Blind Americans Equality Day, 2012

Proclamation 8889 of October 15, 2012

Blind Americans Equality Day, 2012

By the President of the United States of America

A Proclamation

As business leaders and public advocates, teachers and
scientists, musicians and athletes, and in countless
other ways, blind and visually impaired Americans have
profoundly enriched every part of our national life.
Today, we celebrate their innumerable contributions,
and we recommit to guaranteeing equal access, equal
opportunity, and equal respect for all Americans.

My Administration is working to ensure people with
disabilities have full access to the education,
information, and job training they need. Over the past
year, we have continued to implement the 21st Century
Communications and Video Accessibility Act, which makes
it easier for people who are deaf, blind, or visually
impaired to take advantage of today's cutting-edge
technologies--including home and mobile broadband. As
part of that implementation, the Federal Communications
Commission has established video description standards
for television stations that help ensure programming is
accessible for blind and visually impaired Americans.
And in keeping with the promise of equal access to
technology under Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act,
the Department of Justice reported last month on our
progress toward making Federal resources fully
accessible and offered new recommendations to further
improve compliance throughout the Federal Government.

We are also striving to open new pathways for blind and
visually impaired Americans to pursue careers in all
fields, including science, technology, engineering, and
mathematics (STEM). To provide more opportunities for
students to achieve in math and science classes, the
Department of Education is promoting effective learning
materials for blind and visually impaired students.
This year, the White House honored 14 individuals,
including several who are blind, as Champions of Change
for their work to expand educational and employment
opportunities for people with disabilities in STEM
fields. Their example affirms that when the playing
field is level, people with disabilities are equally
capable of excelling in these economically vital
professions.

When the American people have the chance to succeed, we
can achieve extraordinary things. Today, we renew our
commitment to innovative projects and initiatives that
will propel us further toward full access, inclusion,
and opportunity for blind and visually impaired
Americans.

By joint resolution approved on October 6, 1964 (Public
Law 88-628, as amended), the Congress designated
October 15 of each year as ``White Cane Safety Day'' to
recognize the contributions of Americans who are blind
or have low vision. Today, let us recommit to
strengthening our Union and ensuring we remain a Nation
where all our people, including those living with
disabilities, have every opportunity to achieve their
dreams.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the
United States of America, by virtue of the authority
vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the
United States, do hereby proclaim October 15, 2012, as
Blind Americans Equality Day. I call upon public
officials, business and community leaders, educators,
librarians, and Americans across the

country to observe this day with appropriate
ceremonies, activities, and programs.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this
fifteenth day of October, in the year of our Lord two
thousand twelve, and of the Independence of the United
States of America the two hundred and thirty-seventh.