American Masters

Becoming Helen Keller

Revisit the complex life and legacy of the author, advocate and human rights pioneer. Helen Keller, who was deaf and blind, used her celebrity and wit to champion rights for women, people with disabilities and people living in poverty.

Becoming Helen Keller

1h 22m

Revisit the complex life and legacy of the author, advocate and human rights pioneer. Helen Keller, who was deaf and blind, used her celebrity and wit to champion rights for women, people with disabilities and people living in poverty.

Previews + Extras

  • Helen Keller the suffragist: asset-mezzanine-16x9

    Helen Keller the suffragist

    S35 E11 - 59s

    Helen Keller was a social activist and suffragist, lending her name to the labor movement and the women's movement. "This inferiority of woman is man-made," she said in a speech in 1916.

  • Helen Keller the suffragist [Audio Description]: asset-mezzanine-16x9

    Helen Keller the suffragist [Audio Description]

    S35 E11 - 59s

    Helen Keller was a social activist and suffragist, lending her name to the labor movement and the women's movement. "This inferiority of woman is man-made," she said in a speech in 1916.

  • Helen Keller studied socialism: asset-mezzanine-16x9

    Helen Keller studied socialism

    S35 E11 - 1m 41s

    Helen Keller became interested in politics and read extensively on socialism. She began to write articles for The Call, a socialist paper in New York City. "It can't be unreasonable to ask of a society a fair chance for all. It can't be unreasonable to demand the protection of women and children and an honest wage for all," she said.

  • Helen Keller studied socialism [Audio Description]: asset-mezzanine-16x9

    Helen Keller studied socialism [Audio Description]

    S35 E11 - 1m 41s

    Helen Keller became interested in politics and read extensively on socialism. She began to write articles for The Call, a socialist paper in New York City. "It can't be unreasonable to ask of a society a fair chance for all. It can't be unreasonable to demand the protection of women and children and an honest wage for all," she said.

  • Keller's use of oral communication: asset-mezzanine-16x9

    Keller's use of oral communication

    S35 E11 - 2m 31s

    Alexander Graham Bell encouraged Helen Keller to practice oralism, where deaf people communicate through speech and lip-reading instead of sign language. "Oralism in general, I think, has a very oppressive quality to it, because what oralism is predicated on is the idea that the only way to communicate effectively is being able to speak," said disability rights advocate Rebecca Alexander.

  • Keller's use of oral communication [Audio Description]: asset-mezzanine-16x9

    Keller's use of oral communication [Audio Description]

    S35 E11 - 2m 31s

    Alexander Graham Bell encouraged Helen Keller to practice oralism, where deaf people communicate through speech and lip-reading instead of sign language. "Oralism in general, I think, has a very oppressive quality to it, because what oralism is predicated on is the idea that the only way to communicate effectively is being able to speak," said disability rights advocate Rebecca Alexander.

  • Rapper Warren "Wawa" Snipe on hip-hop in the Deaf community: asset-mezzanine-16x9

    Rapper Warren "Wawa" Snipe on hip-hop in the Deaf community

    S35 E11 - 3m 33s

    Warren "Wawa" Snipe, one of the ASL interpreters in "Becoming Helen Keller," raps under a genre he calls "Dip-Hop," or hip-hop through Deaf eyes. With Dip-Hop, Snipe wants to bridge the gap between the Deaf and hearing communities. "Deaf musicians are here. Don't ignore us."

  • Elsa Sjunneson: DeafBlind author—Extended Audio Description: asset-mezzanine-16x9

    Elsa Sjunneson: DeafBlind author—Extended Audio Description

    S35 E11 - 13m 16s

    This short film is an extended look at some of the themes explored in American Masters – Becoming Helen Keller, and aims to provide an updated representation of modern DeafBlind role models today. Elsa Sjunneson is a DeafBlind professor and media critic, skilled fencer and hiker, and published author who has written for Marvel Comics. This version contains extended audio description.

  • Becoming Helen Keller: asset-mezzanine-16x9

    Becoming Helen Keller

    S35 E11 - 1m 4s

    Revisit the complex life and legacy of the author, advocate and human rights pioneer. Helen Keller, who was deaf and blind, used her celebrity and wit to champion rights for women, people with disabilities and people living in poverty.

  • Elsa Sjunneson: DeafBlind fencer, hiker, published author: asset-mezzanine-16x9

    Elsa Sjunneson: DeafBlind fencer, hiker, published author

    S35 E11 - 7m 48s

    This short film is an extended look at some of the themes explored in American Masters - Becoming Helen Keller, and hopes to provide an updated representation of modern DeafBlind role models today. Elsa Sjunneson is a DeafBlind professor and media critic, skilled fencer and hiker, and published author who has written for Marvel Comics. She is a Hugo Award and Aurora Award winner.

  • Elsa Sjunneson: DeafBlind author [Audio Description + ASL]: asset-mezzanine-16x9

    Elsa Sjunneson: DeafBlind author [Audio Description + ASL]

    S35 E11 - 7m 46s

    This short film is an extended look at some of the themes explored in American Masters - Becoming Helen Keller, and aims to provide an updated representation of modern DeafBlind role models today. Elsa Sjunneson is a DeafBlind professor and media critic, skilled fencer and hiker, and published author who has written for Marvel Comics. This version contains audio description and ASL interpretation.

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