a 25-year-old woman shines around the world as the first blind and deaf graduate of a US university.
Haben Girma, 25, of Cambridge, Massachusetts, became the first blind and deaf person to earn a law degree from Harvard Law School.
Despite being both blind and deaf, Haben Girma, who has become a global celebrity for her extraordinary achievement, graduated with a Juris Doctor degree (J.D.) from Harvard Law School in 2013.
Girma lost her vision and hearing as a result of an unexplained degenerative ailment beginning in early 𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘥hood, maintaining barely 1% of her sight. She benefited from civil rights laws, such as the Americans with Disabilities Act, in her early years in the country.
She also has accessible technology, such as a digital Braille device to enable her to read. At the age of 17, she received her diploma from Skyline High School in the United States.
According to Habren memoirs where she explained how she had to learn how to navigate in a world created for those who see and hear, she considers disability as a chance for invention.
She described how she acquired non-visual s𝓀𝒾𝓁𝓁s for everything from salsa dancing to operating an electric saw. She added that Girma’s Braille computer is fed wirelessly with information from Arianne, her hearing translator, who types what people say and do into a specialized computer.
She speaks in response as she reads by tracing her fingers over the dots. “My parents came to the United States in search of opportunity, and they discovered that freedom is not based on geography; it is based on people and communities,” Girma said.
When discussing her achievements at Harvard Law School, Girma said she hadn’t intended to apply there because she thought it would be “snobbish,” but a counselor advised her that “a lot of non-disabled law graduates are struggling to get a job” so she should apply to prestigious schools.
She explained further that at the time, Harvard had no clue about how a deafblind person would graduate from the school and that she herself have no clue either.
Girma however broke the jinx and attained her degree in flying colours. She has also taken part in a number of cases on behalf of those who are disabled, and she currently concentrates on advocacy work.
Girma has received widespread attention for her accomplishments from people like President Bill Clinton, Prime.
