The Braille Monitor is the leading publication of the National Federation of the Blind. It covers the events and activities of the NFB and addresses the many issues and concerns of the blind.
The Braille Monitor offers a positive philosophy about blindness to both blind readers and the public at large; serves as a vehicle for advocacy and protection of civil rights; addresses social concerns affecting the blind; discusses issues relating to employment, education, legislation, and rehabilitation; and provides news of products and technology used by the blind.
To learn more about our flagship publication, consider Kenneth Jernigan's 1993 article entitled, "Concerning History and the Braille Monitor."
The Braille Monitor has been the voice of the nation’s blind since 1957.
Eleven issues of the Monitor are published each year (August and September are combined into one issue and cover our annual national convention). Subscriptions are available in large print (14-point), in Braille, on 2- or 4-track cassette, or via e-mail. Braille Monitor subscribers in the U.S. are invited to help cover the subscription cost ($25) when possible. However, subscriptions mailed to foreign countries are invoiced at $75 USD per year, and Canadian subscriptions are invoiced at $35 per year. Checks should be made payable to the National Federation of the Blind and sent to the NFB, attention Braille Monitor, 200 East Wells Street at Jernigan Place, Baltimore, Maryland 21230.
To subscribe or change your mailing address, please contact the NFB by mail, phone (410-659-9314, ext. 2344), or e-mail (nfb@nfb.org). Please indicate which format you would like to receive: large print, Braille, 2-track cassette, or 4-track cassette only (for e-mail subscriptions, please see below).
If you would like to receive the magazine electronically for free, you may sign up online to receive the Braille Monitor by e-mail. (Please note: This is the only way to sign up to receive the Braille Monitor by e-mail.)
To remove yourself from the electronic distribution list of the Braille Monitor, send a message containing the line “signoff brl-monitor” to the Monitor subscription tool. Be sure to send it from the account where you are currently receiving the Braille Monitor. When the electronic distribution software has removed you from the list, it will send you an acknowledgement, confirming that you have indeed signed off the list.
Articles for the Monitor and letters to the editor may be sent to the NFB, attention Gary Wunder, 200 East Wells Street at Jernigan Place, Baltimore, Maryland 21230 or may be e-mailed to the editor, Gary Wunder.
Monthly issues are available to order from January of 1978 to the present in Braille and in print. Issues from August of 1985 to the present are also available on 4-track cassette. Visit the Independence Market's Literature listing under Publications for more information about ordering back issues.
The February 2007 issue of the Braille Monitor marks the beginning of a new era: in this issue, and those following, the same Braille Monitor recordings available on cassette are now available as MP3 files online. Follow the online access links to the appropriate issue, and then look for the MP3 file listed beside each article in the table of contents. Enjoy!
Copies of the Braille Monitor from 1987 to the present are available immediately via our online directory.
| 1989 | December | November | October | September | August | July | June | April/May | March | February | January |
|---|---|
| 1988 | December | November | September/October | August | July | May/June | April | February/March | January |
| 1987 | December | October/November | September | August | June/July | May | April | March | February | January |
Currently, issues of the Braille Monitor prior to 1987 are not available online. Please refer to our Ordering Back Issues section for information about how to obtain these issues. If you need access to these issues electronically, please let us know. You may contact the Jacobus tenBroek Library by e-mail at jtblibrary@nfb.org or by phone at 410-659-9314.