White Cane Day: Community celebrates achievements of the blind and visually impaired

On White Cane Day, students at the Texas School for the Blind and Visually Impaired and community members celebrate the independence it allows.

AUSTIN, Texas - A white cane helps people who are blind or visually impaired travel around safely. On Wednesday, local leaders and community members gathered to celebrate the achievements of those who use it.

A white cane is a symbol of blindness.

"My cane is my eyes," singer and songwriter Mary Rose Bushland said.

"If I didn't have my cane, I wouldn't know where I was going," Texas School for the Blind and Visually Impaired (TSBVI) student Mark Sanchez said.

A white cane is also used as a tool for navigating.

"It helps me explore places," Sanchez said.

On White Cane Day, students at the Texas School for the Blind and Visually Impaired and community members celebrate the independence it allows.

"I just want to use my cane by myself and be independent and go find things by myself and find the creamer for my coffee by myself," Bushland said.

"Even though we have disabilities, you know, being blind, we also like to celebrate the things that we can do and the things that bring us closer to our fullest selves and one of the major parts of that is our white cane," singer and songwriter Devin Gutierrez said.

Gutierrez and Bushland wrote and produced a song about it, "Just Can’t Stop This Groovin".

"Tapping, sweeping, I just can't stop this grooving," they sang together.

"We have to trust our cane and trust the feedback that we're getting from those taps or sweeps on the ground to let us know where we're at," Gutierrez said.

He said he wants others to be aware of that, too.

"We want the cane iconography and the cane culture to be embraced with open arms," Gutierrez said.

Gutierrez and Bushland’s song is available now to stream and said they hope it’s an inspiration to others.

Equity and Inclusion Austin