On April 4, the American Foundation for the Blind presented me with the Helen Keller Achievement Award! Helen Keller has had a huge influence on my life — her books, her advocacy, and especially her incredible spirit. Receiving this award is a tremendous honor. I’m determined to devote my life to advocacy, just like Helen. [...]
Chris Hadfield is a retired Canadian astronaut and former commander of the International Space Station. During one critical spacewalk, floating anti-fog got into Hadfield’s eyes, making him temporarily blind. Later, in his TED talk, Hadfield described his thought process: “Okay, I can't see, but I can hear, I can talk, Scott Parazynski is out here [...]
Unbeknown to most employers, people with disabilities sparked the creation of many of the technologies we use today. Through my work as a disability rights lawyer, and my personal experiences as a deafblind woman, I have spent a significant amount of time studying the disability experience. The biggest barriers in the workplace are architectural, digital [...]
Maxine, the little legal rebel, is on the cover of the ABA Journal! It's America’s leading legal affairs magazine. ABA journalist Stephanie Ward wrote this wonderful article about my disability rights work. Image Description: Maxine, a German Shepherd guide dog, sits front and center. Around her neck is an orange bandana that says, “Legal Rebel.” [...]
BET and Black Girls Rock produced an amazing video celebrating my disability rights work. If you missed it on TV yesterday, you can watch it here. Also, here’s the video of actress Rutina Wesley honoring me with the Making A Difference Award. This award would not be possible without an incredible community of family and [...]
I'm excited to announce that I will be on the Black Girls Rock Awards Show. Black Girls Rock is honoring me for Making A Difference. Solange, Congresswoman Maxine Waters, Issa Rae, Roberta Flack, Yara Shahidi, Ibtihaj Muhammad, Augusta Uwamanzu-Nna, and many other amazing women will be celebrated. Tune in to BET, the Black Entertainment Television [...]
My deafblindness can be isolating, so I actively develop ways to connect with people. One solution is to offer people a keyboard paired with my braille computer, and as they type I’m able to easily read their words in braille. But what if a person who wants to talk to me has dyslexia? During the [...]
I was excited to learn that the Deaf character in the summer hit Baby Driver is actually played by a Deaf actor. This may signal a positive shift in Hollywood. Historically, most of the disabled characters in films were played by non-disabled actors, and a study by the Ruderman Family Foundation found that 95% of [...]
The Eritrean Youth Initiative (EYI) invited me to Ottawa to keynote their inaugural fundraiser dinner. The sold-out event on June 24th raised scholarships for high school students heading to college. My friend Negash Haile and his colleagues at EYI brought together Canadians from diverse backgrounds to recognize students making a difference. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau [...]
Here’s a fun video of me exploring the City Museum in St. Louis. Climbing the giant dome at the City Museum, every step brought a fun surprise! Because I'm Deafblind I climbed by touch. Also, my guide dog can’t climb ladders…yet! :) I visited the City Museum while in St. Louis last month to serve [...]
