Lol. I get the joke, but the thing you must remember is that many legally blind people can see. To be legally blind one doesn’t have to be TOTALLY without sight- only significantly without sight. To some blind people the world appears distorted, they may only be able to see things at VERY close distance or with help of high magnification, or even then not see very clearly. Having no vision in one eye and poor vision in the other is an another example of blindness.
Contrary to what you might think- there are blind people who use emojis! Often using accessibility features or other technology to assist them, blind people- even the completely blind- not only can use smart phones- but with features like text to voice and vice versa, and the ability to integrate to “smart” devices around the home and app based services- smart phones can be even more help to the non sighted than to the sighted! Being sighted myself I can’t say first hand what the emotional/psychological response to emoji are in the totally non sighted- my guess is that like the sighted some no sighted people dislike emojis or find them annoying while others enjoy them and find them playful or fun.
So while many blind people may not see this- they’ll hear about it, and many WILL actually see it. Some may not care, others may find it insulting or see similar humor as this in it- but I am sure many will appreciate it. It’s a hard concept for many to grasp- if you’ve never experienced the feeling then you may not get it. But existing- being acknowledged and represented in the world. Not being a non thought or afterthought. Being considered. Feeling represented and included.
The fact that many people don’t realize the “blind” can often see is an example. A large number of people don’t even know a single blind person or interact regularly with any blind people. Save for documentaries and horror, drama, occasionally (not as much anymore) comedy- where a characters entire existence or even the whole plot is centered on their blindness- you’ll not see a lot of blind characters in media- Book if Eli and Avatar TLAB get shout outs here for some great blind characters who weren’t just there for show but were fully fledged characters who’s blindness was a trait and not an identity.
But in the sighted world- the blind are often overlooked or not thought about. People seriously or jokingly ask how they wipe their asses, if they keep the lights on, think all “blind” people live in total darkness and can’t see anything- and so on. So having an emoji, a symbol representing them- that can be a powerful thing. It seems so silly. But It shows someone thought of you, it places you in the world- shows you are a part of things enough to be included.
Emoji represent people, objects, animals, concepts, and ideas that commonly come up in life or conversation. A “blind” emoji isn’t needed to validate the existence of blind people- getting your own emoji isn’t a symbol you’ve “made it big” or anything like that- but it IS not only a form of recognition to say: yeah- the non sighted exist, and they are part of people’s lives and our world...
But also it is a way to put them and the concept into a form of common collective consciousness- it seems silly but....
We are discussing the need to “remind” the world to think of the blind, the need to represent the blind- in a joke/half joke in which the premise is not only based on an idea that “blind” means totally unable to see; but an idea that emojis aren’t used by the blind- two factually inaccurate but common misconceptions about being “blind.” So perhaps- not just when it comes to the blind, and more today than maybe ever- it is important to realize that very subtle things influence our perception of the world and the people in it.
Tiny things- the adjectives and verbs and wording of the same exact piece of information- can drastically change the way we see that information. “Man shot by police in traffic stop” does not have the same effect on most people as “White cop shoots black suspect in traffic stop...” making a character in a story female or male can completely change the way the audience feels about them and what they go through. This is all well documented fact which writers and those doing marketing and such know well and use.
If a man is killed who has been to jail and has kids- wether we say “father of 3 killed...” “Ex con killed” “criminal killed” that changes the perception. Even if the other facts are included later- most people who read past the headline will read everything that comes next mentally “primed” based off that opening. Their perception of the facts will change based on their perception going in to read those facts.
So very subtle things like the “blind” having an emoji can actually have large scale impacts on social attitudes and awareness. Alone- an emoji is “just an emoji” but seldom does anything in the world exist “alone” in a vacuum. The sum total of many “small” things weave together to create our world. A single “big” things is meaningless alone. Black people got the right to vote before women- in 1866. And full rights as citizens. In practice- we know these rights didn’t amount to much. It would take work over a century plus to actually not only secure the freedoms to use those rights in law- but to normalize the exercise of those rights and presence of Black people in society. An ongoing struggle today.
So these “tiny” things that normalize and include people who are often “left out” are an important piece of making any sort of actual and meaningful social acceptance and understanding- in additions often being appreciated by more marginalized or minority group members who don’t get the opportunity to see themselves, their cultures, their needs and lives and things they relate to first hand- in media and society at large.
The fact it is a joke is acknowledged in the first sentence of the first paragraph. The rest is there for anyone who cares to read, as 1. Anything, including a joke, can be analyzed or discussed deeper as it relates to any number of concepts outside of humor. It is optional if one chooses to do so or not, those who choose not, it is easy enough to simply scroll on or post something constructive.
2. The fact that a thing is labeled as “a joke” does not absolve it of all context or remove it from the world. If a child goes missing, and you tell the parents “they’re probably dead or a sex slave...” as a joke, and polish it off as a joke- do you think everyone in the room including the parents will shrug and giggle and say: “ah. It was just a joke. Carry on...”? Doubtful. Now that is a more extreme example- And I’m not likening this joke to a dead child joke or any such thing- the point is that something just being a joke- does not suddenly make all of reality disappear.
Now it is a fact that many people are unaware the blind often can see. That’s actually a discussion be had on this very site with people who were surprised to find out about it. So where a joke presents an opportunity to share facts or spread awareness- it is perfectly relevant to do so. Moreover- as the essay says- jokes may be “just jokes” but they do shape people’s perceptions and opinions. Comedians satire political issues and people also wrap political messages in humor. So they two things don’t mutually exclude each other.
But also it is a way to put them and the concept into a form of common collective consciousness- it seems silly but....
~~
Made a joke.
.
Got hit with an argumentative essay from strangers.