The blind tyranny of low expectations
January 15, 2015 1:09 PM Subscribe
Daniel Kish is blind. He navigates the world without a cane; he climbs trees; he even rides a bicycle. NPR's new show/podcast Invisibiilia took over This American Life for the episode Batman, which explores how, perhaps, it is society's expectations about blindness which limits their ability to see. Transcript is available, but listening is the best way to really get the full impact.
Invisibilia is a short season show focussing on how forces we can't see shape our lives, created by Lulu Miller and Alix Spiegel. Previously.
Invisibilia is a short season show focussing on how forces we can't see shape our lives, created by Lulu Miller and Alix Spiegel. Previously.
Some of the breathless media coverage that's quoted at the beginning is a little silly, but now I get how he was using this as a media stunt to drive home his message around independence.
Echolocation in a remote location is one thing. In an urban environment with lots of ambient noise, it's another matter entirely. In any case, a blind person using a cane isn't a symbol of capitulation to lowered expectations - a cane is a mobility tool, one among many. It actually works as an echolocation device if you use two-point location (tap it) rather than using constant contact.
Leaving aside the whole echolocation thing for the moment (and the neuroscience behind it, which is very interesting) this story raises a bunch of interesting issues, and I think does it pretty well.
My husband occasionally comes home from work with some injury or other caused by the inevitable collisions that are part of not being able to see. As Kish's mother points out when she's asked if she's worried about him getting hit by a car, she says "that could happen to anyone." She's got a great perspective on it.
The choice is this: live a life of dependence, or go out there and the risks that are part of a life lived independently and richly.
The real low expectations stem from some of the problems identified by social model of disability vs. the medical model of disability.
From the Invisibilia segment: "Often sighted people will jump in a half a second too soon. And they rob the blind student from that learning moment. "
THIS. Just like that scene in Amelie.
posted by mandolin conspiracy at 1:48 PM on January 15, 2015 [5 favorites]
Echolocation in a remote location is one thing. In an urban environment with lots of ambient noise, it's another matter entirely. In any case, a blind person using a cane isn't a symbol of capitulation to lowered expectations - a cane is a mobility tool, one among many. It actually works as an echolocation device if you use two-point location (tap it) rather than using constant contact.
Leaving aside the whole echolocation thing for the moment (and the neuroscience behind it, which is very interesting) this story raises a bunch of interesting issues, and I think does it pretty well.
My husband occasionally comes home from work with some injury or other caused by the inevitable collisions that are part of not being able to see. As Kish's mother points out when she's asked if she's worried about him getting hit by a car, she says "that could happen to anyone." She's got a great perspective on it.
The choice is this: live a life of dependence, or go out there and the risks that are part of a life lived independently and richly.
The real low expectations stem from some of the problems identified by social model of disability vs. the medical model of disability.
From the Invisibilia segment: "Often sighted people will jump in a half a second too soon. And they rob the blind student from that learning moment. "
THIS. Just like that scene in Amelie.
posted by mandolin conspiracy at 1:48 PM on January 15, 2015 [5 favorites]
I was really glad they included the comments of the guy who was like, "Whatever. I don't want to click my tongue, and I like my cane fine." I think that was very important to include in the context of this particular story.
posted by Linda_Holmes at 1:59 PM on January 15, 2015 [5 favorites]
posted by Linda_Holmes at 1:59 PM on January 15, 2015 [5 favorites]
I was loving the episode until the crass pop-psychology bit right at the very end which was so wince-inducing it was like it was happening in slow motion. OMG telegraphing a Massive Irony.... no don't do it...don't..... NOOOOOOO
posted by coleboptera at 2:22 PM on January 15, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by coleboptera at 2:22 PM on January 15, 2015 [1 favorite]
I admit that I am reading the transcript and not listening, so my perception may be different, but I don't get the impression that Daniel Kish is anti-cane (it says at the beginning that he uses a cane) or that he thinks that only through oral echolocation can blind people learn to "move around with fluidity and confidence." So the obligatory naysayer section of the piece seems a bit out of place to me.
posted by muddgirl at 2:40 PM on January 15, 2015
posted by muddgirl at 2:40 PM on January 15, 2015
I-baLL, not to diminish this kid's story, but sadly, he died of cancer.
posted by ethnomethodologist at 3:18 PM on January 15, 2015
posted by ethnomethodologist at 3:18 PM on January 15, 2015
Yeah, a few years back. Daniel Kish is in the documentary as well.
posted by I-baLL at 3:27 PM on January 15, 2015
posted by I-baLL at 3:27 PM on January 15, 2015
So this book "The Making of Blind Men" doesn't seem to be available as an audio book.
I have a cousin who is blind and crippled my her mother's (especially) and the rest of the family's sheltering and catering to her. I visited recently and was frustrated to see that it was worse than I realized : She's 50 years old and doesn't have a key to her own home. When they sit her down at a table (and make no mistake -- she doesn't just sit down, someone else sits her down) and she feels a knife and fork she says "I don't know why they gave me this. I can't eat with a knife and fork." People walk her to the bathroom in her own home. She complains about people bumping into her in the street when she walks with her mother (she never leaves the house alone). We say "People can't guess that you're blind. Carry your cane." she says "My mother is my cane."
When I don't do things for her or say they shouldn't either I'm accused of a lack of compassion. And in truth I don't know how to intervene or convince people to let her do things and try to help her. After all, when I say "she should do this or that," aren't I infantilizing her, too?
She lost her vision as an adult, but her mother has always made her dependent. I remember when I was a teenager visiting them (long before she had lost her vision) I went to open a bag of milk with a pair of scissors. My aunt (her mom) came rushing into the kitchen and took the scissors from my hand and opened the milk bag for me: "Let me do that. You could cut yourself." I was a teenager. I can't imagine how crippling it must be to be raised that way and then to lose one's vision. And I don't know how to help her.
I will send this podcast to a bunch of family members, though it won't help ("Yes, they can but she can't...can't you see that she can't?") If I could get an audio copy of the book I would send it to her. I don't necessarily think she would learn to click at her age, but if only she and others believed that she could learn to cut her own meat and walk to the bathroom by herself.
posted by If only I had a penguin... at 3:49 PM on January 15, 2015 [7 favorites]
I have a cousin who is blind and crippled my her mother's (especially) and the rest of the family's sheltering and catering to her. I visited recently and was frustrated to see that it was worse than I realized : She's 50 years old and doesn't have a key to her own home. When they sit her down at a table (and make no mistake -- she doesn't just sit down, someone else sits her down) and she feels a knife and fork she says "I don't know why they gave me this. I can't eat with a knife and fork." People walk her to the bathroom in her own home. She complains about people bumping into her in the street when she walks with her mother (she never leaves the house alone). We say "People can't guess that you're blind. Carry your cane." she says "My mother is my cane."
When I don't do things for her or say they shouldn't either I'm accused of a lack of compassion. And in truth I don't know how to intervene or convince people to let her do things and try to help her. After all, when I say "she should do this or that," aren't I infantilizing her, too?
She lost her vision as an adult, but her mother has always made her dependent. I remember when I was a teenager visiting them (long before she had lost her vision) I went to open a bag of milk with a pair of scissors. My aunt (her mom) came rushing into the kitchen and took the scissors from my hand and opened the milk bag for me: "Let me do that. You could cut yourself." I was a teenager. I can't imagine how crippling it must be to be raised that way and then to lose one's vision. And I don't know how to help her.
I will send this podcast to a bunch of family members, though it won't help ("Yes, they can but she can't...can't you see that she can't?") If I could get an audio copy of the book I would send it to her. I don't necessarily think she would learn to click at her age, but if only she and others believed that she could learn to cut her own meat and walk to the bathroom by herself.
posted by If only I had a penguin... at 3:49 PM on January 15, 2015 [7 favorites]
I don't think of it as an "obligatory naysayer" section. I suspect they learned that not all blind people welcome this particular guy or agree with his theories about how people should learn, and they considered that part of the story -- particularly since while he might not be anti-cane, there certainly was a sense that he thinks a lot of other blind people are living lesser lives than the ones they'd have if they (and their families) took his advice.
posted by Linda_Holmes at 4:17 PM on January 15, 2015
posted by Linda_Holmes at 4:17 PM on January 15, 2015
I forwarded the podcast to my local blind guy, and he listened to it on the way home. He was annoyed for precisely that reason - the naysayer was necessary 'cuz YOU try to find a pothole on a busy sidewalk with clicking.
Anyway -
If only I had a penguin: Oy. That's horrendous. I can recommend Stephen Kuusisto as further reading as well.
Also, she doesn't need to learn to click. Just using a cane, and maybe learning to "click" using an iPhone or iPad. If you Mefi Mail me, I can put you in touch with a blind guy who's currently cursing on the couch as he's reading your post (reading it on his iPhone, using voiceover). He may have some suggestions for approaching the situation/resources that are available. Just saying. Door's open.
posted by mandolin conspiracy at 4:56 PM on January 15, 2015 [1 favorite]
Anyway -
If only I had a penguin: Oy. That's horrendous. I can recommend Stephen Kuusisto as further reading as well.
Also, she doesn't need to learn to click. Just using a cane, and maybe learning to "click" using an iPhone or iPad. If you Mefi Mail me, I can put you in touch with a blind guy who's currently cursing on the couch as he's reading your post (reading it on his iPhone, using voiceover). He may have some suggestions for approaching the situation/resources that are available. Just saying. Door's open.
posted by mandolin conspiracy at 4:56 PM on January 15, 2015 [1 favorite]
I suspect they learned that not all blind people welcome this particular guy or agree with his theories about how people should learn, and they considered that part of the story
Then they should actually make it part of the story. What are other techniques for improving independence of people who are visually impaired but have been relying on human aides? The NFB is briefly mentioned - what are their strategies?
If this is a story about the social model of disability, echolocation, and the visual cortex, then drop the "savior of blind people" strawman and make it about that. If this is about independence for people who are blind, and a disagreement in the community about the best way to achieve that, then make it about independence for people who are blind and not just about Kish. Otherwise, to me, that section just seems pro forma, which is unfair particularly to Eric Woods and other independence-focused instructors who are blind.
posted by muddgirl at 6:00 PM on January 15, 2015 [1 favorite]
Then they should actually make it part of the story. What are other techniques for improving independence of people who are visually impaired but have been relying on human aides? The NFB is briefly mentioned - what are their strategies?
If this is a story about the social model of disability, echolocation, and the visual cortex, then drop the "savior of blind people" strawman and make it about that. If this is about independence for people who are blind, and a disagreement in the community about the best way to achieve that, then make it about independence for people who are blind and not just about Kish. Otherwise, to me, that section just seems pro forma, which is unfair particularly to Eric Woods and other independence-focused instructors who are blind.
posted by muddgirl at 6:00 PM on January 15, 2015 [1 favorite]
I was really glad they included the comments of the guy who was like, "Whatever. I don't want to click my tongue, and I like my cane fine." I think that was very important to include in the context of this particular story.
And that man was Molly Ringwald's father.
posted by maxsparber at 7:34 PM on January 15, 2015 [2 favorites]
And that man was Molly Ringwald's father.
posted by maxsparber at 7:34 PM on January 15, 2015 [2 favorites]
Oh boy do I ever have a lot to say on this topic. Qualifications: I'm visually impaired, have been my whole life. I'm always glad when these things come up on the blue. Even happier when it appears that there's a modicum of discussion surrounding them, as I think they go unseen and unregarded. There are lots of reasons for that and to address them would be outside the scope of what I feel I need to say.
I absolutely think Kish is right on the money. I want to make a couple illustrative points that I hope will be instructive.
Firstly, I have been visually impaired since birth. I've got Leber's Congenital Amaurosis FWIW. I was brought up in the public school system until I was thirteen, and then I transitioned to a school for the blind seeking the sorts of specific aid that could be gained from it. I have a lot of mixed emotions about the path I took, and the past is the past, so I don't think it would be appropriate to break those thoughts down point by point. But here's what I'll say about the nature of expectation and its impact on a visually impaired person's life.
When I was in elementary school, I was paired up with a special educator whose job it was to give me training in blindness-specific tools such as Braille and assistive technology. That element was great, and my teacher was one of the good ones. She never let me make excuses for myself or slide. She instilled the bedrock that has kept me fighting for the rest of my life. But she was only one woman, and my single mother was only one woman, and reality will inevitably win out over idealism.
I was totally isolated at school as a child. The rest of the kids either made open fun of my condition or avoided me. I was a pariah. Fortunately, I was inclined to live in my own head anyway. I was an avid reader and a tremendous nerd with a propensity for video games and things of that sort. My inward lifestyle kept me shielded from the reality that I wasn't normal. And I'm glad for that because it's only in retrospect now that I can see the sort of damage that kind of perception can do to a person. Hell, I probably haven't unpacked a lot of it as an adult.
And then I decided to attend the school for the blind. And that came with its own particular problems. There's an either or proposition when you're a disabled person. You either stick to your own or you strike out and attempt to integrate. I think any self-sufficient person would opt for integration above the alternative, because the greater society is a good place to be. Everyone wants to be a part of something, to be meaningful, to have an impact. And to be honest, I've seen so many blind people willfully embrace the yolk that I often found myself totally disgusted. I didn't want to be associated with them, their weakness, their total dependence, their excuses, their satisfaction with social enslavement. So I fought against it.
The thing is, I developed that point of view by spending time at a school for the blind. Now if an institution meant to foster independence in its clientele is drawing out that kind of response from one of its own, you know you've got a real problem.
And I had double the problem. While I exuded confidence and pressed against the low expectations around me, I was also denying the fact that I needed very real help. Being an intelligent and eloquent person who stands a few feet above the low bar set by his educators and peers, nobody thought that I might need help. And I was happy to reinforce that myth. After all, I had respect, and that's in short supply for the blind unless you're willing to fight daily for it. But, the hermetically sealed nature of the blind school meant that I never had the benefit of reality to test myself against. A lot changed when I finally got out into the real world.
I'll tell you what's terrifying and frustrating about blindness, and what I've been combating vigorously for my whole adult life. You're perpetually in a state of uncertainty about almost everything. on the one hand, you want to project confidence and self-sufficiency because people are far too prepared to step in when their assistance is unwanted. And the problem is, if you ever acknowledge your difference, or ask for help, or admit that certain elements of life are more difficult with blindness , all those ignorant people take your one single request as an affirmation of their baseless assumptions. It's a curse. Ask for help and prove them right. Stay silent and live a difficult life.
All this is to say that I think Kish is right on the money. It's perpetual low expectations that keep our wrists chained. I'm not even where I'd like to be in terms of my self-sufficiency and people are ready and able to pat me on the head for scrubbing a toilet. It's infuriating and it makes living day to day so difficult. And there is pressure from within the community too because you have people who've succeeded against all odds, but I see very little sympathy coming from that quarter for those of us that live in a weird gray area where we aren't quite dependent and infantilized but we are also not as completely independent as we want to be.
Thing is, it's a mess. It really is. And I love what Kish is doing because he gets it. He understands that the capacity for failure has to be there, that an element of risk and danger has to exist. Without the very real risk of failure or injury or whatever, you're just simulating life, not living it. That's tragic. So I say go for it.
I'm a cane user, and I don't subscribe to echolocation myself. But I say whatever works and whatever allows visually impaired people to live productive fulfilling lives is fine. After all, you learn resourcefulness and adaptability in our position. It comes with the territory. I'm in full support of whatever means by which blind people can lead independent lives.
This stirred up a lot of thoughts in me. I don't really even know how to get at what needs saying. I'm just overjoyed that there's even a discussion about it at all because I've been trying to express to sighted people that their "compassion" is a destructive force. It removes agency and humanity from blind people. It keeps them subservient, reliant, and if the world could realize that we aren't made out of glass they'd find a group of human beings no different than themselves. It's not going to change overnight, or even in the near future, but I'm just happy there's a spotlight on it at all right now.
posted by Ephelump Jockey at 11:42 AM on January 16, 2015 [14 favorites]
I absolutely think Kish is right on the money. I want to make a couple illustrative points that I hope will be instructive.
Firstly, I have been visually impaired since birth. I've got Leber's Congenital Amaurosis FWIW. I was brought up in the public school system until I was thirteen, and then I transitioned to a school for the blind seeking the sorts of specific aid that could be gained from it. I have a lot of mixed emotions about the path I took, and the past is the past, so I don't think it would be appropriate to break those thoughts down point by point. But here's what I'll say about the nature of expectation and its impact on a visually impaired person's life.
When I was in elementary school, I was paired up with a special educator whose job it was to give me training in blindness-specific tools such as Braille and assistive technology. That element was great, and my teacher was one of the good ones. She never let me make excuses for myself or slide. She instilled the bedrock that has kept me fighting for the rest of my life. But she was only one woman, and my single mother was only one woman, and reality will inevitably win out over idealism.
I was totally isolated at school as a child. The rest of the kids either made open fun of my condition or avoided me. I was a pariah. Fortunately, I was inclined to live in my own head anyway. I was an avid reader and a tremendous nerd with a propensity for video games and things of that sort. My inward lifestyle kept me shielded from the reality that I wasn't normal. And I'm glad for that because it's only in retrospect now that I can see the sort of damage that kind of perception can do to a person. Hell, I probably haven't unpacked a lot of it as an adult.
And then I decided to attend the school for the blind. And that came with its own particular problems. There's an either or proposition when you're a disabled person. You either stick to your own or you strike out and attempt to integrate. I think any self-sufficient person would opt for integration above the alternative, because the greater society is a good place to be. Everyone wants to be a part of something, to be meaningful, to have an impact. And to be honest, I've seen so many blind people willfully embrace the yolk that I often found myself totally disgusted. I didn't want to be associated with them, their weakness, their total dependence, their excuses, their satisfaction with social enslavement. So I fought against it.
The thing is, I developed that point of view by spending time at a school for the blind. Now if an institution meant to foster independence in its clientele is drawing out that kind of response from one of its own, you know you've got a real problem.
And I had double the problem. While I exuded confidence and pressed against the low expectations around me, I was also denying the fact that I needed very real help. Being an intelligent and eloquent person who stands a few feet above the low bar set by his educators and peers, nobody thought that I might need help. And I was happy to reinforce that myth. After all, I had respect, and that's in short supply for the blind unless you're willing to fight daily for it. But, the hermetically sealed nature of the blind school meant that I never had the benefit of reality to test myself against. A lot changed when I finally got out into the real world.
I'll tell you what's terrifying and frustrating about blindness, and what I've been combating vigorously for my whole adult life. You're perpetually in a state of uncertainty about almost everything. on the one hand, you want to project confidence and self-sufficiency because people are far too prepared to step in when their assistance is unwanted. And the problem is, if you ever acknowledge your difference, or ask for help, or admit that certain elements of life are more difficult with blindness , all those ignorant people take your one single request as an affirmation of their baseless assumptions. It's a curse. Ask for help and prove them right. Stay silent and live a difficult life.
All this is to say that I think Kish is right on the money. It's perpetual low expectations that keep our wrists chained. I'm not even where I'd like to be in terms of my self-sufficiency and people are ready and able to pat me on the head for scrubbing a toilet. It's infuriating and it makes living day to day so difficult. And there is pressure from within the community too because you have people who've succeeded against all odds, but I see very little sympathy coming from that quarter for those of us that live in a weird gray area where we aren't quite dependent and infantilized but we are also not as completely independent as we want to be.
Thing is, it's a mess. It really is. And I love what Kish is doing because he gets it. He understands that the capacity for failure has to be there, that an element of risk and danger has to exist. Without the very real risk of failure or injury or whatever, you're just simulating life, not living it. That's tragic. So I say go for it.
I'm a cane user, and I don't subscribe to echolocation myself. But I say whatever works and whatever allows visually impaired people to live productive fulfilling lives is fine. After all, you learn resourcefulness and adaptability in our position. It comes with the territory. I'm in full support of whatever means by which blind people can lead independent lives.
This stirred up a lot of thoughts in me. I don't really even know how to get at what needs saying. I'm just overjoyed that there's even a discussion about it at all because I've been trying to express to sighted people that their "compassion" is a destructive force. It removes agency and humanity from blind people. It keeps them subservient, reliant, and if the world could realize that we aren't made out of glass they'd find a group of human beings no different than themselves. It's not going to change overnight, or even in the near future, but I'm just happy there's a spotlight on it at all right now.
posted by Ephelump Jockey at 11:42 AM on January 16, 2015 [14 favorites]
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posted by jazon at 1:32 PM on January 15, 2015 [1 favorite]