Novelist, essayist and disability studies scholar Georgina Kleege will present "HK: Dead Letters to Helen Keller," a free lecture at the University of Colorado at Boulder on March 23 at 7 p.m. in University Memorial Center rooms 157A-B. Kleege has been legally blind since the age of 11.
Kleege is an assistant professor in the English department at Ohio State University. Her book, "Sight Unseen," is acclaimed for demonstrating that the plight of the blind is partly its own reality and largely due to the creation of the normally sighted.
Kleege draws upon her own experiences to offer an unprecedented body of work on blindness and contemporary culture. In her upcoming book she describes the "negative social status of the blind" and the stereotypes in film and literature that support those views.
"She represents the world of blindness with a newly defined authenticity," said Jim Cohn, Disability Services specialist. Kleege聮s two-day visit to CU-Boulder will "highlight our support for the importance of representation of persons and figures with disabilities across the curriculum," he said.
Kleege聮s campus visit is sponsored by Disability Services, the English department, Center for Humanities and the Arts, Center for Values and Social Policy, the department of speech, language and hearing sciences, the academic affairs diversity committee and the vice chancellor for student affairs.
Disability Services provides resources, advocacy, collaborative services, and education and outreach within the university community through equal access, empowerment, support and education of, and for, individuals with disabilities.
For more information, or accommodations, contact the Disability Services office at (303) 492-8671, e-mail DSInfo@Colorado.Edu or visit their Web site at .