Meet the Deaf-Blind Lawyer Fighting For People With Disabilities
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- Опубликовано: 30 янв 2018
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It's easy to forget how inaccessible our world is to anyone with limited vision or hearing. Even something as simple as watching a Facebook video is a challenge due to access barriers. Haben Girma is fighting to change that.
Ahead is a transcript of Haben's interview so that it's accessible to everyone.
Video: Haben sits on a couch
Haben: Deaf-blindness is a rare disability, so most of the time I'm the first person in a certain situation. So I'm used to being a pioneer.
Video: The first shot is Haben typing on a keyboard, and the second shot is Haben speaking at an event
Title reads: Meet the Deaf-Blind Lawyer Fighting For People With Disabilities
Video: Haben sits on a couch
Haben: A lot of my friends know better than to tell me that I can't do something because that's actually encouragement to try to find a solution.
Video: In the first shot, Haben communicates via sign language with a student. In the next four shots, she surfs, dances, skis, and scales a building.
Graphic: Haben Girma was born deaf-blind, meaning she has limited hearing and vision
But that hasn't stopped her from surfing, dancing, skiing, and even scaling a building
Video: Haben smiles
Graphic: Growing up, Haben attended mainstream public schools and quickly learned to adapt
Video: Haben sits on a couch, talking
Haben: When I was in school, I had a teacher who trained me how to travel as a blind person.
Video: A bus drives down the street
Haben: I remember one of the lessons; she intentionally had me miss my stop so that I could learn how to problem solve when things go wrong.
Video: Haben works with a young student
Graphic: But not all students are so lucky
Video: Haben sits on a couch, talking
Haben: Many students with disabilities don't have access to information when they're in school.
Video: Close-up of a hand reading Braille on a keyboard
Haben: We need to make sure the schools have access to accessible technology, have access to qualified teachers who can provide training.
Video: In the first shot, Haben uses her Braille keyboard. In the second shot, a hearing aid is placed in a woman’s ear.
Graphic: Thanks to assistive technology, deaf-blind individuals have various ways to communicate
Video: Haben sits on a couch, talking. We see sporadic shots of her using her Braille keyboard.
Haben: Deaf-blindness is a spectrum. There are people with limited vision and limited hearing, and we use a variety of different communication styles: sign language, print on palm. What I use primarily is a keyboard and digital Braille display - so people will type on a wireless keyboard, and I'll read in digital Braille.
Video: President Barack Obama communicates with Haben via keyboard, and they shake hands
Obama: Hi, Haben!
Haben: Hello. It’s good to meet you!
Video: Maxine, a German Shepherd, stands with Haben
Graphic: Haben also has her trusty guide dog, Maxine, by her side
Video: Haben stands outside in front of a leafy wall, talking
Haben: Her job is to navigate around obstacles.
Video: Maxine guides Haben around a trailer hitch, then walks with her down a street
Haben: I make the decisions, and she follows me.
Video: Image of Haben in a graduation gown speaking at a university, followed by an image of Haben paddleboarding across a body of water
Graphic: Early on, Haben quickly learned to be her own biggest advocate
Video: Haben sitting on a couch, talking
Haben: When I was young, I had to teach people what I need, and that process helped me build up self-advocacy skills.
Video: People gather food at a cafeteria
Haben: There was one incident when I was in college. The college cafeteria would provide menus only in print, and blind students couldn't access the menu.
Video: Haben speaks at a TED Talk event
Graphic: Haben asked the cafeteria manager to provide an accessible menu, but her request was brushed off
Video: Haben sits on a couch, talking, followed by a shot of Haben on a laptop in the park, researching
Haben: Later, I did research. I learned that I have a right to information, and I returned to the cafeteria manager and explained, "I'm actually not asking for favors. I'm asking you to comply with the Americans With Disabilities Act."
Video: Time-lapse shots of people walking through a crowded street, a busy city intersection, and traffic on the freeway
Graphic: The Americans With Disabilities Act, passed in 1990, prohibits discrimination based on disability in all areas of public life
Source: ADA.gov
Video: Haben sits on a couch, talking
Haben: It changed the whole culture in the cafeteria. They started providing menus in accessible formats. And that taught me that if I advocate for myself, I change the community.
Video: Haben, in a 
Хобби
Her voice and intonation are amazing, especially considering that she's never heard someone speak before.
She speaks way more clearly than I do
she definitely used to be able to hear
Apparently she has limited hearing in the higher pitches, which are more distinguishable compared to lower pitches, which made speech acquisition easier compared to fully deaf people.
Her voice is just charming😍
Sounds like she has an IQ of 70
Keine Ahnung und so...
She speaks clearly and coherently as a deaf-blind which more than what non-disabled people accomplish, you shitgibbon.
Keine Ahnung und so... I don't know what this is supposed to be but it sounds kinda rude to say that
+Black Widow Sometimes the truth hurts, but it doesn't change the fact that it's the truth
Keine Ahnung und so... it's not the truth, it's an opinion and a stupid one at that. She can't hear her voice so how is she supposed to change it? It is the way it is.
Disabled lady here (cerebral palsy and autism spectrum). Thanks so much for your encouragement, Haben. Also, it continues to amaze me, over 30 years after the ADA was signed into law, how often disabled people’s basic rights are still considered “favors.” Thank you for continuing to clarify, no. We are not asking for favors. We’re asking for equality, not special treatment.
Just imagine teaching the meaning of words to a deafblind person. It's something out of my comprehension. Great to hear her. This is fantastic
this is exactly what I’m thinking! I can’t even begin to wrap my head around it
No one is born with knowledge; even as someone without disabilities, the brain is capable of assimilating meaning from essentially nothing. Most of these processes are automatic which is why it’s hard to imagine “thinking” about them.
I arrived at this video because I'be been trying to understand how AI Large Language Models understand language. It's interesting because I'm learning that LLMs actually don't understand or "know" what they are talking about, they are just very good at regenerating learned patterns.
@@SomeHobo interesr, that'd mean AI is a BIG compilated of data.
@@maxwellfabricio777 It is a pattern recognition machine that has been "trained" from a BIG compilation of data. I mean BIG enough that when the patter recognition machine re-generates the patterns that it has learned, it feels to us like it understands like we do, which it does not.
Helen Keller would definitely approve of your efforts to make the best of your deaf-blindness and rising above her circumstances in life.
I always down myself saying im legally blind in one eye iwont ever amount to anything. This gave me so much motivation. Its like i was meant for this video.thank you haben for creating a pathway for those with disabilities.
@Justine Lehtinen im also blind in one eye and everyday i wake up it kills me.. I feel like i will not enjoy living in this world for my entire life coz it affects my studies, living, and the way people see me😭😭..
But watching this kind of videos makes me more to motivate in life☺️
.. God bless us all😇
- message from the Philippines
I’m also legally Blind. Never put yourself down. You can do anything you put your mind to!
I'm also going blind. it helps to know I'm not alone in this.
?? I am blind in one eye and it does not affect my daily life AT ALL. What do you mean, my fellow one-eye blind people? We can see, we can read, we can walk around with no problem! Depth perception is seriously overrated, I used comparative size and shadow to gaze distance. Let's go!! We can enjoy life!
Awww goof for you lovely lady
Im speechless and grateful... God Bless this lady..
Oh the irony. God bless her? Isn't he the one who made her this way?
@@FlaqkoGTA god doesn't exist
@@puglove7311 thanks for the info
God does not exist or he is piece of shit
Wow! Haben is such an empowering and strong women. It's amazing what you can accomplish if you try hard Thank you for sharing her story
💤
@shirbert wtf
her story absolutely makes me so happy that she never let her disability stop her from doing anything. this is a reason why i’m learning ASL because i’ve come into contact with so many deaf people and i feel horrible when i couldn’t communicate with them. she just inspires me to help the deaf and potentially blind
I don't understand how she has an American accent since she has never seen or heard anyone, never mind a fellow American, before. I'm blown away by her abilities either way, truly a remarkable person!
Thats such an amazing verbalization- I’m not asking for handouts, I’m asking for what is legally set up for me to be able to access information.
She's actually amazing.
I 100% believe in what she is doing as my dad is deaf and has been since birth and my mum is also disabled too , we need more people like this to stand up for people who can’t for them self
ruclips.net/video/Ji3fODh4SrU/видео.html
ruclips.net/video/RR4AtDF8bg0/видео.html
ruclips.net/video/0gQILVCBH8k/видео.html
Also, reading the bible out loud healed my neck, made my bones, joints and whole body feel very much stronger too. I believe it can heal anything so do it daily. Look up healing scriptures online or read any of the bible, it's all so good to read.
Pray every day in Jesus' name and always Tithe faithfully, it heals so much if you do it right. I get healed when I give to the food shelf and salvation army. I give food and hygiene products or you can try giving to online ministries.
Makes me feel like I can do something about something.
She is awesome!❤ Get it girl!!!
She has a really wonderful voice and is a courageous inspiration for all.
She could become a Voice artist ..what a beautiful voice ❤
Doja Cat but Deafblind
I am inspired by her and her powers that fought for the rights of disabilities people, can change the nation. Since I'm deaf so I can understand what these people go through their life, now they can do anything and not let anyone pressure on you because everyone thinks you can't do anything. She's such a strong and brave woman ever I seen.
One question I have is how she learned to talk as a kid. I can imagine it being very difficult learning to say words properly with no auditory feed back.
simply this is just NOT really, and how can she climb a ladder like that with no vision. She is just partially Deafblind and not Fully
@@ottowhassan6932 most deaf people, blind people, and deafblind people are not fully missing their sense only partially. It’s interesting since tv shows/movies normally paint the most extreme picture.
@@ottowhassan6932 "and how can she climb a ladder like that with no vision." Trivially. The rungs on the ladder are all obviously the same spacing apart so anyone blindfolded could do the exact same thing after 2 seconds of practice. Even if they weren't she has ARMS that can TOUCH. Have you ever put your hand into a hole to grab something you couldn't see? Are you sure you don't suffer from a lack of object permenance since you seem to think you can't reach for things you aren't looking at?
She has only 1% of her vision, which basically means she knows if the lights are on or not and that is about it.
She lost her hearing over time and probably did drills to practice. You can feel the vibrations of your voice and with enough practice can self regulate if you are speaking correctly. There is a clip of Helen Keller speaking and she is intelligible though not nearly as skilled as Haben.
she can hear 😂
Awesome Job Haben With Helping Everyone Know That We Too Can Learn How To Help People With Disabilities. 👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾❤️
What a women this is the backbone off life how people can still smile 10 outta 10 just for being here and the out standing graham uk
She is very inspiring love her she's so cute
🙏🏽 She is an absolute inspiration. Beautiful soul!
Haben is simply amazing and motivating! I just saw her on Morning Joe and decided to educate myself on deafblind disability.
Yes girl! I love this, she’s amazing and inspiring.
Probably the best human being i ever seen, god bless her.
She is an outstanding human being and pure of heart. I wish her continued success and eternal joy. 💕🙏🏾
By her standing up for herself/rights, she helps others 🙏❣️great 💞happy New Year .. 🕊️
So Much love and Respect.. God Bless You.
Ohhh why do i always start crying watching those kind of videos. Need to sharp myself up! She's having a good life!
What a very inspiring individual! 💗
Wow,what an inspiration!!
She is such an amazing person!!!
shes so beautiful and inspiring
Became familiar with Haven through Ruderman Foundation. She’s a very inspirational person for my kids who are all blind.
Its too bad she can Never See how Beautiful she looks. But then again her inner beauty is astonishing
Entirely inspiring much love from Deaf-🤟🏾
She is inspiring to me, I love her style, class, and tact
Freaking amazing ... words could do her no justice!
Wow! Awesome brave woman and I'm proud of her. Good for her! I am deaf and sign language. Bless her heart.
Thank you from the bottom of my heart I have cerebral palsy and epilepsy we need more advocates God Bless you remember we have no disability we have Ability.
Reading the bible out loud healed my neck, made my bones, joints and whole body feel very much stronger too. I believe it can heal anything so do it daily. Look up healing scriptures online or read any of the bible, it's all so good to read.
Healing prayer utube videos have been very helpful and healing for me too and others too you can read it in the comments.
This woman is so inspiring
Amazing person in everyway.❤
She's so bright! I hope she continues to have a long, fulfilling life
Wow. Just wow. I am so amazed by her.
She is amazing.
So amazing! I think my brother was the first blind student at Harvard. He works on Wall Street now. Congratulations for blazing the trail for others!
Being deaf and able to speak is another level of intelligence... +her advocate career, 😱She's a super human...
Woww! Just Wow! So inspirational
She is a ray of hope for all of us
she’s amazing 💗
Thank you sir.
Wow what a wise and beautiful blessed you sweet sister 🙏❤
God does not exist or he is piece of shit
So inspiring
Such a beautiful, inspirational woman with that God given courage and leadership. 🙏🏽
God does not exist or he is piece of shit
@@sauroman1 god dose exist i dont want to agrue to you about this but i know he is ive seen demons and spirts before all of thar stuff is connected to satan and if he's real god is real thats not even the reason so many people think he is real its just somethinf i made at the top of head also why would god be a piece of shit if he was real if he was real your going to hell for sayong stuff like that i respect that you might not believe but no need to be disrespecting like that
Who that teachers was fantastic to help you do that. It so important to learn that skills. Fantastic explanation.
So inspiring!! ❤
Nah im speechless rn wtfffff HOW?! This is amazing
Absolutely beautiful ❤
What a pretty young woman I am amazed at her strength and charm with such a challenging life. She is a little sweetheart and brains too x I don't understand how they could refuse her request for a braille menu.
She is amazing ❤️✨
You are amazing ❤
Bless you 💜
Your so brave and even if you blind or deaf you should never give up you s have to do something
I came here after watching the Daredevil show. You are absolutely amazing
Very nice video congratulations to this girl
What a beautiful mind !!
Thank you, Haben, for everything that you do! -I love your quotation that, "It is beautiful to find solutions." Well-spoken.
Maxine is beautiful! -Does she have special training to assist the Deaf as well?
How does your Deafness affect your getting around? To me it would be challenging enough navigating Blind, but Deaf as well?
How do you make it look so effortless?
You know this would have been a good video for audio descriptions.
Your voice is amazing
you are so inspiring
Great story!
People who have a disability often seem to have a large amount humbleness, wisdom, and other qualities that come from a deeper place within. Haben has a lot of wisdom to offer and, thanks to assistive technology, she is better able to share that wisdom with our world 🙏
That is a half truth. Yes, there are people who archieved things despite their conditions but disabled are no diferent from normal people in a sense that some people are pessimistic or depressed whole other are happy and achieved thing. It is just matter of perspective. This thing we we pay more attention to succesful than those who fail because it inspired us and because of survivorship bias that make us to see more the success and not consider the failure so we ignored it. Truth is you can learn from both sides wining and losing can teach some lessons for you. I tell you I have Usher Syndrome and I am doing my best to live a normal life but I remember a girl with the same condition who was very pessimistic and did not want to go to a therapy.
So amazing
Amazing!
I love her voice. She's really sweet. I wish I could meet her.
Awesome! I am working on building my own assisted technology for deafblind people - this inspired me to work harder.
I've read that only 1 in 10 people who are blind (not sure if that is "legally blind" or what) can read Braille. Most of those people are born blind, and a lot of people who are blind become blind later in life, so that means there's lots of blind people who cannot read Braille!
This is a problem when out and about, where things like buttons or signs use braille.
For people using a bank machine, maybe let people use a cell app with audio output and scan the QR code onto the machine display. My bank uses QR code on the desktop or laptop that I scan with my phone to confirm I'm okay with transfering money, so a similar technology could be used at the machine. Though that would not work for people who are totally deaf as well as totally blind, it could help deafblind people who can hear somewhat.
@@leerwesen there's a reason you don't hear about people born totally deaf and blind.
What an Amazing and beautiful woman.
I have learnt so much all ready beautiful
She is a miracle worker
Loads of people whom grew up in disability program grow up and out of the program it's been hard on me to find work without mother nor a father!!!
I wish her well forever.😁
She's a hero
Her voice is so cute❤
She's pretty. Love her voice
All Ethiopians are proud of you!
She’s adorable. She’s so cute.
Her voice is beautiful and she looks beautiful
I’ll never forget when I was in summer camp and met a girl who was deaf and blind. I think about her a lot she was cool and could talk very well. We would communicate by her placing her hands on yours while you do sign language
I honestly think I’m in love
Ooh this video filled me with faith, am Deafblind from Malawi this video has encouraged me will work hard at school so l reach my goal too . My deafblindness is not enabling,, l can make it also,,,thanks PS for the video
I can't even imagine how difficult daily life must be. Greatest luck and love from Australia 😍😍😍💋💋💋
@@galegrazutis964 thank you
Great just great
I wonder if she can sing. I mean, her voice color is beautiful
She is both deaf and blind but still she can like a normal person with really charming voice 😍.. She is really inspiring 💖
If she was fully deaf she wouldn't speak like that, though
@@GlacieraBr1de yeah she's also a surfer, kayaker and rock climber. Doesn't mean she's not doing great things for people with disabilities, and putting in a massive amount of effort, but it's kind of disingenuous the way the video is titled and presented like she's overcome massive obstacles compared to someone who can't see or hear at all from birth and is therefore also severely reduced in speaking ability. I bet they'd like to go rock climbing, lol.
She sounds like Ginger Foutley from As Told By Ginger 😍😍😍😍
Have you guys seen the description? It’s written so blind people can hear it. That’s fucking amazing wow
She's so inspiring and she makes me feel good about myself and I am legally blind from birth I am Emily
Wow what a strong, amazing, kind, clever and charming beautiful woman. Yeah I could go on😁
This story is amazing. I’m actually deaf. I use hearing aids to help me hear. I can speak English and sign in ASL.
She wasn't born deaf blind.... so they probably should've watched her talk a bit more and they would have seen videos where she explained how she had bad sight all her life and was losing her hearing as a child and how she didn't really notice until it was almost too late and learned to read Braille etc.
Thank you!!! Was super curious myself because no deaf-blind person that was born that way has been able to communicate. They even say hellen Keller was all a scam by her “teacher” 😳
ah yeah I was wondering how she would be able to speak if she was born deaf and blind!
Kata rin
Watch the video on how Helen Keller learned to talk.