Shawn Callaway leads Blind Black Leaders organization

By Megan SaylesAFRO Workers Writermsayles@afro.com

As a sophomore at South Carolina State College, Shawn Callaway’s life modified right away when a stray bullet—unintentionally fired by a fellow pupil taking part in with a gun—struck him within the temple and left him blind. 

The accident led him to rethink his future, main him to consider that turning into a dad or mum was now not attainable. However, after attending a gathering with the Nationwide Federation of the Blind (NFB), he noticed blind dad and mom thriving and realized his aspiration was nonetheless attainable. 

At the moment, Callaway serves as president of the Nationwide Group of Blind Black Leaders, a division inside the NFB. Established to handle the distinctive challenges and compounded exclusion skilled by Black blind People, the group has develop into a automobile for consciousness and advocacy. 

The AFRO spoke with Callaway in regards to the group’s origins, the misconceptions Black blind folks face inside their very own communities and his efforts to advance inclusion. 

AFRO: What prompted the launch of the Nationwide Group of Blind Black Leaders division inside the Nationwide Federation of the Blind, and what gaps have been you making an attempt to fill? 

Shawn Callaway: We began off in 2018 as a committee referred to as Black Leaders Serving for Development. The last word objective was to carry consciousness to Black folks inside the blindness neighborhood and make inclusive areas for us inside the blindness neighborhood. However, then a few issues occurred. 

George Floyd was murdered, and there have been all of those discussions and city halls about how Black folks wanted to be handled higher in the neighborhood. Nevertheless, when these discussions have been had, there have been no blind folks or folks with disabilities on the desk. We felt marginalized by our personal folks. We wished to rework that by elevating consciousness. In 2022, we began the Nationwide Group of Blind Black Leaders. 

Inside our group, we additionally attain out to and recruit the Black members of the Nationwide Federation of the Blind. Then, what we do is focus on points that have an effect on us as Black folks inside the blindness neighborhood. 

AFRO: What are a few of the widespread biases that Black folks within the blindness neighborhood face? 

SC: It’s at all times assumptions about {our capability}. For instance, within the Black church there’s been numerous discussions on how we will be inclusive within the church. They inform us we have now the power to serve God by taking part in numerous ministries, however I can’t let you know what number of instances I’ve obtained calls from a blind one who says a ministry is apprehensive about them becoming a member of. They don’t suppose the individual will be part of the kitchen ministry and minimize greens or be an usher as a result of they’re blind. 

This additionally extends to the relationship realm. I’ve been married for 20 years now, however previous to that it was onerous. I might meet a younger woman, and subsequent factor I do know she would inform her dad and mom about me and they might query why she was relationship a blind man. These are Black folks telling their daughters don’t date that blind man since you might need to deal with him or do issues for him. 

One other instance is “The Breakfast Membership,” which is a wildly well-liked present, questioning the power of a blind individual to deal with a toddler or be a caregiver. They made enjoyable of us, and I’ll always remember it. What damage probably the most is that Charlamagne mentioned he didn’t consider that blind folks needs to be watching youngsters, however he could be keen to find out how they’ll. However, once we reached out, “The Breakfast Membership” by no means responded. 

Merely put, it’s such as you’re being marginalized by marginalized folks. We don’t have a voice. 

AFRO: What are the core values and objectives that drive the work of the Nationwide Group of Blind Black Leaders at this time?

SC: The primary factor we preach is data and consciousness. We now have a number of teams and committees, together with a ladies’s group; males’s group; seniors’ group; mentor and outreach group; Black elected leaders group; traditionally Black faculty and college (HBCU) committee and well being and wellness committee. We use them to debate  and convey consciousness to the issues which will plague us in our neighborhood. We additionally usher in excellent audio system that cowl totally different subjects inside these teams. It’s not all doom and gloom. 

We’ve had Haben Girma, the primary deafblind lawyer to graduate from Harvard College, current within the ladies’s group to point out them what success can appear to be as a blind, Black girl. The Nationwide Federation of the Blind additionally simply had its conference in New Orleans, and we invited a consultant from the Nationwide Council of Negro Ladies to return to our assembly. 

We’re making an attempt to make inroads with main organizations, just like the NAACP, Nationwide City League and others, to say we’re right here and we wish a seat on the desk as nicely. 

AFRO: What applications, occasions or initiatives have you ever held to additional the mission of the group? 

SC: We conduct a number of totally different Zoom applications each month the place we have now particular visitor audio system. We discuss well being points, relationship, employment, impartial abilities coaching, psychological well being and extra. We additionally mentor people who find themselves newly blind. We attempt to present steering as a result of they’re round folks of their households who don’t know something about blindness, and that may put them able of dependency. 

One of many issues we’re making ready to do is elevate funds for scholarships for blind, Black college students. The Nationwide Federation of the Blind, as a complete, can be working onerous to determine a museum for the blind folks’s motion. It could be positioned in Baltimore, and it might inform the tales of blind folks all through historical past. 

For extra details about the Nationwide Federation of the Blind and Nationwide Group of Blind Black Leaders, go to: www.nfb.org.