International White Cane Day is set to be bigger than ever in 2020, with big name artists from across the globe coming together for a special concert to mark the day.
Vision Australia’s White Cane Day Concert will feature performances from artists such as The Wiggles, American Idol finalist Scott MacIntyre, America’s Got Talent winner Kodi Lee, The Voice Australia alumni Racheal Leahcar, two time Grammy winner Dianne Schuur and many more.
The Vision Australia White Cane Day Concert will be broadcast right here via Vision Australia Radio from 11am-2pm on October 15.
Performances from participating artists will also appear on Vision Australia’s social media platforms. Jordan Ashby, Vision Australia volunteer partnerships coordinator, said Vision Australia was committed to finding a way to celebrate International White Cane Day in the current COVID climate.
“White Cane Day is a huge day for the blind and low vision community, not only in Australia, but across the world. COVID-19 means we can’t hold events as we would usually, so we’ve decided to move to a broadcast concert that people can take part in and enjoy, no matter where they are,” Jordan said.
“With the support of Duncan Steward from Platinum Cre8ive we have been fortunate to secure this amazing line-up of talented performers from across the globe; who have all donated their performances and time to this concert. Either because of lived experience with the white cane or once we explained what White Cane Day and the concert was all about, people couldn’t wait to get involved,” he said.
The Vision Australia Radio broadcast will also feature exclusive interviews with the musical acts who happen to be white cane users and others from the blind and low vision community, and the wider community is encouraged to get involved on the day.
Jason Gipps, Vision Australia Radio community partnerships coordinator, said it will be a broadcast well worth tuning in to.
“Prior to my time at Vision Australia I had no idea how powerful a symbol the white cane was. The white cane means different things for different people but this annual event is fast becoming a celebration of the communities achievements, its struggles, its aspirations. It’s a day to reflect on where the community has been and where the community wants to go. This 3 hour concert is about bringing people together, sharing their lived experiences and their talents as well as featuring messages of support from allies across the globe," Jason said.
A wide range of performances will be shared across Vision Australia Radio’s social media channels on the day and we’re calling on you, our dedicated radio listener to jump online and to leave a comment or send a message about what White Cane Day means to you.
The concert will have something for everyone and Jordan said it’s especially exciting to promote and celebrate our blind and low vision singers, songwriters, actors and performers from around the world.
“The majority of our performers have excelled while living with blindness or low vision, people like Dianne Schuur, Rachael Leahcar, Scott MacIntyre and Kodi Lee have gone onto being household names as well as mentors for our lesser known acts," Jordan said.
“It’s great that they get to play such big part in our celebration of White Cane Day and it’s a great opportunity to showcase that blindness or low vision isn’t a barrier to people following their dreams," he said.
The Vision Australia White Cane Day Concert will air on October 15 via Vision Australia Radio.
Head to varadio.org to find out how you can listen.
Like and follow Vision Australia Radio on Facebook and Twitter to catch video performances on the day and share your experiences.
