NEWSNEWS March 7, 1996 CHAIRMAN HUNDT RECEIVES HELEN KELLER AWARD; PLEDGES CONTINUING EFFORT TO INCLUDE EVERYONE IN INFORMATION REVOLUTION FCC Chairman Reed Hundt announced that the Commission is establishing a special Internet home page for its Disabilities Issues Task Force to reach the disabilities community, keep the disabilities community apprised of what the Commission is doing to ensure its inclusion in the information revolution, and solicit input from persons with disabilities. Hundt spoke Thursday evening at a ceremony at which he received the American Foundation for the Blind's Helen Keller Outstanding Public Service Award for his efforts on behalf of the disability community. The event took place at St. Alban's School, on the grounds of the National Cathedral, in Washington, DC, in conjunction with the opening of an exhibit honoring Helen Keller sponsored by the American Foundation for the Blind. In remarks prepared for delivery, Hundt said that "with the signing of [the Telecom] law, the future has never looked brighter for people with disabilities. . . . It's now up to the FCC to implement the new telecommunications law." "One provision requires telecommunications equipment manufacturers and providers to ensure that their equipment and services are accessible to people with disabilities, if readily achievable. We will undertake a rulemaking to implement this provision." "Another provision ensures that video services are accessible to people who have hearing disabilities or visual impairments. To implement this provision, the FCC will conduct a study to determine the availability of closed captioning and establish a timetable to make closed captioning more widespread. And we will look into the availability of video description so people who have visual impairments can hear a description of what they cannot see." He added, "We want screenreaders for students who have visual disabilities, e-mail for students who have hearing disabiltiies, and provisions for learning from home for children who have physical disabilities." Hundt closed by noting "Helen Keller refused to accept society's message that her deafness and blindness condemned her to a life of insignificance. She believed that hard work and perseverance, and a little help from a friend, could enable her to have a fully productive and rewarding life. Let us work together to reaffirm her belief again, and again, and again -- for everyone." SPEECH BY REED HUNDT CHAIRMAN FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION AMERICAN FOUNDATION FOR THE BLIND HELEN KELLER OUTSTANDING PUBLIC SERVICE AWARD WASHINGTON NATIONAL CATHEDRAL WASHINGTON, D.C. (AS PREPARED FOR DELIVERY) MARCH 7, 1996 AFFIRMING HELEN KELLER'S BELIEF Thank you, Carl, for that kind and generous introduction. And let me take a moment to acknowledge Senator Heflin. Senator Heflin has a long and distinguished career of public service. Whether as a U.S. Marine, trial attorney, Chief Justice of the Alabama Supreme Court, judicial reformer, law school lecturer, or distinguished Senator from the great state of Alabama, Senator Heflin has brought the highest principles to everything he has done. And oh, yes -- Senator Heflin occasionally served as Helen Keller's lawyer. Because of his work, Helen Keller's family home was placed on the Federal Register, and a stamp was issued to commemorate Helen Keller and Annie Sullivan. It is an honor to share the podium with you, sir. It is a great pleasure to be standing here this evening. As some of you may know, it was my great good fortune to attend St. Albans. I ate many a so-called meal in this dining hall, so I feel right at home. And it was my even greater good fortune to have Al Gore, Jr. as my classmate. You know Al Gore, Jr. -- the Vice President. As is clear from his support for the Americans with Disabilities Act, he is a kindred spirit for our shared cause of equality of opportunity for all. I am deeply honored to be with you this evening and to receive the Helen Keller Outstanding Public Service Award. In everything I have done as Chairman of the Federal Communications Commission, my guiding principle has been that everyone has the right to the opportunity to live the American Dream. Every citizen of this country matters, and every person has the right to be included in this society in every way. While I am honored to receive this award, the country really should be proud of, and grateful to, organizations like the American Foundation for the Blind, and to people like Carl Augosto, its President, and Alan Dinsmore, Scott Marshall, and Paul Schroeder. Through their constancy to cause and their advocacy, they have kept us true to one of the great principles upon which this country is built: equality for all, in all things. Some of you may know that this past Sunday was the birthday of one of the most important people in Helen Keller's life -- Alexander Graham Bell, the inventer of the telephone. I always mention Mr. Bell's birthday because he was born on March 3, and I was born on March 3, and so was my daughter, Sara. Alexander Graham Bell played a major role in Helen Keller's life. Helen Keller's father had written to Mr. Bell and said, "I don't believe everyone who tells me that my daughter cannot learn to communicate. I don't believe it. And you, Alexander Graham Bell, can help prove that my daughter can learn to communicate." Mr. Bell, who was a professional teacher of the deaf, knew of a brilliant teacher whom he thought could work with the 6-year-old, half-wild, deaf, blind Helen. He reached out to Annie Sullivan. As you all know, Helen Keller went on to become a cum laude graduate of Radcliffe College, and for 40 years, as spokesperson for the American Foundation for the blind, she dedicated her life to improving the conditions of the blind and the deaf-blind around the world. She was perhaps the most inspiring person with disabilities of her generation. What you may not know is that, by coincidence of history, Helen Keller and Annie Sullivan first met on March 3 -- March 3, 1887, that is. One-hundred years ago, Helen Keller was the model of how people who are deaf, and in her case, blind, as well, could learn to communicate. I'd like to think we've come a long way since then, but she and Alexander Graham Bell and Annie Sullivan lighted the path. Helen Keller was one of the lucky ones. Her parents had the wherewithal to ensure that she had a brilliant teacher who could devote her entire life to opening up Helen's world. But most people with disabilities are not so fortunate. Who among us could afford a full- time companion/teacher/interpreter for our own child? That's where the promise of communications technology comes in. The information superhighway can bring the entire world of information to our children's fingertips, and can help every child learn. Computers now feature synthetic speech, voice activation, breath activation, virtual reality, and visual icons. These innovations can help teachers and parents communicate with children, and teachers and parents communicate with each other, which is especially important for children with disabilities. Computers and sophisticated technology can provide the tools needed to enable every child to learn all they can learn, and to be all they can be. Now our great challenge as a society is to ensure that everyone benefits from the wonders of the communications revolution. The extent to which we succeed will define us as a society. Will we be caring or uncaring? Inclusive or exclusive? We need to work together for the greater good. And that's why all of our efforts are so important. One year ago, I stood before you and announced the formation of the Disabilities Issues Task Force. We talked about the day I became Chairman, and about our shared dream that the information superhighway be accessible to everyone in this country. The purpose of the Task Force is to monitor developments in all fields regulated by the FCC, and to ensure that new technologies are available to the broadest range of Americans, including the millions of people with disabilities. The Task Force is one of the FCC's most important tools to ensure that our country does not become a nation of information haves and have-nots. The Task Force is headed by Linda Dubroof, who is with us here this evening. She and her talented staff are equally committed to equal access for all. I am proud of Linda and her staff, who have worked with dedication and perseverance to achieve our objectives. The Disabilities Task Force is about to celebrate its first birthday, and a lot has happened during the year. Linda and her staff have conducted outreach to disabilities organizations, and have ensured that such issues as closed captioning, video description, and universal access receive the highest attention in our work. And we have a new telecommunications law -- the Telecommunications Act of 1996 - - supported by Senator Heflin and signed by President Clinton on February 8. With the signing of this law, the future has never looked brighter for people with disabilities. I know that many of you at the American Foundation for the Blind fought long and hard for this legislation. It is now up to the FCC to implement the new telecommunications law. In fact, the FCC may be the single government agency with the greatest ability to help people with disabilities to participate in our society. That's because we are becoming an information economy and an information society, and most of those industries are in our bailiwick. And building the information society will not be a success unless we recognize the vital importance of equal access to the telecommunications revolution for everyone. Consider this: -- There are 49 million Americans with disabilities. -- 9.7 million Americans are blind or visually impaired. -- 28 million Americans have hearing and speech disabilities. -- 60% of Americans with disabilities are unemployed. -- 74% of working-age blind adults are unemployed. -- 4 million school-age children have disabilities. That's 6% of all school-age children. How can the new law help ensure that people with disabilities will not be left out of the information revolution? One provision requires telecommunications equipment manufacturers and providers to ensure that their equipment and services are accessible to people with disabilities, if readily achievable. We will undertake a rulemaking to implement this provision. Another provision ensures that video services are accessible to people who have hearing disabilities or visual impairments. To implement this provision, the FCC will conduct a study to determine the availability of closed captioning and establish a timetable to make closed captioning more widespread. And we will look into the availability of video description so people who have visual impairments can hear a description of what they cannot see. America's 4 million children with disabilities can have a much, much brighter future if we put communications technology in every classroom. We want screenreaders for students who have visual disabilities, e-mail for students who have hearing disabilities, and provisions for learning from home for children who have physical disabilities. Adults with disabilities will reap the same benefits. And, through its seven Universal Service Principles, the new law makes universal service one of our highest priorities. It provides incentives for schools and libraries to connect to each other through the information superhighway. This will open up infinite worlds of wonder and opportunity for every single one of our children. In short, we will do everything we can to ensure that the new law is implemented to level the educational playing field for all children, but especially for children with disabilities. And I would like to announce tonight that the FCC will soon launch its own Internet Home Page for our Disabilities Issues Task Force. We will be celebrating this and other achievements at our birthday party later this month. And we will continue to look for every way possible to give the greatest opportunity to every person with a disability in this country to participate fully in our society. I'm sure that if Helen Keller were here today, she would be emailing me, knocking on my door, or walking the FCC hallways advocating for equality for all persons with disabilities. And I'd be happy to see her. I'd like your advice as to how we can best implement the new telecommunications law. We need your input now more than ever. Give us some guidance. Tell us how we can do things right. We aim to give everyone the tools to help them reach their goals. As many of you know, the great and majestic Washington National Cathedral is Helen Keller's final resting place. Her spirit infuses this special evening. Helen Keller has been an inspiration and an example for generations of people. Who would not feel reverence for her, and who would not feel deeply honored to receive an award bearing her name? I pledge to you this evening to continue to do all I can to ensure that every citizen of this country has an equal opportunity to participate fully in this society. Helen Keller refused to accept society's message that her deafness and blindness condemned her to a life of insignificance. She believed that hard work and perseverance, and a little help from a friend, could enable her to have a fully productive and rewarding life. Let us work together to reaffirm her belief again, and again, and again -- for everyone. Thank you. -FCC-