Helen Adams Keller(June 27, 1880 June 1, 1968) was an American author,political activist, andlecturer. She was the firstdeafblindperson to earn a Bachelor of Arts degree.[1][2]The story of how Keller's teacher,Anne Sullivan, broke through the isolation imposed by a near complete lack of language, allowing the girl to blossom as she learned to communicate, has become widely known through the dramatic depictions of the play and filmThe Miracle Worker. Her birthday on June 27 is commemorated asHelen Keller Dayin the U.S. state ofPennsylvaniaand was authorized at the federal level by presidential proclamation by PresidentJimmy Carterin 1980, the 100th anniversary of her birth.A prolific author, Keller was well-travelled and outspoken in her convictions. A member of theSocialist Party of Americaand theIndustrial Workers of the World, she campaigned forwomen's suffrage,labor rights, socialism, and otherradical leftcauses. She was inducted into theAlabama Women's Hall of Famein 1971.
