BlindNewWorld

About BlindNewWorld

BlindNewWorld is the first-ever blind awareness social change campaign, sponsored by Perkins School for the Blind, to demystify blindness and break down the barriers to inclusion – discomfort, pity, fear and stigma. Through provocative PSA mini-films, new statistics on public attitudes, compelling stories and social dialogue, BlindNewWorld seeks to disrupt stereotypes and inspire the sighted population to open its eyes to the full social, professional and academic capabilities of the blind population.

The Inspiration Behind BlindNewWorld

When Corinne Grousbeck’s son Campbell was born without sight, she began a lifelong journey observing the challenges of living blind in a sighted world. As Chair of Perkins School for the Blind, she watched wide-eyed, ambitious students enter a world that was not ready for them. Over and over she saw blind people being denied opportunities that were otherwise available to sighted people. Through BlindNewWorld, she hopes to break the barriers to inclusion and connection, and to prepare the world to embrace today’s highly capable blind population.

Language

As part of its mission to demystify blindness, BlindNewWorld seeks to de-stigmatize and reclaim the word “blind,” so that a person who is blind can describe themselves as such freely and proudly. Society’s misperception of blindness has led many without sight to feel invisible and marginalized. By separating this word from negative connotations and stereotypes, our intent is to break this barrier society has created with language. Because BlindNewWorld fervently believes people are not defined by their disabilities, we proudly support both person-first language and the individual’s choice to proclaim, “I am a blind man,” or “I am a blind woman.”