peggy Chong is a visionary in the blindness movement. She was a leader
of the national federation of the blind of Minnesota, one of the
organization's most active affiliates, and co-founder of Blind Learning
In new Dimensions, a residential training center of which I am a
graduate. She served as chair of the board of the center during the time
I was a student there. I have learned much from peggy and share her
concerns about effective adjustment to blindness training that develops
the attitudes of blind persons. the article below is from the July issue
of the Braille Monitor.
kelly
Audio Description: Accessory or Accessibility?
by Peggy Chong
From the Editor: Anyone who watches much television or goes to many
movies knows that the old technique of starting the plot at the
beginning and telling the story straight through to the end is
currently out of favor. Today the plot advances by jumping from scene
to scene and story line to story line; so, unless one is already
familiar with the actors' voices, the program format, or the plot, the
narrative is difficult to follow by sound alone. It is certainly
helpful to watch such programs or films with someone who can identify
the characters and fill in with explanations of inaudible actions. For
those who enjoy such leisure-time activities and who don't usually
have someone to provide occasional explanations, audio description is
certainly a convenience.
In case you have never run into this invention of contemporary
entertainment, audio description can be broadcast or recorded as part
of a program or movie's audio, or it can be supplied live by a person
at an actual performance. The live description service is usually
available using special earphones in a theater, and only certain
performances are described. Those who supply such services are eager
to find new opportunities for providing them in their communities.
And, not surprisingly, those who provide descriptive video for
television and films are also eager to find the funding to expand the
number of movies and programs for which audio description is
available.
We might do well to consider what the effect on the lives of blind
people the increased availability of audio description is likely to
have. This is, in fact, what the Metro Chapter of the NFB of Minnesota
did, and the answer was disquieting. Peggy Chong, who was President of
the chapter at the time, wrote an article that reported on the
experience. It appeared in the Fall, 1997, issue of the Minnesota
Bulletin, the publication of the NFB of Minnesota. This is what she
said:
One of the people who describes plays at many theaters in the Twin
Cities came to the June meeting of the Metro Chapter of the National
Federation of the Blind of Minnesota to tell us what she does and
outline her hopes for the future of her business. She began her
presentation with the statement that she had heard that the NFB was
opposed to audio description. We told her this was not true but that
it was not a high priority for us. We pointed out that the Federation
had made it possible financially for the most recent inaugural
ceremonies of President Clinton to have audio description. We
certainly do believe there is some value in audio description of
events, plays, and movies, or we would not have put money into this
project.
A number of members pointed out that they enjoyed descriptive video,
and several of us said we had a DVS movie or two in our collections.
However, the lack of audio description does not prevent us from
enjoying other videos or stop us from going to the theater with
friends.
Our guest tried to get us to understand what we were missing when we
did not have an audio describer and how much enhanced our lives would
be if audio description were a regular part of them.
At one point she asked if everyone knew what our meeting room looked
like. She went on to describe the room, the ceiling, and the seats.
She paused to ask if there were other things that were important to
know about the room. Someone sang out, "The room was free." I don't
think she wanted to hear that. I think she only wanted us to be
grateful for her description of the room.
She went on to tell us of the many other activities that blind people
would benefit from if a person were present to describe what was going
on. One of her jobs was to describe a sixtieth birthday party for a
blind person and two blind guests.
Someone asked how she decided what should be described, especially
when she is describing parties, where there is no dress rehearsal for
her to observe. She replied that she talks first to the people for
whom she is doing the description: what are their interests, who is
important to them? Then, at the event, she makes a point to get to
know the names of as many people as possible at the event so that she
can give accurate descriptions of who is leaving early, for example.
In other words, she goes around to folks and makes it known that she
is there to interpret for the blind guests, who do not know what is
going on.
One chapter member told the group about a graduation ceremony he had
attended. At one point a dog walked across the stage with the picture
of the president of the college on his back. Everyone began to
chuckle. A stranger sitting beside our member leaned over to describe
the scene quietly, and they laughed together. In addition to informing
him about the incident, this impromptu action provided an opportunity
for him to get to know the stranger better.
Unfortunately our guest speaker misunderstood the point of the
anecdote. She said that it was one more example of a situation in
which the college should have provided an audio describer. Otherwise
our blind member might have missed this important moment.
The point was that, despite the lack of any professional audio
description service, he had not missed the moment. Because he did not
have an audio describer talking to him through earphones, he had an
opportunity to interact with others at the event. This NFB member has
had some adjustment-to-blindness training and knew there were ways to
find out why the audience was laughing. He was not embarrassed or
ashamed of his blindness. I am sure there were a few sighted people
that day who, for a variety of reasons, missed this moment and also
had to ask their neighbors what had happened.
At one point our speaker actually equated her job to that of an
interpreter for the deaf. We strongly said that we did not view her
job as particularly specialized or essential. Family and friends have
often described scenery, events, activities, and much more to us
without any training and have provided more than adequate information.
Moreover, some people just love to talk and describe things in detail
without being prompted. She was not happy to be reminded of this truth
either.
As Steve Jacobson was trying to explain a point to her and ask a
question, she began angrily packing her bag instead of listening to
him. She did not describe her activity. But we could tell from the
sound what she was doing. Our speaker left in a huff. As she was going
out the door, she shouted back over her shoulder that we would never
understand and that all the bad things that people said about the NFB
were true.
That was an unfortunate way to have the discussion end, but since the
meeting I have given a good deal more thought to audio description
than I ever expected to. Our speaker had backhandedly raised issues
that disturb me. I fear she was arguing that audio description is an
accessibility issue.
Today we certainly hear comments to the effect that theaters should
offer audio description as a means of providing access to the blind.
Increasingly we see audio description being used to promote particular
plays and theaters. Some theaters have even designated special days
for blind people to attend a play because that is when the interpreter
will be on hand.
Movie theaters and playhouses across America and throughout the world
have always been accessible to blind patrons. Of course we have
sometimes asked a companion or others attending the performance to
describe what has just happened, but this has not stopped us from
enjoying the play. Countless times sighted playgoers have also asked
their companions to explain what just happened. No one has thrown them
out of the theater for asking. Could it be that the reason blind
people are not at many performances is that we do not yet have the
jobs to pay for the tickets? Adding in the cost of audio description
to the tickets will not help to bring in blind patrons.
No, audio description is an accessory issue. It is not unlike a CD
player in your car stereo. The absence of a CD player in the car does
not impede the operation of the car. Nor does it stop you from
enjoying the stereo system. It just means that, on any given trip, you
may not hear your favorite recording.
It is not a big step from the idea that audio interpreters are a
necessary accommodation, important to one's understanding and
appreciation of a play, to the conviction that audio interpreters are
equally necessary for a blind person to supervise employees. Actually,
if a blind person believes that he or she needs an interpreter, then
the person's real need is adjustment-to-blindness training. Moreover,
anyone with so little self-confidence won't have that or any job very
long. Such thinking places a far greater value on vision as a
technique for learning about the world than any other technique. Those
who are successful in life, both blind and sighted, know that there
are many ways, other than seeing, to learn and enjoy what life has to
offer.
Several years ago a TV show titled "Mr. Sunshine" had as its main
character a blind professor. In one episode Mr. Sunshine went dancing
and fell off the dance floor. Not long after the episode aired, a
couple in California were denied entrance to a dance club because the
manager felt that they might fall off the dance floor. Real life can,
and very frequently does, imitate art.
Blind people who have successfully completed adjustment-to-blindness
training do not fret about what they cannot see. Our attention is
focused on getting the most out of life by using the many skills and
problem-solving techniques we learned during training and continue to
build upon. Once we have confidence and self-respect, we realize that
sighted people get lost; request help in the grocery store; ask
directions to the bathroom in a concert hall; and seek explanations
when they miss action, plot, or dialog at a play.
Does audio description result in inclusion, or will it gradually
separate blind people from the rest of the world? If we have to take a
special interpreter to a family celebration, aren't we telling others
that our needs are too complex for family members to converse with us
or fill us in on the activity without the intervention of a specially
trained interpreter?
Should tax dollars be used for audio description? In these days of
shrinking public dollars, surely we have many more important issues to
work on. Many of our problems are the same as those of other sectors
of the public-transportation, unemployment, information access,
literacy, and vanishing state and federal programs designed to meet
specific needs.
We have never said that audio description is a bad thing as it
currently stands. Our concern is that it be kept in perspective. There
are many negative repercussions of considering audio description an
accessibility issue. It is our responsibility to do as much as we can
for ourselves and not to grab everything we can for free. We are far
better off when we ask for assistance only when we need it.
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