Brooks Hamilton: Honoring Helen Keller’s Legacy & Communication Rights

David welcomes Brooks Hamilton, Helen Keller’s great-grandniece, to discuss Keller’s legacy as a lesson about access, support, belief, and a path to communication, and why many nonspeakers are still doubted and denied communication. Brooks describes growing up with family stories of Helen’s communication methods and how that shaped her commitment to “go the extra mile” to connect with others. She shares how she once assumed nonspeakers were cognitively impaired based on what teachers and experts said, then had an “aha” moment learning about presuming competence, apraxia, spelling, and neuroplasticity, calling current practices a civil-rights issue. They compare Keller’s intensive supported learning with modern spelling-based communication, criticize ableist testing and “message passing” parallels, and discuss self-serving incentives in therapy. Brooks explains her volunteering in therapeutic recreation, learning motor coaching and co-regulation, pursuing communication-partner training, and advocating for New York’s Communication Rights bill.   Topics 00:37 Why Helen Keller Matters 01:33 Brooks Hamilton Intro 02:49 Growing Up With Legacy 04:26 Family Stories Of Helen 06:45 Presuming Competence Lesson 07:34 Unlearning Ableist Assumptions 10:21 Parallels With Stone 11:24 How Helen Learned Language 18:20 Ableism In Communication Testing 23:36 Becoming An Ally 27:38 Volunteering And Motor Coaching 31:26 Autism and Apraxia Gap 32:38 Prompting Double Standards 33:41 Training as Communication Partner 35:51 Why Training Matters 38:00 Accuracy and Patience 40:51 Spelling in Schools Logistics 42:37 New York Bill Fight 45:35 Helen Keller Legacy 47:45 Tip Presume Competence 50:18 Future Advocacy Plans 53:50 Fact or Fiction Segment 58:08 Family Support and Wrap