Disability History Factoid: Helen Keller

Tuesday, October 18, 2011 - Helen Keller

Helen Keller (1860-1968) worked for the American Foundation for the Blind for more than 40 years. Keller played a leading role in most of the significant political, social, and cultural movements of the 20th century. Throughout her lifetime she worked unceasingly to improve the lives of people with disabilities.

The story of Helen Keller is the story of a child who suddenly lost her hearing and vision and at the age of 19 months, and who, with a great deal of persistence, grew into a highly intelligent and sensitive woman who wrote, spoke, and labored incessantly for the betterment of others. So powerful a symbol of triumph over adversity did she become that she has a definite place in the history of our time and of times to come.

During her lifetime, Helen Keller received awards of great distinction too numerous to recount fully here. An entire room, called the Helen Keller Archives at the American Foundation for the Blind in New York City, is devoted to their preservation. These awards include Brazil's Order of the Southern Cross; Japan's Sacred Treasure; the Philippines' Golden Heart; Lebanon's Gold Medal of Merit; and her own country's highest honor, the Presidential Medal of Freedom. Most of these awards were bestowed on her in recognition of the stimulation her example and presence gave to work for people who were blind in those countries. In 1933 she was elected a member of the National Institute of Arts and Letters. During the Louis Braille Centennial Commemoration in 1952, Ms. Keller was made a Chevalier of the French Legion of Honor at a ceremony in the Sorbonne. In 1964 she received the Presidential Medal of Freedom from Lyndon Johnson. In 1965, she was one of 20 elected to the Women's Hall of Fame at the New York World's Fair.

• For more information, photos and writings of Helen Keller, visit the American Foundation for the Blind http://www.afb.org/section.asp?sectionID=1
• Helen Keller Kids Museum http://www.afb.org/braillebug/hkmuseum.asp
• Video with Opera Singer Gladys Swarthout http://www.afb.org/braillebug/hkmediaviewer.asp?frameid=61
• Video of Helen Keller Visiting Japan at request of U.S. government http://www.afb.org/braillebug/hkmediaviewer.asp?frameid=42
• Video of Helen Keller testing communication device http://www.afb.org/braillebug/hkgallery.asp?tpid=4
• Video of Anne Sullivan explaining how Helen learned to talk http://www.afb.org/braillebug/hkgallery.asp?tpid=3

About the Facts

The Disability History Daily Factoids are presented each weekday in October to celebrate "Persons with Disabilities History and Awareness Month" in Texas. HB 3616, passed during the 82nd Legislative session, encourages public schools and state agencies to celebrate the accomplishments of people with disabilities. To learn more about Disability History, go to http://governor.state.tx.us/disabilities/resources/disability_history/.

Past Facts

For daily factoids from previous days, visit our archive: http://governor.state.tx.us/disabilities/resources/history_and_awareness_month_factoids