CNIB needs funding for its library

To the editor:

Imagine your teenage daughter devouring every word of Twilight on her MP3 player and being able to join her sighted friends' conversation about Bella and Edward's forbidden love.

Imagine your aging parent losing his sight to macular degeneration and seeing the joy on his face when he receives in the mail his latest shipment of talking books and magazines.

Literacy is at the heart of how we connect with the world around us: our education, employment and participation in culture and civic life depend on our ability to read.

Yet reading is something most people take for granted. Unless you are blind or partially sighted.

For 372,000 Ontarians with vision loss, the right to read is in jeopardy.

Without partnerships with our federal and provincial governments, the Canadian National Institute for the Blind (CNIB) library could be closed in two years.

CNIB has operated a library for the blind for 90 years, funded solely by charitable dollars. Yet the print-reading public enjoys a library system supported by public funding. Addressing this situation is complicated, but CNIB has proposed to federal and provincial governments a partnership that ensures the short-term viability of the CNIB library while a longer term solution is worked out.

The province of Ontario listened, and made its commitment of $3.5 million more than two years. Alberta, New Brunswick and Northwest Territories have agreed to provide funding for the CNIB library service. CNIB is asking the federal government to kick in its share toward the CNIB library service.

What will federal dollars provide for Ontarians who need audio or braille books to access print? Parents will be able to access thousands of print-braille books for their children, others will be able to access newspapers, reference books and other materials that are vital to getting an education, finding and keeping a satisfying job. It is unacceptable to have a two-tiered system when it comes to accessing books, newspapers and information.

Our population is aging and for many senior citizens who are blind, books are their lifeline. Government support means our parents and grandparents can continue to enjoy books, newspapers and magazines for many more years to come.

We are calling on the Government of Canada to include their support for the CNIB's accessible library service in the upcoming March budget.

We hope Ontarians show their support for CNIB library services and go to cnib.ca/righttoread to find out more about the campaign.

Paul Ting

managing director for CNIB in Ontario