About the CFB

"The white cane is a symbol of equality, independence and pride"

The Canadian Federation of the Blind came together to fight the social and economic inequality of blind people in Canada. We came together to celebrate the achievements of blind people. We believe blindness is not a handicap, but a characteristic. The high unemployment rate and lack of opportunities for blind Canadians are not due to our blindness; they are due to social and economic inequalities in society. Like the civil rights movement, we will work to establish positive and productive roles for blind people in this country. We will work to educate the public. We will work to change what it means to be blind.

Our Philosophy

• We are not an organization speaking on behalf of blind people; rather we are an organization of blind people speaking for ourselves.
• We believe that blindness is not a handicap, but a characteristic.
• We believe it is respectable to be blind.
• We believe that with training and opportunity, blind people can compete on terms of equality with their sighted peers.
• We believe the real problem of blindness is not the lack of eyesight. The real problem is the lack of positive information about blindness and the achievements of blind people.

Our Purposes

• To provide positive public education about blindness in order to improve the social and employment opportunities of blind people.
• To create and maintain initiatives to improve the lives and the status of blind people.
• To encourage a model of service delivery in which blindness-specific programs empower and are accountable to blind people.
• To support legislation that protects the rights of blind people, and to provide support and advocacy in cases of discrimination against the blind.
• To provide Federation settings in which blind children, youth and adults have access to mentoring with successful blind role-models.
• To act as a community resource for knowledge and positive attitudes about blindness for the benefit of teachers and parents of blind children and youth in order to enhance their social and educational opportunities.
• To increase self-confidence, travel skills, Braille literacy and independence in blind people.
• To provide opportunities for blind people to meet for support, networking and self-improvement.

"As we begin to move toward first-class citizenship (especially, as we insist upon our rights), we will inevitably provoke opposition; but we will also inspire understanding and respect"

What is the Canadian Federation of the Blind

The Canadian Federation of the Blind is a not-for-profit, grassroots organization made up of blind people speaking for ourselves.

Members of the Canadian Federation of the Blind are also members at large of the National Federation of the Blind (NFB) in the United States, the largest and most influential movement of blind people in the world.

Membership in the Canadian Federation of the Blind provides a common meeting ground and a sense of participation and confidence. Members gather together at annual conventions and local chapter meetings to share ideas and strategies, to pass resolutions to further the cause and to unite in our common struggle for equality.

"There is a polite conspiracy of silence about the actual abilities of blind people"

Who are the members

We are lawyers, psychologists, teachers, office workers, writers, students, mothers and fathers. We have as many talents, jobs, skills, flaws and weaknesses as does the sighted population. We encompass a range of humanity, young, old, white, black, First Nations, men, women and children… We have joined together to celebrate the achievements of blind people. United, we will attain equality and first-class citizenship. United, we will change what it means to be blind.

The Canadian Federation of the Blind is deeply committed to the empowerment of blind people. Only blind members have a vote. Sighted supporters are welcome as non-voting members. All members of the Canadian Federation of the Blind must demonstrate a commitment to the cause by attending several meetings, a philosophy session, and signing a pledge as prerequisites to membership.

Despite the achievements of many blind people, there are barriers that prevent the blind from fully participating in society. The Canadian Federation of the Blind is an organization of blind people working together to overcome these barriers.

Estimates indicate that around 90 percent of blind Canadians of working age are unemployed or under-employed. Many capable blind persons have never had a job. If sighted Canadians had an unemployment rate of 90%, there would be an uprising, but among the blind, this is seen as inevitable.

The Canadian Federation of the Blind wants people to understand that this high unemployment rate among the blind is not inevitable or acceptable. We must and will respond to this critical situation.

"Whether you think you can, or you think you can't, you're probably right"

Common questions sighted people ask us

Q: Wouldn't your life be better if you could see?
A: No. I like who I am. I am proud of what I have accomplished.

Q: Are you really blind? You do so well, I never would have guessed.
A: The stereotype of the helpless blind person is a myth. The reality is that we are a diverse group of people with as wide a range of abilities as any other group.

Q: How do you do that when you can't see? I could never do it.
A: Blindness is a skill. There are techniques and strategies one must learn to function efficiently and competently as a blind person. It takes time to learn to be blind, just as it would take time to learn to be sighted.

Q: Aren't blind people amazing?
A: Sometimes we are amazing, and sometimes we aren't, but we are no more or less amazing than sighted people performing the same activities. Just like you, we learn how to do things. Whether we are skiing, swimming, going to school, working in a profession, or reading a book, we have learned to do these things as blind people.

Q: Is your hearing better than mine because you're blind?
A: Blind people's senses, hearing, touch, taste and smell, are not innately or biologically different from anyone else's. We use our other senses; thus, we become adept at taking in information in these ways. The key word is use; the more one uses something, the more fine-tuned it becomes.

"Today we are organized, and active in the field. The sound in the land is the march of the blind to freedom. The song is a song of gladness"

The Canadian Federation of the Blind welcomes donations and bequests. They are greatly appreciated and helpful to our cause. But ultimately, we are not asking for your money. We are asking you to open your mind to a new and more positive concept of blindness and blind people.