Minister Tinee Furbert On World Braille Day
“As the Minister for Social Development & Seniors, I take this opportunity to highlight persons in our community who are blind or have visual impairments on World Braille Day, celebrated annually on 4th January,” Minister of Social Development and Seniors Tinee Furbert said.
Minister Furbert said, “This day recognizes the immense contributions of Louis Braille, the inventor of Braille, has had in helping blind and visually impaired people globally to read and write.
“This year marks the fourth year of observation of World Braille Day since its formalization by the UN General Assembly. World Braille Day celebrates the importance of Braille as a means of communication in the full realization of the human rights for blind and partially sighted people.
“Before Braille, visually impaired people read and wrote using the Hauy system, a complicated method of communication that embossed Latin letters on thick paper or leather. This system was limited as it only allowed people to read and required considerable training.
“At 15, Louis Braille invented the Braille code, a tactile representation of alphabetic and numerical symbols using six dots to represent each letter and number. This code allows all languages and subjects like mathematics, music, and computer programming to be read and written in Braille.
“The Covid-19 pandemic has shown the Government how important it is to have essential information in various accessible formats, including Braille and audible formats.
“During the Covid-19 pandemic, visually impaired persons within our community who rely on touch for direction, communication, and access to information faced many challenges such as isolation and limited independence. These challenges reinforce the need for Government to enhance its digital information platform further to ensure everyone in our population benefits by having access to information without limitations.
“With technological advancement, audiobooks and text-to-speech technologies integrated into smartphones and laptops make it possible for visually impaired persons to use resources like WebPages. However, Braille is still as important today as some 200 years ago. Braille allows people with visual impairments to interpret books and make their lives simpler, such as purchasing over-the-counter medications in the pharmacy.
“Residents of Bermuda must do a better job within our community to bridge the gap among normal and differently-abled individuals, in this instance, persons who are blind or are visually impaired.
“I encourage members of our community who are not visually impaired to use today to further expand your knowledge about blind and visually impaired persons within our community by doing one of the following:-
- Contact Vision Bermuda [formally known as the Bermuda Society for the Blind] and see if you can assist by either volunteering in some capacity or donating to this registered charity #90.
- Visit the Sensory Garden at the Botanical Gardens – enjoy the experience by touching the Braille signs and listening to the birds and water flowing in the pond.
- Post messages on your Facebook page or in your WhatsApp groups or other social platforms to inform people about World Braille Day.
- Listen to a YouTube video about Braille.
- Purchase a book with Braille and feel your way through the pages.
- Take a step outside the box and learn Braille.
- Read the book entitled, Through My Eyes written by local author Ellen Kelly, a children’s book that shares the story of local entertainer Jean Howes who lost her eyesight at the age of nine years old.
- Improve the accessibility of your businesses and introduce signage, flyers, etc., and sell or make products with Braille on it.
As Louise Braille stated, “access to communication in the widest sense is access to knowledge, and that is vitally important for us if we are not to go on being despised or patronized by condescending sighted people. We do not need pity, nor do we need to be reminded that we are vulnerable. We must be treated as equals – and communication is the way we can bring this about”.
“On behalf of the Government of Bermuda Happy World Braille Day 2022!”
