In Saint Lucia, advocates for blind and visually impaired residents are pushing for systemic change to break down long-standing barriers that exclude members of this community from full, independent participation in public life. Anthony Avril, president of the Saint Lucia Blind Welfare Association, has outlined three persistent, interconnected challenges facing his organization’s members: mass unemployment, inadequate public accessibility, and growing safety concerns that erode quality of life for people living with vision impairment.
In an interview with local outlet St. Lucia Times, Avril emphasized that blind and visually impaired Saint Lucians hold the same aspirations as their sighted peers, but systemic inequities consistently block them from accessing the same opportunities. “People living with blindness and vision impairment are very much part of the society that we live in,” Avril stated. “They want to be able to benefit from the good of society, but also to have the opportunity to contribute.”
For the community, securing stable, fair employment stands as the most urgent hurdle to full inclusion. “One of the biggest issues for our clientele is employment,” Avril explained. “We would like to get to a place where employment would be almost like a human right because, yes, we have a right to receive an education and a right to live. If you are going to be able to affirm this right, you ought to be able to look after your needs.”
Beyond basic financial autonomy, Avril noted that the push for equal employment stems from a broader desire to give back to Saint Lucian society. “For us, we are saying we do not only want to be able to cater for our needs, but also to contribute to the society that we live in,” he added.
Unemployment is far from the only barrier. Avril pointed out that widespread inaccessibility across public spaces, government buildings, and core services continues to limit independent movement for visually impaired residents. Compounding this accessibility gap is a rising sense of insecurity that affects the community on multiple levels. “Accessibility remains a big challenge, and unfortunately now security has been becoming a major issue,” he said. “When we speak security, it’s not only local security. Security is almost like a multi-level concern because unfortunately it seems the world is bent on a path of doing everything possible to take away your rights of being secured.”
These daily challenges are not abstract policy issues; they shape the lives of thousands of visually impaired Saint Lucians, including 64-year-old Sarah Joseph, who developed glaucoma 31 years ago. Joseph says that the loss of her vision is not her greatest struggle—instead, it is navigating a built environment and social system that was never designed to accommodate people like her.
“People think blindness means we can’t work or be independent, but that’s not what it is. What we need (or I need) are opportunities and environments that allow us to participate,” Joseph said. Even routine tasks that many people take for granted, such as crossing a busy intersection, entering a building without tactile paving, or riding public transit, can become insurmountable obstacles without accessible design, she explained.
“There are days when I want to go somewhere on my own, but I’m forced to depend on someone else because there aren’t enough disability friendly things. Independence shouldn’t be a privilege,” Joseph emphasized.
Like Avril, Joseph highlighted that widespread misconceptions about the capabilities of visually impaired people keep many qualified candidates out of the workforce. Even after completing education, professional training, and skill-building, many members of the community are still denied the chance to demonstrate their value to employers. “We study, we train, and we develop skills like everyone else. All we’re asking for is the chance to prove ourselves. We don’t want sympathy; we want equal opportunities,” she said.
As the Saint Lucia Blind Welfare Association continues its advocacy for policy and cultural change, Avril says he is hopeful that greater public awareness of these issues will translate to tangible, meaningful improvements across the country. His long-term vision is for a Saint Lucia where every blind and visually impaired resident can live with full dignity, personal safety, and equal access to the opportunities that all members of society deserve.