Braille literacy is dropping dramatically

SEATTLE - Wes Derby navigates through the world relying on sound, touch and Braille.

"Braille is extremely important to me," says Derby.

Every day, he takes the bus to the Washington Talking Book and Braille Library where he works as a librarian, using Braille to find audio books for other blind people, most of whom cannot read Braille themselves.

"It would be like a sighted person who doesn't read print. I mean, how many jobs are open to you if you can't read?" says Derby.

The number of Braille readers among the blind has dipped dramatically. Only about 1.6 percent of library users actually use Braille. That's down 9 percent from ten years ago. According to the National Federation of The Blind, less than 10 percent of the 1.3 legally blind Americans read Braille.

Technology has taken over.

"You've got text to speech and you've got audio downloads," says Danielle Miller of the WA Talking Book and Braille Library. She says they're all convenient, but Braille she believes, is the key to finding employment and being able to attend college.

"It's how someone learns to spell, when to use a capital letter, punctuation, knowing the difference between red the color and read the book," said Miller.

It's also cumbersome.

"Braille in large volumes can be a bit overwhelming," says Miller.  For instance, the book "Harry Potter: Goblet of Fire," takes up ten large books of Braille. The audio version is just one disk.

Despite advancements in technology, one a small and passionate population believes Braille is vital to hold on to.

"Imagine if somebody told you, 'You know what? You can no longer read printed material. You just need to listen to printed material and you'd better pick it up that way.' That's terrible," says Derby.