WHITE CANE SAFETY DAY

Motif: Stylized image of a visually impaired person with the white cane and the inscription White Cane Safety Day written in Braille Movement is one of the undoubtedly most essential preconditions of independent living of every person. While the great majority of people have no significant difficulties concerning movement, persons with impaired sight find it one of their key problems. In the Republic of Croatia there are institutions employed in the education and training of blind persons, but also those that deal with the teaching of the blind and visually impaired to be able to move independently on their own. Out of the total of blind and visually impaired persons in our country (more than 5,800) there is still a larger number of such people who have not been included in this, according to most opinions, most valuable part of peripatetic-pathological rehabilitation, which makes the much-needed precondition for an independent, secure and self-reliant life, as well as for their integration into society. The decision on proclaiming the White Cane Safety Day in our country was taken by the parliament, Sabor, on the 28th of June 1996, based on Article 80 of the Constitution of the Republic of Croatia. The white cane is not only an aid that helps the blind and visually impaired person to achieve independence but is at the same time the symbol of the blind and visually impaired citizens in the society. Looking back far into the history, we can notice that the cane was wide-spread and used for in variety of areas of human activity. It is impossible to determine with certainty since what time the blind and visually impaired people made use of the cane as an everyday aid for their movement. In many legends and folk tradition, even in the Old Testament, together with the blind man motive we find the cane as an inseparable detail of his identification. In these contexts the cane was the expression of helplessness and poverty. It is the 20th century that brought its current purpose to the cane. As a matter of fact, in the decades between the two world wars a number of stimuli appeared that changed the role of the cane. So James Biggs from Bristol declared that it was he who had invented the white cane in 1921 after he had lost his sight subject to an unfortunate accident. As he had to adapt to his environment, and as he felt increasingly threatened by the growing invasion of motor vehicles round his house, he painted his walking stick white so that the drivers could easily take notice of him. Yet, ten more years had to pass before the white cane established its presence in society. In 1931 in France and Great Britain the plan for the movement of blind persons who were carrying the white cane was promoted. Even the BBC joined this project and recommended in its radio broadcasts that blind persons should carry white canes which would consequently be recognized on the world level as a symbol for the marking of blind and visually impaired people. The introduction of the white cane in North America has been attributed to the Lion’s Club International organization that in 1931 started with the implementation of the national programme for the promotion of the usage of the white cane for the blind. At that time blind persons moved by holding the cane diagonally in a fixed position, so it represented only a sign of identification. After the return of the blinded war veterans from the Second World War to America, the shape and usage of the cane had been changed. The reason for this was an attempt to help these people to get integrated, in the easiest possible way, into the everyday life of their communities. This led to the development of the “long cane” method, according to which the canes were used as an aid in movement and thus their original role of the means of movement had been returned, at the same time retaining their symbolic role as markers of the blind persons’ independence. The first regulation about the white cane was taken in December 1930 and originated from the federal state of Illinois. It enabled the protection of blind pedestrians and gave them the right of priority when they carried the white cane. In the early sixties, an increasing number of state organizations and institutions for rehabilitation and help for the blind and visually impaired persons in the United States of America induced Congress to proclaim October 15 the White Cane Safety Day in all the 50 federal states of the USA. In 1964, USA president Lyndon B. Johnson proclaimed October 15 the White Cane Safety Day. The presidential proclamation stressed the significance of the usage of the white cane both as an aid and a visible symbol. This meant paying tribute to the blind people for the growing spirit of their independence and the increasing determination to live a dignified life. Marking October 15 every year shows regard for the achievements of the blind and visually impaired Americans and at the same time acknowledges the importance of the white cane for the ever greater independence of this part of the population. Organized care for the blind in the Croatian lands reaches far back to the year 1893, when the Croatian Sabor (parliament), and later Izidor Kršnjavi, head of the Section for Devotion and Education of the Croatian government, perceived the need for the founding of the Institute for blind children in Zagreb and he nominated Vinko Bek, the first Croatian tiflo-pedagogue, to be its head. Since that time up to the present many things have changed in this field, from the adjustment of the Braille writing system to the Croatian language to the adaptation of various premises and spaces to the blind people’s needs (sounding semaphores, tactile street tracks and resounding elevators). The technological progress has undoubtedly also influenced the quality life of the blind and visually impaired persons. Methods of education, training and rehabilitation have followed the world trends, as well as the legislation – starting from the Act on the Croatian Register of Persons with Disabilities, the Regulation on Accessibility for Persons with Disabilities all up to the National Strategy of Unique Policy for the Disabled from 2002 until 2006. On account of adequate training of persons with impaired vision, using the white cane or moving in the company of the guide dog, they have a greater ability of independent and secure movement: they can successfully identify the position of the kerbstones, stairs, uneven pavements and other physical obstacles in their way. The white cane or guide dog, or, as we usually say, “eyes that guide” have enabled them to enjoy the freedom of independent mobility to their schools, work places as well as a fuller participation in the life of the community. The only real and hard to bridge obstacles that disabled persons come against is the discriminating attitude of their environment. Therefore, by marking the White Cane Safety Day we have to be reminded of the way the cane was introduced as the aid of the blind and visually impaired persons and the symbolic concept that it had carried through history, but also ponder about a greater tolerance toward the disabled persons. Dr. Sc. Morana Vouk