“Tip-Tap, Tip-tap!”
“What is this?”
“This is ‘white cane’.”
“What is White cane?”
“It’s the eye of those who can’t see: a symbol of independence!”
Ok, the special
Day is here with us: the World White
Cane Safety Day, October 15!!
Well, for those
who are still wondering what really the what cane is, I am here to tell you
everything.
White Cane is a
special stick that blind and visually-impaired people use for their day-to-day mobility.
Since I am also
a visually-impaired, I, of course, use white cane. It’s been an indispensable
part of my life, like my shadow, or like appendage! It’s been almost 13 years
since I started using white cane. Many people on the streets still do not know
the significance of the White Cane. while walking around, daily I have to face many
questions about white cane! Some people do ask if the cane shows the way where
we are intending to go! some wonder why
people with visual impairment use white cane as such
In other words,
many times, people bump, knock into us and get tangled with our Canes, even
though we are walking calmly on our right ways! Now what all these ignorance’s
mean to us? I think the answer is straight-forward: lack of awareness, of
course! So, what can we do to generate and raise the public awareness about
white cane then? Definitely, among the several ways, observing White Cane
Safety Day and letting people know what in fact the white cane means are the
crucial things to do, right?
Thus, We
believe by celebrating the White Cane safety Day, it will raise the public
awareness of what the white cane symbolizes: independence, safety and identity of
blind and visually-impaired!
Taking this
best opportunity, I would like to request all of you that when you see a person
holding white cane or walking with a White Cane, recognize the person is blind
and cannot see you, so help him/her to cross the road, give way if you are
walking and slow down or stop if you are driving.
We all should
understand that it’s not the matter of pity, but it’s the matter of priority;
it’s not the matter of charity, but it’s the matter of opportunity!!! Helping
the persons with white cane for the independent mobility, indeed, is one of the
greatest help one can ever offer. Let’s assist blind and visually-impaired for
the risk-free mobility!
Now let’s talk a little bit about the history and background
behind the initiation of this day. According to te information given by
National Federation for the Blind (NFB) America, on October 6, 1964, a joint
resolution of the Congress was signed into law authorizing the President of the
United States to proclaim October 15 of each year as "White Cane Safety
Day." This resolution said: "Resolved by the Senate and House of
Representatives", that the President, Lyndon B. Johnson, is hereby
authorized to issue annually a proclamation designating October 15 as White
Cane Safety Day and calling upon the people of the United States to observe
such a day with appropriate ceremonies and activities.” This groundbreaking
step germinated in United States, soon, got a universal form of global Day, by which many countries, one after
another, started to accept and observe this day annually in October 15 with
miscellaneous programs.
In Nepal, this day marks a special space in the entire
disability-related event. Under the leadership of Nepal Association of Blind,
(NAB), the big rally is organized with
series of speeches by prominent visually-impaired figures, awareness
programs on white canes such as street-drama, interaction with political
leaders and so on. Not only that white canes are distributed free of cost, and
blind/visually-impaired celebrate the independent and risk-free mobility.
The facts are intensely visible in Nepal that our roads are
not accessible, even in the urban areas including the capital city of
Kathmandu. Hence, these days, our main
lobby and advocacy are primarily concerned with pressurizing government to
adopt “accessibility” as an obligatory aspect and ensure the blind-friendly
roads and infrastructures in the country.
Here, more
awareness are needed. The activities and the endeavors that we are focusing are
not enough. First we need to raise public awareness on the significance of
white cane and then we need to make government realize the importance of
accessible infrastructures in Nepal.
Let’s hope for
the better situation for our barrier-free mobility. Sky is limitless, of course.
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