The Fayetteville Lions Club participated in "White Cane Days". During White Cane Days Lions collect money for local projects such as the purchase of eye exams and glasses for the sight-impaired and for regional, national, and international sight conservation projects.
History
In 1921, James Biggs a photographer from Bristol England, became blind following an accident. Because he was feeling uncomfortable with the amount of traffic around his home, he painted his walking stick white to be more easily visible.
In 1930, the late George A. Bonham, President of the Peoria, Illinois Lions Club introduced the idea of using the white cane with a red band as a means of assisting the blind in independent mobility. The Peoria Lions approved the idea, white canes were made and distributed, and the Peoria City Council adopted an ordinance giving the bearers the right-of-way to cross the street. News of the club's activity spread quickly to other Lions clubs throughout the United States, and their visually handicapped friends experimented with the white canes. Overwhelming acceptance of the white cane idea by the blind and sighted alike quickly gave cane users a unique method of identifying their special need for travel consideration among their sighted counterparts.
Also in 1931, in France, Guilly d'Herbemont recognized the danger to blind people in traffic and launched a national "white stick movement" for blind people. She donated 5,000 white canes to people in Paris.
Today white cane laws are on the books of every state in the US and many other countries, providing blind persons a legal status in traffic. The white cane now universally acknowledges that the bearer is blind. For specific information contact your local government office for motor vehicles.
Issues
There is much debate among blind people about issues relating to white canes. Though most blind people who use canes support using the long white cane, there is much disagreement over whether canes should be collapsible or not. During the 1970s, the National Federation of the Blind in the United States started a campaign to promote the use of non-collapsible, straight canes. Though they are harder to store, the NFB and some others believe that the lightness and greater length of the straight canes allows greater mobility and safety. Those who support the collapsible canes, which can be folded for storage, say that the benefits of the straight cane do not outweigh the inconvenience of having to store them carefully in crowded areas such as classrooms and public events.
There is also a movement among blind people which believe that guide dogs, the other major mobility tool for blind people, should be used by blind adults. They claim that canes are not safe enough to cross streets and to in other insecure places with, because the dog can interactively warn the user. Despite the high profile of guide dogs, however, most blind people still use canes at least sometimes, and many still use canes entirely. Additionally, some people are allergic to dogs which may make them unsuitable for certain blind people. It is also important to note that some people just don't like dogs and/or do not want to look after an animal.
Below are some pictures from the Fayetteville Lions Club White Cane Days on
