“I was appointed on a commission to investigate the conditions of the blind. For the first time I, who had thought blindness a misfortune beyond human control, found that too much of it was traceable to wrong industrial conditions, often caused by the selfishness and greed of employers. And the social evil contributed its share. I found that poverty drove women to a life of shame that ended in blindness.” The rights and prospects for women back then were severely limited. Women couldn’t vote, have a bank account, own land, get a loan, with very few occupations open to women. Secretaries and teachers were almost exclusively men. Helen Keller In Helens time, If a woman didn’t have a father, husband, brother, or uncle who made sure she had a home, food or clothes, prostitution was just about the only way for a woman to make a living. This lifestyle of course often leads to syphilis, a leading cause of blindness. As a result Helen became an advocate for Women’s Suffrage, Pacifism, Socialism, the Working Class, and birth control.
Posted on: Wed, 08 Oct 2014 12:34:29 +0000
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