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Perceived: Disrupting The Blind Stereotype

By Kaia Findlay,

Audrey Smith, Anita Rao

Published June 3, 2022 at 10:57 AM EDT

An illustration featuring the word "Perceived" on the left with the Braille version of that word above and below it. To the right are three people: from left to right, an older masc-presenting Black person with a beard, sunglasses and a hat; a Black femme-presenting person wearing high heels, a short skirt and lipstick; and a femme-presenting person with short green hair, a green shirt and combat boots. All three people have canes and are wearing Braille on their shirts.

Anita got glasses young, and as a kid every time her prescription got worse, her anxiety about losing her vision spiked. She realizes now how much of that fear was ableism at work. Three artists who've lost their sight and found myriad ways to fortify a culture of blind pride show her it's about disrupting the binary and pushing for a more accessible, creative future.

Meet the guests:

Dr. M. Leona Godin, writer, performer, educator, and the author of "There Plant Eyes: A Personal and Cultural History of Blindness" talks about the term occularcentrism
James Tate Hill, author of the novel "Academy Gothic" and the memoir "Blind Man’s Bluff" shares his personal story of hiding his low vision from most folks his life for almost 15 years
Lachi, award-winning recording artist, songwriter, and inclusion advocate shares how she is pushing to make the Grammy’s more inclusive

Read the transcript | Review the podcast

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Embodied Podcast Blind Disability Rights

Kaia Findlay

Kaia Findlay is the lead producer of Embodied, WUNC's weekly podcast and radio show about sex, relationships and health. Kaia first joined the WUNC team in 2020 as a producer for The State of Things.

See stories by Kaia Findlay

Audrey Smith

Audrey Smith is a writer, educator, and temporary producer of "Embodied" based in Greensboro, NC. She holds a Master's degree in Secondary English Language Arts Education from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro (2018) and a Master of Fine Arts degree in Nonfiction Writing from Oregon State University (2021).

See stories by Audrey Smith

Anita Rao

Anita Rao is an award-winning journalist, host, creator, and executive editor of "Embodied," a weekly radio show and podcast about sex, relationships & health.

See stories by Anita Rao