By Ashley de Sampaio Ferraz
Baltimore Watchdog Staff Writer
Haben Girma, the first deafblind graduate of Harvard Law, said that disabilities can drive innovation and anything can be made accessible if people decide to be inclusive.
Girma provided examples of inventions that were originally created to help disabled people but now play an important part of many people’s lives, including email, keyboards and curb cuts.
“When you create a disability solution, everybody benefits,” Girma said during a presentation Wednesday at Towson University, where she she also signed copies of her new memoir, “Haben: The Deafblind Woman Who Conquered Harvard Law.”
More than 280 students, faculty, staff and community members watched as Girma mounted the stage with her guide dog, Mylo, by her side.
She communicated to the audience as most speakers would: with her voice. As she spoke, her assistant typed audio and visual descriptions of her surroundings into a wireless keyboard that connected to a braille computer for Girma to read and experience.
Girma was born in California and her parents both emigrated from Africa before she was born. She graduated from Harvard Law in 2013 and became an advocate for both online and offline accessibility for those with disabilities.
Girma said that society often puts up arbitrary barriers for those with disabilities, and these barriers could easily be removed if people were willing to put the time and work in to do so.
“Any activity you can think of can be made accessible,” Girma said. “Often it’s the assumption of people that creates barriers.”
Not only does Girma believe in this philosophy, she displays it through her own life. She shared videos of her salsa dancing in a dance club and surfing in the ocean, activities that most people might never think a deafblind person could possibly participate in.
Susan Willemin, director of Accessibility and Disability Services at TU and one of the organizers of the event, said that advocates like Girma are needed in today’s climate, as many people don’t understand what living with a disability is like.
“I really believe that until you really experience something, you just don’t get it,” Willemin said. “So, in the case of a disability, how do we really know what it’s like? I do think attitudinal barriers that hold people with disabilities back are still very much alive and well today.”
Girma said that sometimes, businesses refuse to make the accommodations that would make it possible for her to participate. She said this is when she reminds them of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).
“The Americans with Disabilities Act prohibits discrimination against people with disabilities. That includes digital content, that includes hiring. All aspects of the program need to be accessible,” Girma said. “Litigation is expensive and time consuming.I It’s much easier to just choose inclusion.”
Girma said schools like Towson are some of the best places for new solutions to be created.
“We’ll surprise you,” Girma said. “We’ll come up with innovative ways to use all kinds of technology. Don’t make assumptions at this school. Design for every program to be accessible. Disabled students should have all the choices available to non-disabled students.”
Girma said that there’s a lot of shame surrounding the disability community, which limits how far those with disabilities think they can go.
“I wrote a book and titled it ‘Haben,’” Girma said. “In the language of Tingrinya, spoken in Eritrea and Ethiopia, ‘Haben’ means pride. I want people to learn to celebrate the things that make us different and unique. Let’s move away from shame, and instead embrace disability pride.”