I found this article in the December, 1988 issue of The Braille 
Monitor, published by the National Federation of the Blind. You can 
view the entire issue by going to http://www.nfb.org/bm/bm88/brlm8801.htm.

SEVILLE ALLEN TALKS ABOUT BRAILLE

As Federationists know, Seville Allen is one of the leaders of the National 
Federation of the Blind of Virginia. Writing in the September, 1988, 
newsletter of that organization, she says: 

Ed Peay, of our Richmond Area Federation, spent his summer conducting a 
Braille survey of Virginia's public schools. As Federationists know, Braille 
is an essential tool. This alternative to inkprint reading makes us literate;
not knowing Braille and being blind equal illiteracy. We often hear the 
argument, when we raise the question of teaching Braille, that students don't
want to learn it and/or that the student doesn't need it. One would wonder: 
Does a six- year-old have the experience to know whether or not he/she wants 
it or should learn it? Do parents, who are given the choice as to whether or 
not their legally blind child should learn Braille, have enough facts upon 
which to base a sound decision? Are adequate Braille skills required in 
special education curriculum?

Most pathetically, school officials tell parents that their child has too 
much sight and, thus, doesn't have to learn Braille. While professional 
educators of blind children believe they are doing blind kids a favor by 
helping them hide their blindness, they are really reinforcing fear and 
prejudice. The denial of Braille keeps students from reaching their academic 
and often social potential. Blind students frequently fail in school or are 
passed on age to the next class. Intelligent students often become frustrated
and develop inappropriate behavior and get labeled trouble makers. Blind 
students struggling to read print they can barely see, lose interest in 
school, drop out, and become dependent on welfare checks. Without Braille, 
one is most often also without self-respect due to inefficiency and 
inability to function alongside peers.

One of our top priorities during the coming year is to see to it that 
Virginia assures Braille as an alternative to inkprint reading. Ed Peay has 
set the pace, and we will take the results of his survey and use them to 
show that, once again, we know what we need and will work to make it happen.