranks in the top three most watched TV shows in the United States. For the 2018-2019 television season, it tied with “The Masked Singer” as broadcast’s top entertainment series. The show tells the story of the Pearson family and jumps between the present day, the 1970s, 80s, 90s, and the future. In the first episode of the show’s fourth season, “This Is Us” creators introduce us to Jack Damon, the son of show mainstays Kate and Toby. Though…

Yesterday, the American Foundation for the Blind (AFB) was proud to announce that we will be partnering with the American Printing House for the Blind (APH) to expand public access to the Helen Keller Archival Collection and the archives of AFB. AFB is loaning its historic collections to the APH Museum, making Louisville, Kentucky, an important center for the study of the history of blindness and disabilities in the United States. Thanks to generous support from the National Endowment for the…

This week, the Supreme Court decided not to hear the Domino's Pizza case, which means that the Ninth Circuit court ruling stands: the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) applies to online spaces. The Ninth Circuit Court’s ruling mirrors a Department of Justice opinion expressed in a letter to Congress last year, that "this interpretation is consistent with the ADA's title III requirement that the goods, services, privileges, or activities provided by places of public accommodation be equally…

October is National Disability Employment Awareness Month (NDEAM). Throughout this month, corporations and other organizations renew and refocus their commitments to addressing the barriers that face Americans with disabilities in the workforce. The American Foundation for the Blind hopes to address a significant barrier to employment for people with vision loss by increasing our focus on transportation, which remains one of the most trenchant barriers blind people face when seeking and…

On September 24, and in light of October as National Disability Employment Awareness Month, George Abbott, AFB’s Chief Knowledge Advancement Officer, hosted a webinar sponsored by Getting Hired, a recruitment solution dedicated to helping inclusive employers hire professional individuals and veterans with disabilities. The webinar was titled “Hiring & Retaining Talent with Visual Impairments.” George’s presentation included advice and best practices on hiring and retaining people with…