Successful Actor and Teacher is Denied the Right to Parent His Own Children Because He Is Blind
The right of the natural parent to the care and custody of his or her child is considered a fundamental right in the United States. In spite of that, a New York Kings County Supreme Judge in Brooklyn has slammed the door on an American father’s right to parent is own children – solely it seems because he is blind. The judge, in this case, would insert “able” and in particular “sighted” in front of “natural parent.” “No vision, no children” sums up the Court’s decision, upturning decades of civil rights progress and common sense. Somehow the fact that tens of thousands of blind parents raise their children every day without “sighted supervision” was lost to the judge. Christopher G. Roberts has over 23 years of experience in professional theatre. He is the Founder and Producing Artistic Director of Steppingstone Theatre Company (SSTC), a not-for-profit arts organization. He has an MFA degree in acting from Brooklyn College and a BA degree in theater from the University at Buffalo.