Blind activist, influencer hosts book launch to mark Braille Literacy Month

Almost 200 people gathered at Halifax Central Library on Sunday to celebrate Braille Literacy Month and the launch of blind activist Molly Burke’s memoir Unseen: How I Lost My Vision But Found My Voice.

Burke has spent the last 12 years building her platform as a disability rights activist and content creator, amassing over five million followers across social media. 

Burke says she felt it was important that she told her own story. In Unseen, Burke delves into her journey in navigating life after losing her vision. 

Burke was diagnosed with retinitis pigmentosa when she was four years old and lost most of her vision when she was 14.

“I am very openly frustrated by the way the mainstream media has portrayed blindness and disability in general and how I deeply believe the way they mistold our stories contributes to so much of the discrimination that we face,” she said at the event. 

Jeff deViller is the executive director of Canadian National Institute for the Blind Maritimes, whose parent organization CNIB put on the event. DeViller says being able to collaborate with Burke brought a lot of excitement to the community. 

“We’ve had campaigns before with other celebrities that didn’t have sight loss,” he said. “It’s exciting to me to see that it’s not just any celebrity we’re after, but we’re specifically looking at people who are representing people we serve.” 

The event was also organized by the King’s Co-op Book store.

After the launch, a long line of people waited to get their copies of the book signed. Mary Mitchell, a new fan of Burke’s content,  was one of the people eagerly waiting to interact with the author. She came across a video of Burke being interviewed on Instagram and was struck by her positive attitude. 

“I just find her really uplifting and inspiring,” said Mitchell. 

After almost 12 years of creating content on YouTube, Instagram and TikTok, Burke says she has found a way to appeal to connect with her community while also educating non-disabled people. She continues to prioritize accessibility in her content as she challenges stereotypes about disabled people. Unseen is her first print book.

“I will happily accept a third of the views to stand behind my morals and my values.”

This came through in the book’s design as well.  

“I really wanted every element of this book to be a representation of what I speak about,” she said. The cover of the book has metallic foil lettering, tactile braille and a bold, legible font. Inside the book, Burke chose to increase the sizing and spacing of the letters to make it easier for people with reading disabilities.

Since the book has been released, Burke has felt a range of emotions. 

“There are things that I held inside of me for so long because I either wasn’t ready to share, or I didn’t know how to share,” she said. “So releasing it also in a way felt very cathartic.”