Haben Girma, recipient of the Helen Keller Achievement Award for her tireless advocacy for people with disabilities, will participate in Montgomery County Public Libraries’ (MCPL) virtual “Contemporary Conversations” series at 3 p.m. on Saturday, June 5. She will discuss “Conquering Harvard Law and Becoming a Disability and Human Rights Advocate.”
The first deafblind person to graduate from Harvard Law School, Ms. Girma is a human rights lawyer advancing disability justice and teaching organizations the importance of choosing inclusion.
Ms. Girma believes that having a disability can be an opportunity for innovation. She will talk about her memoir, “Haben: The Deafblind Woman Who Conquered Harvard Law,” how she became an advocate and her journey from isolation to extraordinary accomplishment.
Ms. Girma will be in conversation with Kim Jones, the chief executive officer of the Nonprofit Village. Ms. Jones is has been honored as one of the Top 100 Women of Maryland and is a recipient of the Leadership Montgomery Distinguished Graduate Award in 2019.
“We are pleased to bring a person with such passion for advocacy, inclusion and justice to our Contemporary Conversations series,” said MCPL Director Anita Vassallo. “Haben Girma’s journey to becoming a leader in the field of human and disability rights is an inspiration to us all.”
The event is free, but registration is required.
The event is cosponsored by Friends of the Library, Montgomery County, Inc. For more information, email Clotilde.Puertolas@montgomerycountymd.gov.
Sign language interpretation and captioning will be provided. Questions about accessibility or accommodation can be directed to Assistant Facilities and Accessibility Program Manager Elizabeth Lang at 240-672-8818 or at Elizabeth.Lang@montgomerycountymd.gov.
