| May 20, 2008
For Immediate Release
Court Of Appeals For District Of Columbia Rules That Paper Money Discriminates Against People Who Are Blind Gary C. Norman, Esq.
The National Council for the Support of Disability Issues applauds the ruling of the Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. The board of NCSD, a pro-civil rights education and advocacy organization, monitors and supports any action in the court that seeks to improve the quality of life and equality of opportunity of people with disabilities. ”And that is what happened through this ruling, which is consistent with the spirit and the letter of the law to increase the full inclusion of people with disabilities in the mainstream,” said Trish Fink, NCSD’s Executive Director. According to Gary C. Norman, Esq., Vice President, Legal Counsel and Spokesperson, ”Between the amounts of financial resources squandered through alleged fraudulent actions of contractors during the current conflagration in the Middle East and the annual budget of the Department of Defense, it is clear that, even at its maximum, a long-term and well-planned redesign of American currency in order that people with disabilities can better, if fully, access its insignia will not tax the resources of the government. Any arguments about such redesign comprising an undue burden and/or fundamental alteration seem ludicrous when one considers the extent to which the federal government has regularly augmented currency to prevent against such issues as counterfeit.” The majority fortunately did not accept the policy-based argument that currency does not need to be redesigned and generated in an accessible iteration, as machines that can identify paper money as it is currently designed, exist for people with vision impairments. Many cannot afford such technology, and in any event, this is neither as fast nor as portable as a person’s own hands. NCSD seeks to promote public policy that will positively enhance the quality of life of the broadest number of individuals, disabled and able-bodied alike, as anyone can experience disability on a temporary or long-term basis. It thusly becomes clear that ensuring accessibility to currency is a prudent use of our national resources and dedication, when the research demonstrates that the number of older Americans, myriad of whom will suffer vision and other sensory loss, will exponentially increase during the next twenty years. “The disingenuousness of arguments put forth during the case by organizations, such as, the National Federation of the Blind, becomes clear, when one considers that the Department of Treasury is poised to issue a commemorative coin possessing embossed Braille on its face, and from which the NFB, a non-profit, will receive a portion of the proceeds,” said Norman. NCSD pledges its support to Mr. Levitky in way of an amicus brief should the Department of the Treasury appeal the decision to the full court sitting en bank or to the United States Supreme Court. “The Board urges the administration to ensure that the word of the intent of the New Freedom Initiative is made equal to the deed of accepting the decision of the court and collaborating with all the stake-holders concerned, as opposed to any small influential organization of them with whom it is in agreement, to find accessibility options for currency,” said Norman. |