Braille Monitor, Vol. 69, No. 8, July 2026

Although the annual convention of the National Federation of the Blind is a venerable institution with many established traditions that has just completed its eighty-sixth iteration, each gathering is also unique.

The two thousand twenty-six National Convention, also known as hashtag NFB twenty-six in its app and on social media, could boast many brand-new distinctions.

It was the first convention ever to be held in the city of Austin, Texas, the Lone Star State's capital, which has a reputation for intentional quirkiness.

Consequently, we were in a wonderful facility that we had never used before, the JW Marriott Austin.

The hotel was not only upscale and beautiful but also very easy to navigate.

Some accomplished this with the help of the GoodMaps app, whose developers had mapped not only the inside of the main hotel but also the routes to the three overflow facilities.

Although many hotels have extended top-notch hospitality to conventioneers, there was near unanimous agreement this year that the service provided was among the best.

Every guest who wanted one received a Braille pamphlet upon check-in containing a list of all the hotel's dining options and their operating hours.

From General Manager Scott Blalock on down, hotel staff were always ready to politely offer assistance and graciously provide it or, if declined, to respectfully honor that declination.

Your correspondent does not recall a single instance of being grabbed, pushed, or led by his cane by anyone employed by the hotel.

Restaurant service was amazingly friendly and efficient, and the food was delicious.

A particular favorite quickly became the outdoor Congress Burger Bar, which began opening an hour earlier than usual each day to accommodate its many convention fans.

The hotel also provided grab-and-go options on most days, including delicious pizza.

Because the JW Marriott and the overflow hotels were located in the heart of downtown, we were not limited to the hotel dining options and could easily walk to nearby venues for barbecue, Tex-Mex, vegan fare, and much more.

Those who wanted to go further afield to explore dining, music, bat-watching, or other Austin delights could hop into either a traditional rideshare or a Waymo, platinum convention sponsor, or Tesla autonomous vehicle.

Speaking of Tesla, that company also sponsored our convention for the first time at the White Cane level, and its prototype CyberCab, which has seats for only two passengers and no driver's seat at all, was on display for the convention's first three days.

Tesla seems to be only dipping its toe into accessibility at this point, but its willingness to accept feedback from Federationists was commendable, and the car did feature braille labels on some critical controls.

There was a major schedule change, too.

For the first time in many years, there was only a half day of general session, this time on banquet day rather than the tour day of yore, giving attendees a chance to enjoy some afternoon breakout sessions or leisure time before getting dressed and ready for the banquet itself, which started a half hour early and adjourned almost a half hour before 10 o'clock.

Whether this change will persist likely depends on responses to a question about it in the convention survey that was shared for everyone to fill out once they returned home.

Another new experience available to conventioneers was the chance to share their thoughts on what the public should know about blindness and blind people as part of the Blind Unbound storytelling initiative that we have recently launched.

Special retro-style telephones in NFB orange, complete with a rotary dial, were set up in a meeting room and the presidential suite.

All participants had to do was pick up the phone, listen to the prompt from President Riccobono, and record their thoughts after the beep.

The collected recordings may be used later in a Blind Unbound exhibit or other item that will come from this storytelling project.

All in all, the warm hospitality of our Texas affiliate, the hotel, and the city of Austin contributed to a relaxed, friendly atmosphere.