Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!yale!bunker!hcap!hnews!129!89.0!David.Andrews From: David.Andrews@p0.f89.n129.z1.fidonet.org (David Andrews) Newsgroups: misc.handicap Subject: Answer to Mazrui Letter Message-ID: <17556@bunker.UUCP> Date: 4 Feb 91 17:12:08 GMT Sender: wtm@bunker.UUCP Reply-To: David.Andrews@p0.f89.n129.z1.fidonet.org Distribution: misc Organization: FidoNet node 1:129/89.0 - BlinkLink, Pittsburgh PA Lines: 75 Approved: wtm@bunker.UUCP Index Number: 13437 [This is from the Blink Talk Conference] A few weeks ago, Jamal Mazrui posted a letter that he had sent to Marc Maurer, President of the National Federation of the Blind. Below is the response to that letter.' Mr. Marc Maurer President National Federation of the Blind 1800 Johnson Street Baltimore, MD 21230 January 2, 1991 Mr. Jamal Mazrui 308 Summer Street Apartment 1R Cambridge, Massachusetts 02144 Dear Jamal: I have the letter you sent dated December 18, 1990. In it you list a number of demands. You want to be offered space in the Braille Monitor. You want me to engage in a debate with you. You want the debate to be circulated to radio reading services around the nation. You want to have the names and addresses of all the officers of the Federation at the state level, at the national level, and at the local level. You want to circulate material to all of these people. You want the Federation to pay your expenses to attend the next convention of the National Federation of the Blind. You want a debate to occur at the National Convention focusing on you. You say that it is your intention for the members to vote to reinstate you as a member. If a person is to be featured in the Braille Monitor, that person must do something of significance. We do not print material in our magazine simply to gratify the whim of someboedy who wants it printed. The events reported in the Monitor may be significant because they are especially constructive and good or particularly destructive and bad. This is the standard to be used in determining what will appear and what will not. With this standard as a background, I seriously doubt that the Monitor will be tempted to print your name at any time in the foreseeable future. It doesn't merit printing. You have not complied with the Constitution of the National Federation of the Blind. However, your failure to abide by it (even though it may seem significant to you) simply does not have the importance to merit space. I suppose that I need not dwell on the other demands you make. They are of a piece with the first. You have asked, for example, that the Federation pay your espenses to the next convention. You suggest that you are owed this special treatment because you would like to engage in a debate concerning your conduct. The Federation did not ask you to violate the Constitution, and it will feel no obligation to pay you so that you may come talk about it. Finally, let me comment on your recitation of certain provisions of the Constitution of the National Federation of the Blind. The convention has the power, as you correctly assesed, to consider your expultion from the Federation. However, your interpretation of the Constitution is quite inaccurate. Contrary to your statement, the Convention is not required to consider the matter. It may do so if it wishes, or it may decide that it will not spend the time and the time and the resources necessary to rehash an old, unimportant incident. Very truly yours, Marc Maurer, President National Federation of the Blind -- Uucp: ..!{decvax,oliveb}!bunker!hcap!hnews!129!89.0!David.Andrews Internet: David.Andrews@p0.f89.n129.z1.fidonet.org