[Tn-talk] Two blind lt. governor candidates

[Shara Winton]

This is really awesome! I hope that we can see more and more blind people
doing these kinds of things and the "sighted world" accepting us as equals.

Bravo!
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "David Andrews" <dandrews at visi.com>
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Sent: Saturday, July 01, 2006 9:42 PM
Subject: [Tn-talk] Two blind lt. governor candidates


>
> >Many of you will remember that Christin Cox worked at the National Center
several years ago.
>
>
> Dave
>
>
>
> >Md., N.Y. have blind lt. gov. candidates
> >7/1/2006, 3:28 p.m. ET
> >By TOM STUCKEY
> >The Associated Press
> >ANNAPOLIS, Md. (AP) - Kristen Cox says it is an encouraging sign of how
much
> >public
> >perceptions have changed that she and David Paterson, both legally blind,
> >are running
> >for lieutenant governor in Maryland and New York this year.
> >"I don't think a few decades ago this would even have been entertained in
a
> >serious
> >way," Cox said Friday, one day after Republican Gov. Robert Ehrlich
> >announced she
> >would be his running mate.
> >Paterson, the Democratic minority leader in the New York Senate, is the
> >choice of
> >Democratic gubernatorial candidate Eliot Spitzer and has the support of
the
> >state's
> >top Democrats. In New York, unlike Maryland, candidates for governor and
> >lieutenant
> >governor run separately.
> >Advocates for people with disabilities are encouraged that two blind
people
> >are leading
> >candidates for lieutenant governor in the same year.
> >"This can only be positive," said Mark Richert, director of public policy
> >for the
> >American Foundation for the Blind.
> >"Clearly, just like anybody else who represents an ethnic minority, if we
> >succeed
> >people will say 'That's great. That's an example of blind people being
able
> >to do
> >anything,'" Richert said.
> >Cox recognizes light and dark but must read Braille or use a computer
that
> >converts
> >print into spoken words. She uses a cane to guide her around obstacles.
> >Paterson can see shapes and is able to read at close distances for short
> >periods.
> >He doesn't use a cane but has someone walk with him to help him navigate
and
> >to introduce
> >him to people.
> >Ehrlich's choice of Cox impressed Elaine Sveen, president of the Maryland
> >School
> >for the Blind, who is not blind but raised a blind child.
> >"This really highlights the goals we have as educators, goals of
> >independence and
> >to be successfully employed and successful in life," she said.
> >"It creates interest and thus opens the doors of opportunity for all
blind
> >individuals,"
> >Sveen said. "She's quite a role model for others."
> >Cox said she would be honored to be seen as a role model.
> >"I am who I am today because of people who were role models for me, who
> >mentored
> >me and believed in me," she said. "I think, quite frankly, I have a
> >responsibility
> >from that perspective to help others."
> >Cox, 36, is married and has two boys, ages 10 and 1. She has worked on
> >disability
> >issues as a federal and state official and with the National Federation
of
> >the Blind.
> >Representatives of the federation didn't return calls seeking information
on
> >any
> >other blind public officials or candidates.
> >After his election as governor, Ehrlich brought in Cox to head the
existing
> >disabilities
> >office and then appointed her as secretary in 2004 when the office became
a
> >cabinet-level
> >department.
> >Paterson, married with two children, is a prominent Democratic black
> >official in
> >New York and has been credited with helping Democrats gain seats in the
> >state Senate.
> >He lost most of his sight at age 3 months when an infection damaged his
> >optic nerve,
> >and he backs stem cell research as offering a promise of a cure for his
> >condition.
> >With a companion to guide him, he has run the New York City Marathon.
> >Paterson did not immediately respond to a request for an interview with
The
> >Associated
> >Press that was made through his campaign staff.
> >Maryland Republicans say it was Cox's talent and drive that earned her a
> >place on
> >the ticket - replacing Lt. Gov. Michael Steele, who is running for the
U.S.
> >Senate
> >- not the fact that she is blind.
> >"Her intellect is stunning, but it's nothing compared to her drive and
> >energy," Ehrlich
> >said. "When Kris zeros in on a target, she never misses."
> >Cox said she knows her blindness will be an issue in the minds of voters.
> >"They are curious about it. They have questions about it, and that's
fair,"
> >she said.
> >"I hope ultimately in the election that blindness becomes a non-issue."
>
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