Blind and Visually Impaired Community
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School research proposal assignment (self.Blind)
submitted by gelema5
Hi! The final project for my class "Intro to Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies" will be a proposal for research in the field (which I won't necessarily complete, just propose). I'm curious how it intersects with the blind community and I would love some feedback. Do you think there is a difference in representation for women, LGBT, or minorities specific to the blind community? Do you think blind people perceive gender, sexuality, race, etc. differently than sighted people? Have you come across stereotypes that blind people perpetuate, or that sighted people assume about blindness (I'm thinking along the lines of "It must be hard to be a mother when you're blind")? Thanks in advance!
charliemyheart 1 points 6y ago
The ACB has a lgbt blind sub group. Trans blind guy here, honestly mostly what I have noticed in relation to being trans is the blind will tend to gender you by your voice, which for some trans people can be a problem.
I would also like to point out there blind that fit in different minorities, being blind does not me we can't be something else.
Sighted assume we can't be normal people and that we are either angelic, or the opposite, this is far from the truth.
The cis gendered regularly say to me your blind how can you be trans? I am because I am, and I don't need good working eyes to know the body I was born in doesn't fit my gender identity.
I would also like to point out there blind that fit in different minorities, being blind does not me we can't be something else.
Sighted assume we can't be normal people and that we are either angelic, or the opposite, this is far from the truth.
The cis gendered regularly say to me your blind how can you be trans? I am because I am, and I don't need good working eyes to know the body I was born in doesn't fit my gender identity.
gelema5 [OP] 1 points 6y ago
Wow, that's a very interesting perspective. Thank you so much for the insight! I can't really understand people who so completely trust that sight is the only way to experience the world. We say seeing is believing, but in reality it's easy to make a visual illusion, and much more difficult to make an auditory illusion.
If you don't mind me asking, do you feel pressured to "pass" visually? In my understanding, lots of trans people feel expected to pass as their own gender, so does that feel any different to you since you don't see what people look like as male vs. female?
If you don't mind me asking, do you feel pressured to "pass" visually? In my understanding, lots of trans people feel expected to pass as their own gender, so does that feel any different to you since you don't see what people look like as male vs. female?
charliemyheart 1 points 6y ago
Yes because I want to blend in, passing is blending in. Being sired at the right time, and called Mr., and all those things that make male and female.
I do see some, and grew up with a bad visual field, but clear central vision
I do see some, and grew up with a bad visual field, but clear central vision
gelema5 [OP] 1 points 6y ago
Ah, thanks for the clarification :)
fastfinge 1 points 6y ago
I read some studies a while back about sex education for blind students. Unfortunately, Google is failing me, and I can't find them now! But the long and short, going from memory, was that blind people are sexually active later than sighted people, and don't get as high quality of sex education (pictures in text books or on films don't work for blind students). I suspect this has an even worse effect on blind women than men.
Also, from $1:
> "…40% of women with disabilities have been assaulted, sexually assaulted, or abused in some way." These researchers estimate that 83% of women with disabilities will be assaulted, sexually assaulted or abused in their lifetimes.[88]
They don't seem to have stats for different types of disabilities, though. Lumping all disabled women together doesn't say much useful about blind people. Does that 83% of women hold true for blind women? That's something I wish I knew.
Also, from $1:
> "…40% of women with disabilities have been assaulted, sexually assaulted, or abused in some way." These researchers estimate that 83% of women with disabilities will be assaulted, sexually assaulted or abused in their lifetimes.[88]
They don't seem to have stats for different types of disabilities, though. Lumping all disabled women together doesn't say much useful about blind people. Does that 83% of women hold true for blind women? That's something I wish I knew.
gelema5 [OP] 2 points 6y ago
Thank you! I remember when listening to the biography on Mike May that as a blind boy growing up he had a harder time exploring sexuality than his friends because they could simply pick up a playboy magazine and drool over it. There is a ton of visual sex appeal in marketing. And the limitations of visual education is an interesting topic too..
Edit: spelling
Edit: spelling
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