Blind and Visually Impaired Community
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I am not blind, and am truly sorry for my mistake (self.Blind)
submitted by THP38111
During Mardi Gras last Sunday, I was with my kids as a blind man passed on Magazine street. I pushed my kids out of the way as he passed. Stupidly, in this case, but something I say to everyone, I said "glad to see you" to the blind man and patted him on the back. It has been an entire week and I still feel sorry for saying it - even though I didn't mean to be rude or funny. So, I came to Reddit to say I am sorry, and didn't mean anything by it, sir.
-shacklebolt- 4 points 6y ago
I'm not sure what you're apologizing for.
- Herding your kids out of the way?
That's unnecessary, and sometimes amusing.
- Patting him on the back?
Yeah, you shouldn't do that to strangers without their permission.
- Saying "glad to see you"?
While weird considering this was totally in passing to someone you didn't know, this is not offensive to blind people because most of us say "see" all the time. I go to see movies, I'm happy to see my friends, etc.
Either way, we can't accept your apologies on behalf of some individual any more than you can post an apology to a race or gender.
In the future, if you see a blind person, maybe just stick to trying to treat them like any other person.
You don't need to run out of our way or watch your words around us, and you shouldn't touch anyone without their permission unless necessary.
https://nfb.org/courtesy-rules
- Herding your kids out of the way?
That's unnecessary, and sometimes amusing.
- Patting him on the back?
Yeah, you shouldn't do that to strangers without their permission.
- Saying "glad to see you"?
While weird considering this was totally in passing to someone you didn't know, this is not offensive to blind people because most of us say "see" all the time. I go to see movies, I'm happy to see my friends, etc.
Either way, we can't accept your apologies on behalf of some individual any more than you can post an apology to a race or gender.
In the future, if you see a blind person, maybe just stick to trying to treat them like any other person.
You don't need to run out of our way or watch your words around us, and you shouldn't touch anyone without their permission unless necessary.
https://nfb.org/courtesy-rules
THP38111 [OP] 1 points 6y ago
Thanks for the reply. To be clear, I did treat him exactly as I would everyone else and wouldn't have considered doing anything else. I was embarrassed by what I said and what he could have interpreted as me trying to be funny or mean. I guess it pains me to think that the guy thought I was treating him differently than anyone else. Clearly overthinking this situation.
Also, to your point about asking my kids to move, he couldn't have passed if I didn't - we were on a sidewalk with little room in a very large crowd (Mardi Gras parade). So, it wasn't a random herding because "here comes the blind guy."
Regarding the pat on the back, I'm not embarrassed or upset about that and think it's honest human interaction.
Also, to your point about asking my kids to move, he couldn't have passed if I didn't - we were on a sidewalk with little room in a very large crowd (Mardi Gras parade). So, it wasn't a random herding because "here comes the blind guy."
Regarding the pat on the back, I'm not embarrassed or upset about that and think it's honest human interaction.
KillerLag 2 points 6y ago
It's okay, sometimes we all do things without thinking. I've worked with blind and low vision loss for years, and I still sometimes nod while talking or pointing at things.
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