October 15th is “White Cane Safety Day.” for the blind.
The blind cane is more than just a tool that can be used to achieve independence, for the blind. It is also a symbol of the blind Community in our modern society. The blind long cane works both, as a tool for the blind as well as a symbol, but this has not always been the case. Throughout history, the cane, staff, and stick have existed as traveling aids for the blind and visually impaired.
The blind used such tools to alert them to obstacles in their path as they ventured out. Throughout history, the “cane” was used as a tool only, but it was not until the twentieth century that the white cane, was used as a symbol to alert others to the fact that an individual was blind.
So time around 1921, James Biggs, a blind photographer, was the first man to paint his cane white, while living in a high traffic area in Britain. In 1930, white canes were introduced to the US by a Lion’s Club president and the red band was soon added to the lower half of the cane, to increase it’s visibility.
During the early 1960’s, several state and rehabilitation organizations serving the blind and visually impaired Community, urged Congress to proclaim October 15th of each year to be White Cane Safety Day in all fifty states.
On October 6, 1964, a joint resolution of the Congress, HR 753, was signed into law authorizing the President of The United States of America to proclaim October 15th of each year as “White Cane Safety Day.” The resolution read, “Resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives that the President is hereby authorized to issue annually a proclamation designating October 15th as White Cane Safety Day and calling upon the people of the United States of America to observe such a day with appropriate ceremonies and activities.”
President Lyndon B. Johnson went down in history as the first to proclaim, October 15th as “White Cane Safety Day!”
We at The Cane Gang, invite you to help us celebrate this day, by staying alert as you’re driving and cautious, when you see someone with a blind cane or A guide dog waiting to cross. Be it at any crosswalks, Signal lights and stop signs.
Continue to stay safe and take care.-TCG
