Even in spite of the hustle and bustle of the pace of today's life, we will unmistakably recognize in the streets people whose capabilities are limited. It is difficult not to notice them for one simple reason: it is much more difficult for them to live in this world adapted for a healthy person. In order to draw attention to people with low vision, October 15 is the International Day of the White Cane.
Mankind, unfortunately, does not always in time realize the degree of importance and severity of restrictions for a person who has lost health. At first he has to overcome the difficulties of everyday life on his own, sometimes alone. It is now created various societies that help solve the issues of vital activity of such people. But more recently, this was not at all the case.
The idea of using a warning sign for the blind
The history of the appearance of this attribute in the home of visually impaired people appeared much earlier than the International Day of the White Cane. She is almost 100 years old. The idea belongs to the English photographer James Biggs, who lost his eyesight in his youth due to an accident. This happened in 1921, when for every gentleman a cane was still an integral attribute. For him, the only way to adapt to movement on the street was to "feel" the road. This could only be done with a cane. But neither passers-by nor drivers understood these movements, which means they did not give way to the blind Biggs. The solution was found when he realized that it was the cane that should be visible before it is knocked down. Friends helped turn an ordinary cane into an attribute of a blind person by painting it in white. From that moment, much in Biggs' life has changed.
Initially, the idea of a white cane for the blind was spread only from the words of the most resourceful Englishman and his friends. They advised all friends who have serious vision problems to use this attribute for ease of movement on the streets. The English blind took another 10 years of waiting, while one of the most famous charitable organizations addressed this issue. Thanks to press coverage of this topic, blind English for the first time received white canes through the Red Cross.
Spreading a white cane around the world
By 1930, the idea of a cane for the blind had crossed the English Channel. France already had schools for teaching visually impaired children, the first of which was founded by Valentin Gayui. Already received the application and font Louis Braille, used today for reading by all people with visual problems.
Gwilly D'erbemont, an aristocrat known in her homeland as the protector and patroness of blind people, was actively distributing the warning attribute of a blind person in France. It was she who invited the Paris authorities to support the initiative to provide the blind with special canes.
The widespread campaign unfolding in the United States in the 60s of the 20th century clarified the problems of people with disabilities for American society. On the initiative of the Federation of the Blind and with the support of President of America L. Johnson, October 15 was called Safe White Cane Day . After 1964, this day received the status of a special annual date.
In 1992, the World Blind Union made an attempt to unify the International Day of the White Cane under the auspices of the United Nations, which would solve the vital problems of the blind of all nations. But so far this call has not been heard, and each organization seeks support from its government on its own.
Blind Day in Russia
The initiatives of the Russian society of the blind were first supported only in 1987. Today in our country, issues of equality of the blind and tolerance for them are regularly covered, but especially widely - on the International Day of the White Cane. Events dedicated to the main task - the integration of visually impaired and blind people in public life, are held regularly. This is not only holding seminars, lectures and meetings, but also providing practical assistance to those in need.
Sunglasses that cover your eyes regardless of the season, the barely noticeable sound of a cane tapping on asphalt are constant companions of blind or visually impaired people. As a rule, they are also accompanied by a faithful guide - a dog outfitted in a special harness with the already known red cross sign.
The main issue is tolerance.
International Day of the White Cane 2014 was entirely devoted to the issue of tolerance. Each of us must learn to understand that for a blind person deprived of happiness to see the colorful world, a cane is not only a tool for movement, it is his “eyes”. Understanding this complexity of perception comes only in "practice." On this day, many sighted competitions were held, where situations of vision loss were simulated. The simplest way turned out to be a blindfold, in which it was necessary to try to complete tasks, to cope with situations surrounding blind people in everyday life.
Another reason to try to equalize the rights of the blind and “try on” the lives of these people is International Day of the White Cane.
The desire to understand and accept
Almost all categories of people with disabilities have their own system of warning signs, by which any passerby can easily determine that he is in front of a person who probably needs help. For people deprived of the opportunity to see, such a distinguishing sign is a white cane. When we see a man with a white cane, we unmistakably know that this man either sees poorly or does not see at all.
International Day of the White Cane, the Day of the Blind, as it is called otherwise, is not only words that tell about the difficulties of people with disabilities. This is the desire to understand the people living near us, and accept them as such.