Helen, born in New Jersey in 1937, was passionate about fashion. She started working as a stylist in a photography studio in New York. She said that the people who encouraged her to start modeling were entertainers Lena Horne and Sammy Davis Jr., after they spotted her doing press photos in the studio. But the man who actually convinced her to pose for the camera was a photographer named Eric Nepo.

In the 1950s, Helen Williams was the first black model to break racial barriers and enter the fashion world. In a time and place where conventional beauty and fashion did not allow non-white models, she managed to carve out a successful career.

At the beginning of her career, Helen collaborated only with Ebony and Jet publications. In 1960, because of the prejudice she encountered in the United States, she moved to France. She successfully worked as a model for the famous fashion houses Christian Dior and Jean Dessés. During her stay there, she got three marriage proposals from her French admirers. According to rumors, one of them kissed her feet and said: "I worship the ground you walk on, mademoiselle." At the end of her stay in France, she earned an astonishing amount of $7500 a year.

After Paris, Helen came back to the United States where racial stigma was astonishingly severe for darker-skinned African-American women. While looking for a new agent, she used to hear the answer "no". However, she was stubborn and would not take no for an answer. After receiving numerous rejections, she turned to the press for support. Dorothy Kilgallen and Earl Wilson, two white journalists, told her story drawing public attention to the rejection of black women by the fashion industry.

Suddenly, doors opened and Helen started getting job offers. She was hired for a number of projects by companies such as Budweiser, Loom Togs, Sears and Modess, with which she first broke into the pages of publications such as The New York Times, Life and Redbook. In 1961, her hourly wages went up to $100.

Helen is said to be the person who broke down racial barriers and paved the way for darker skinned African American models.

Although it took some time, eventually, thanks to Helen, women of color were given more opportunities to make an appearance in the fashion world. Supermodels Naomi Sims, Beverly Johnson, Iman, Naomi Campbell and Jourdan Dunn were born thanks to Helen's legacy. She was the archetypal black diamond - beautiful, distinctive and extraordinary.

In 1970, Helen Williams stopped modeling but continued to work in the industry as a stylist. In 1977, she married Norm Jackson, whom she met while working as a model. They lived in East Riverton, New Jersey until their deaths.