Blind and Partially Sighted Influencers Sharing Their Experiences

Social media gives opportunities for people from various communities to showcase, educate, motivate, and connect. The blind and partially sighted community raises awareness about accessibility and shows how members lead fulfilling lives. A lot of blind and partially sighted influencers display amazing talent and skill as well, which serves as a source of inspiration. 

Blind and partially sighted influencers raising awareness

Gracie Marsh

Gracie has cultivated a supportive virtual community with her content. She shares her daily struggles as a blind person with additional health conditions and as a wheelchair user, and how she overcomes them. She also shares her achievements, intentionally posts informative videos to educate people about ableism, and sheds light on aspects of being disabled that abled people may not have known. She has a blog as well, where she recounts details of her journey. Gracie says she feels honored to be able to enlighten so many people and that she “wouldn’t change it for the world.”

Lucy Edwards

Lucy is a thriving makeup artist and the first blind BBC Radio 1 presenter who has knocked down several barriers and continues to do so. Lucy lives by the phrase “Blind not broken” and demonstrates the importance of not giving up across her social media channels. Her content includes fun games, tutorials, challenges, and even her flying an airplane.

Tommy Edison

Tommy worked as a traffic reporter at one point, using his hearing and smart cognitive processing to his advantage. He then became a YouTuber and film critic, producing a series of movies under the guise “Blind Film Critic” with the help of Ben Churchill. However, it wasn’t until he started posting videos answering questions about life as a blind person that his channel really took off. His content featuring how he navigates through society, along with his frequent jokes, earned him much popularity.  

Molly Burke

Molly has been making her mark since she was just 5 years old. She began public speaking, serving as an ambassador for Fighting Blindness Canada, and her ambition has only heightened since then. Molly is a commercial model, which was a big dream of hers from a young age, and the author of the audiobook “It’s Not What It Looks Like.” She spreads awareness about the hurdles the blind community faces in society.  

Sam Seavy

Sam is the creator behind The Blind Life, a YouTube channel and website showcasing the best assistive technology and applications for the blind and partially sighted community. He started his channel in 2013, after being hired to create YouTube content for a mobile technology company. While working for them, he included a few videos about phone accessibility applications for people with limited vision and received more positive feedback than he expected. This inspired him to start his own channel, sharing more technology and applications, along with the more humorous side of his experience. He also gives tips and tricks that he’s learned over the years. 

Christine Ha

Christine is a chef, co-host, best-selling author, and the owner of two restaurants, The Blind Goat and Xin Chào. She is the first blind chef to compete and win “MasterChef” Season 3 with Gordon Ramsey. She wrote the cookbook, “Recipes from My Home Kitchen,” and after it was named a New York Times bestseller, co-hosted a cooking show for the blind and limited vision community called “Four Senses.” She often talks about how losing her vision has increased her focus on the taste, temperature, and texture of the food she cooks. The Blind Goat was a semi-finalist for the James Beard Foundation’s 2020 Best New Restaurant in America award. Xin Chào also earned Christine a 2022 finalist spot for the James Beard Foundation’s Best Chef award in the Texas region. 

John Whistler

As the creator behind Theory of a Blind Man, John is passionate about gaming and becoming the best video producer possible. After losing his sight, he assumed his gaming days were over, until he stumbled upon a community of blind gamers online. He then decided to start posting video reviews of games that are accessible to blind and partially sighted people on YouTube. He also has a list of resources on his website.

Matt – Blind to Billionaire

Matt created his YouTube channel, Blind to Billionaire, to show off how he is overcoming the condition that caused him to lose his vision, Retinitis Pigmentos.  He also talks about his daily strides toward becoming a billionaire. He continues to live an active lifestyle and travel. Matt has remained committed to being a daily advocate for the blind and partially sighted community and is determined to show the world that anybody can achieve anything they want.

Mel – Mel’s Blind Life

Mel lives life on her terms, which can be viewed on her YouTube channel, Mel’s Blind Life. With the help of her guide dog, Penelope, she navigates her daily life, doing everything she loves. She frequently travels and participates in sports, and she even works as an equestrian. Mel also aims to educate people about blindness and accessibility.

Sophie Barnett

Sophie, also known as BirdNerdSophie, is a partially sighted influencer and bird lover. Her content usually involves her birds and what it’s like owning and caring for them. She has a flock of five parrots, which can often be seen dancing, talking, participating in games, and much more. There are also videos where she answers questions about living life with limited vision and respectfully interacting with people of the blind and limited vision community.  

James Rath

James is a legally blind filmmaker, photographer, traveler, and accessibility advocate. He has worked with several brands, directing commercials and consulting with technology experts to increase accessibility for people of the blind and partially sighted community. His YouTube channel features the different technologies he uses and tips on how to get the most out of them. He also hosts podcasts. He hopes to continue expressing the importance of equal opportunities for people living with disabilities.

Chris Fisher

Chris worked in auto body repair at BMW until a rare virus called Toxoplasmosis caused his vision to deteriorate in a matter of weeks. He discovered how much he enjoyed woodturning after deciding he wanted to create a vampire stake. He learned the process by listening to YouTube tutorials and eventually got it done. He then decided to start his own YouTube channel to motivate people in both the blind and sighted communities. He continues traveling to give woodturning demonstrations and share his story.