National Federation of the Blind Jacobus tenBroek Banquet Speeches

Jacobus tenBroek

Let me offer an ancient and wise proverb: “If you give a person a fish, you can feed him or her for a day.  If you teach that same person how to fish, you can feed him or her for a lifetime.”

No individual in the history of the National Federation of the Blind has taught more blind people how to fish, worked harder, loved more, or given more generously of time, talent, energy, or resources than Dr. Jacobus tenBroek.

         –Marc Maurer, July 3, 1986, at the banquet of the national convention
(Kansas City, Missouri)

Jacobus tenBroek, our founding President, began the time-honored tradition of great orators in the Federation.  His speeches paved the way for so many who have followed–not only in time, but in spirit, in heart, and in strength.

• Are We Equal to the Challenge? (Los Angeles, 1967)
  Are We Equal to the Challenge? (Audio)
• The Future of the Federation (Louisville, 1966)
  The Future of the Federation (Audio)
• The Federation at Twenty-Five: Postview and Preview (Washington, 1965)
  The Federation at Twenty-Five: Postview and Preview (Audio)
• The Parliament of Man…The Federation of the World (Phoenix, 1964)
  The Parliament of Man…The Federation of the World (Audio)
• The Individual’s Role in a Democracy (San Pablo, CA, 1962)
  This was the last in a series of lectures delivered at a community college near Berkeley, in late 1962. Because the recording system had not been turned on before Dr. tenBroek began speaking, the first few words of the lecture are missing. This talk has nothing to do with blindness, but rather demonstrates tenBroek’s deep commitment to equality for all.
  The Individual’s Role in a Democracy (Audio)
• Welfare of the Blind: Perils and Prospects (Detroit, 1962)
  Welfare of the Blind: Perils and Prospects (Audio)
• 1961 Convention Address (Kansas City, 1961) (Audio only)
• Newell Perry: Teacher of Youth and Leader of Men (Berkeley, 1961)
• He Walks by a Faith Justified by Law (Miami, 1960)
• Cross of Blindness (New Orleans, 1957)
  Cross of Blindness (Audio)
• The Blind and the Right to Organize (New Orleans, 1957)
• Within the Grace of God (San Francisco, 1956)
  Within the Grace of God (Audio)
• Pros and Cons of Preferential Treatment for the Blind (Omaha, 1955)
  TenBroek apparently gave the same speech to the NFB National Convention and to the annual meeting of the American Association of Workers for the Blind. The only available text is the AAWB version.
• 1954 Banquet Address (Louisville, 1954) (Audio only)
• The Role of the Blind in a Democratic Society (Nashville, 1952)
  This speech exists in three versions. In 2007, library staff found a typescript of the speech as we assume he intended to present it. This version was published for the first time in the Braille Monitor of July 2007. In 1952, though, radio station WSM Nashville broadcast the speech as he delivered it at the banquet on Sunday evening, July 13. This recording of the speech is shorter than the typed version and may reflect time limitations imposed by the radio broadcast. The third version of the speech was read by tenBroek in a national broadcast over the NBC radio network. Directed toward a broad cross-section of the general public, this version differs significantly from the other two.
  The Role of the Blind in a Democratic Society (banquet speech) (Audio)
  The Role of the Blind in a Democratic Society (national radio address) (Audio)
• The Neurotic Blind and the Neurotic Sighted: Twin Psychological Fallacies (Oklahoma City, 1951)
• A Bill of Rights for the Blind (Baltimore, 1948)
• Have Our Blind Social Security? (Wilkes-Barre, 1940)