**Discussion begins at 4:15**
Helen Keller was born June 27, 1880 in Tuscumbia, Alabama, to a prominent family. While the family was well off, much of their wealth was lost during the Civil War, and they lived rather modestly. At 19 months, Helen became ill with a high fever due to what many presume to be Scarlet Fever, resulting in loss of eyesight and hearing. As she grew up, she was frustrated and unruly, prompting her parents to write to the Perkins School for the Blind to request help. The school sent Anne Sullivan, a 20 year old graduate of the school who suffered serious vision problems. Anne removed Helen from the home for a few weeks and the two lived in a cottage where Anne taught Helen to communicate with her hands. Over the next several years, Helen learned to read and write. Anne Sullivan remained Helen’s companion until her death, even helping her to earn a BA in 1904 from Radcliffe College, the female sister school of Harvard. Helen Keller went on to write over a dozen books, including an autobiography which went on to be adapted into The Miracle Worker. She also campaigned for social causes like women’s suffrage, labor rights, world peace, and was also a vocal advocate for those with disabilities. She was also a pacifist, a supporter of female birth control, and…. a eugenics supporter! She was a member of the Socialist Party and a founding member of the ACLU. S he worked for the American Foundation for the Blind for over 40 years, influencing policy and public perceptions of disability worldwide, and traveled to more than 35 countries to promote education and accessibility. She died in 1961 after suffering a series of strokes, and was celebrated posthumously… Until 2020 when hashtags like #helenkellerisfake and #helenkellerisoverparty started trending on Tik Tok. Conspiracy theorists claimed that Helen Keller either didn’t exist, wasn’t truly deaf and blind, or didn’t accomplish the things she’s famous for—from writing books to earning a degree or speaking publicly. Some videos even suggested she “faked” her disabilities or that her teacher Anne Sullivan was pulling the strings behind the scenes. What started out as satire quickly came to be believed as truth by many. But what is the truth?
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