Colorblindguy suit goes forward…

“She went that-a-way!”

Being a colorblindguy can pose an issue with entering certain professions.

A colorblind man (Danny David) was originally offered a position at Penn State as a policeman, but the offer was rescinded after learning he was colorblind.

University officials responded to the lawsuit Wednesday, contending that allowing David to circumvent the colorblindness parameters for police would “pose a direct threat to the health and/or safety of the university community.”
(TribLive 2/13/20–link to entire story)

The primary reason for not allowing a colorblind person to enter the law enforcement profession is the ability to provide and receive descriptions of suspects.

He should be considered a “specialist”
and hired at a premium!

What if the person providing the description of a suspect is colorblind? The witness would state the suspect was wearing a gray coat when it is actually pink. He would state she drove away in a gray car when it was actually pink. Only a colorblind officer would properly interpret this description and be able to apprehend the suspect. As seen below Moe and Larry are thrown off while Curly is pointing in the correct direction.

Additionally there was a story stating that in World War II, a colorblind person was all to spot 100% of the camouflaged fieldpieces while an other non-colorblind person saw 25%. This is another area of expertise needed on a police force.

One man in 20 is color-blind in greater or lesser degree and for that reason ineligible for training as an Army Air Corps pilot or observer. Last week the Air Corps’s School of Flight Medicine reported an interesting incident.

In a plane at Fort Sill, Okla. early this summer, an Air Corps observer was able to spot only ten of 40 camouflaged artillery fieldpieces on the ground. An observer of the Field Artillery in a plane spotted all 40 and accurately plotted their positions on his map. The explanation: the artilleryman, selected under less rigorous examination than the Air Corps man, was colorblind. Camouflage, designed to deceive the normal eye, fooled him not a whit.

Last week, at the School of Flight Medicine, clerks combed the files preparing a list of candidates rejected for color blindness. But the Air Corps still wants no color-blind pilots. A pilot must be able to distinguish between colors in Very signals, field lights, etc., where a mistake would be costly.
(Time magazine August 5, 1940)

True Story

When I was wearing one of my famous guy colorblindguy shirts, a server (sorry can’t use the work barista) at Starbucks in Waban, MA commented that his grandfather was colorblind. Without any questioning, he went on to explain that in WWII he was used to spot howitzers. It confirmed for me the theory that this was actually practiced. I asked about getting a first hand account, unfortunately the man had passed.