Helen Keller Biography

Writer, lecturer, advocate for the disabled, 1880—1968

“When one comes to think of it, there are no such things as divine, immutable, or inalienable rights. Rights are things we get when we are strong enough to make good our claim on them.”

Born in northern Alabama, Helen Keller suffered a ‘brain fever’ (probably scarlet fever or meningitis) at age 19 months that left her blind and deaf. The disease also turned her into an out-of-control child, usually in a foul temper. Finally, in their own defense, her parents traveled to Baltimore to meet with Alexander Graham Bell. The famous inventor, who studied speech while working on his telephone, subsequently had become interested in educating deaf children.

Bell told the Kellers to contact the Perkins Institution for the Blind in Boston, which in turn recommended a former pupil, Anne Sullivan, as Helen’s teacher. The orphaned Sullivan, herself mostly blind since age five, also had had a difficult life, and desperately needed the work. In 1887 she came to Alabama and, after a stormy first month, got Helen to understand the concept of words during a famous encounter at the family’s water pump.

Keller made remarkable progress from that point and ultimately, with Sullivan’s help, graduated with honors in 1904 from Radcliffe University, the first deaf and blind person ever to earn a Bachelor of Arts degree. In an era when most women were not allowed careers, and the blind often were considered fit only to live in asylums, Keller’s impassioned writings and lectures (delivered through an interpreter) made a strong impression on audiences around the world.

Keller primarily is remembered for her advocacy for the disabled, but as a member of the Socialist Party, she also strongly supported such groups as the ACLU, IWW, and NAACP, and campaigned for birth control, civil rights, women’s suffrage, and world peace. "We, the people, are not free,” she once said. “Our democracy is but a name. We vote? What does that mean? It means we choose between Tweedledee and Tweedledum. We elect expensive masters to do our work for us, and then blame them because they work for themselves and for their class."

The Miracle Worker, a play about Keller’s childhood education with Sullivan, won a Tony award in 1960, and then became a popular film, winning acting Academy Awards in 1962 for both Anne Bancroft (who played Anne) and Patty Duke (Helen). Keller was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1964 by Lyndon Johnson. She is buried in the National Cathedral in Washington, D.C., where visitors over the years twice have worn the braille letters completely off the plaque by her grave.

Rachel Marsden

Rachel is a New York based political columnist, political and media strategist, radio/TV personality, CEO of Grand Central Political online political/PR/media talent scouting, and Editor-in-Chief of Grand Central Political magazine -- serving the USA, Canada, UK, and France. She is considered an expert in both US and international politics.

Born in suburban Vancouver, British Columbia, Rachel grew up listening to Jack Webster, who pioneered combative political talk-radio long before it ever spread to the USA.

Fully bilingual in both French and English, Rachel survived growing up in Canada during the socialist regime of Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau, best known for his close friendship with Fidel Castro, decimation of the Canadian military, a wife who partied at Studio 54 with the Rolling Stones, and doing pirouettes behind the Queen of England's back.

Always a capitalist at heart, Rachel spent her childhood on her parents' farm selling eggs from the family driveway. To ensure the operation looked legit and to score an advantage over the competition (the neighborhood Safeway), she would hold her pet chicken, Brenda (named after her Sunday school teacher), on her lap as proof that the eggs were truly "farm fresh".

She was also influenced early in life by the bravery and determination of a young man in her hometown named Terry Fox, who remains a personal hero.

Rachel attended Vancouver Canucks hockey games, where she waved at Wayne Gretzky from the front row while his face was smashed into the glass, whenever the Edmonton Oilers came to town.

After ripping like a tornado through one of Canada's most liberal universities (sciences, then criminology), she moved on to a broadcast journalism degree, then formal political journalism training in Washington, DC.

Working in Canada, she spent her media career debating and liberals in both of her native languages (French and English), and perplexingly, has no hint of an accent in either language.

Rachel started out with the Fox News Channel in 2004 as the Canadian Correspondent for "The O'Reilly Factor" -- the top-rated cable news show in the world -- after she was spotted as a regular panelist on Dennis Miller's CNBC show in Los Angeles. She later became a daily panelist on FNC's late-night show and has also since appeared on CNN, FOX Business Network, and other news networks.

Most recently a political columnist for the Toronto Sun and other Sun Media newspapers, she has contributed to United Press International/Washington Times, and the National Post (one of Canada's two national newspapers). Her writing has appeared in other print and online publications around the world, including the New York Post and Newsmax magazine.

In addition to working in network news production in New York City and nationally-syndicated radio in Washington, DC, Rachel has served as a DC-based Director of a political think-tank, worked as a political campaign strategist and run political campaigns in both Canada and the USA, and as CEO of a public relations, lobbying, and strategic communications business.

Prior to beginning a 2-year stint in Toronto in 2005, Rachel hosted a weekly open line, political talk-radio radio program out of Vancouver, BC, which was broadcast worldwide. She used to tell listeners that she did all her own technical controls for the show, so any calls would go straight onto the air without screening. Rachel would like to thank all the the folks who took advantage of this for helping her hone her comedic improvisational skills.

A former national level competitive swimmer who still holds records in her home province, Rachel lives for challenges and thrives on competition. She likens political debate to a boxing match -- and she's never happier than when she's in the ring.

In her spare time, Rachel enjoys volunteering for various organizations, and dating guys who usually turn out to be jerks.

She hates it when people "big themselves up" in their bios.