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American activists with disabilities

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Joe Biden
Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. is an American politician who was the 46th president of the United States from 2021 to 2025. A member of the Democratic Party, he represented Delaware in the United States Senate from 1973 to 2009 and also served as the 47th vice president under President Barack Obama from 2009 to 2017.
Selena Gomez
Selena Marie Gomez is an American actress, singer, songwriter, businesswoman, and producer. Gomez began her career as a child actress, appearing on the children's television series Barney & Friends (2002–2004), and emerged as a teen idol for her leading role as Alex Russo on the Disney Channel sitcom Wizards of Waverly Place (2007–2012). She signed with Hollywood Records in 2008 and formed the band Selena Gomez & the Scene, which released three albums: Kiss & Tell (2009), A Year Without Rain (2010), and When the Sun Goes Down (2011).
Helen Keller
American deafblind author, political activist, lecturer, scholar (1880-1968)
Salman Rushdie
Indian-born British-American novelist (born 1947)
Cher
Cher ( ; born Cheryl Sarkisian, May 20, 1946) is an American singer and actress. Dubbed the "Goddess of Pop", she is known for her androgynous contralto voice, bold fashion and visual presentation, and multifaceted career. Her screen roles often reflect her public image as a strong-willed, outspoken woman. An influential figure in popular culture, Cher has sustained a career spanning more than six decades through continual reinvention.
Kanye West
Ye is an American rapper, songwriter, and record producer. He has been listed among the greatest rappers of all time and referred to as one of the most prominent figures in hip-hop. His music, characterized by frequent stylistic shifts, has been credited with facilitating the emergence of rappers who did not conform to gangster rap conventions. He is also known for his controversial public persona, including his polarizing cultural and political commentary.
Michael Phelps
American swimmer (born 1985)
Whoopi Goldberg
American actress, comedian, author and television personality
Harriet Tubman
African-American abolitionist (1822–1913)
Ella Fitzgerald
American jazz singer (1917–1996)
Michael J. Fox
Michael Andrew Fox, known professionally as Michael J. Fox, is a Canadian and American actor and activist. Beginning his career as a child actor in the 1970s, he rose to prominence portraying Alex P. Keaton on the NBC sitcom Family Ties (1982–1989) and Marty McFly in the Back to the Future film trilogy (1985–1990). Fox went on to star in films such as Teen Wolf (1985), The Secret of My Success (1987), Casualties of War (1989), Doc Hollywood (1991) and The Frighteners (1996). He returned to television on the ABC sitcom Spin City in the lead role of Mike Flaherty (1996–2000).
Courtney Love
American rock musician and actress (born 1964)
Christopher Reeve
American actor (1952–2004)
Adam Levine
American pop singer
Mia Farrow
Maria de Lourdes Villiers Farrow is an American actress. She first gained notice for her role as Allison MacKenzie in the prime-time television soap opera Peyton Place and gained further recognition for her subsequent short-lived marriage to Frank Sinatra. She achieved her career breakthrough and international acclaim as the titular character Rosemary in Roman Polanski's psychological horror film Rosemary's Baby (1968), receiving nominations for a BAFTA Award and a Golden Globe Award for Best Actress. She went on to appear in several films throughout the 1970s, such as Follow Me! (1972), The Great Gatsby (1974), and Death on the Nile (1978). Her younger sister is Prudence Farrow.
Marlee Matlin
American actress (born 1965)
Alyssa Milano
American actress (born 1972)
Caitlyn Jenner
American media personality and retired decathlete
River Phoenix
River Jude Phoenix was an American actor and musician. The older brother of actor Joaquin Phoenix, he was known as a teen actor before taking on leading roles in critically acclaimed films, becoming one of the preeminent acting talents of his generation. Phoenix's numerous accolades include the Volpi Cup and the Independent Spirit Award, as well as nominations for an Academy Award and Golden Globe Award.
Gavin Newsom
Gavin Christopher Newsom is an American politician and businessman serving as the 40th governor of California since 2019. A member of the Democratic Party, he served as the 49th lieutenant governor of California from 2011 to 2019 and as the 42nd mayor of San Francisco from 2004 to 2011.
Jane Lynch
American actress
Halsey (singer)
Ashley Nicolette Frangipane, known professionally as Halsey, is an American singer-songwriter and actress. Noted for her distinctive singing voice, she has received numerous accolades, including three Billboard Music Awards, a Billboard Women in Music Award, and an American Music Award, as well as nominations for three Grammy Awards. She was on Time's annual list of the 100 most influential people in the world in 2020.
Danny Glover
American actor (born 1946)
Lena Dunham
Lena Dunham is an American writer, director, actress, and producer. She is the creator, writer, and star of the HBO television series Girls (2012–2017), for which she received several Emmy Award nominations and two Golden Globe Awards. Dunham also directed several episodes of Girls and became the first woman to win the Directors Guild of America Award for Outstanding Directing – Comedy Series. She started her career writing, directing, and starring in her semi-autobiographical independent film Tiny Furniture (2010), for which she won an Independent Spirit Award for Best First Screenplay. She has since written and directed the 2022 films Sharp Stick and Catherine Called Birdy. In 2025, she created the Netflix series Too Much starring Megan Stalter.
Eric S. Raymond
American programmer & open source advocate (1957-)
Larry Flynt
American publisher
Rush Limbaugh
American political commentator (1951–2021)
Temple Grandin
American doctor of animal science, author, and autism activist
Greg Louganis
American Olympic springboard and platform diver
Florence Welch
English musician, singer and songwriter
Erin Brockovich
American environmental activist
Marsha P. Johnson
Black American queer liberation activist (1945–1992)
George Lincoln Rockwell
American founder of the American Nazi Party (1918–1967)
Brandi Carlile
Brandi Marie Carlile is an American singer-songwriter and producer. Her music spans multiple genres, including folk rock, alternative country, Americana, and classic rock. During her career, she has received eleven Grammy Awards and two Emmy Awards, in addition to being nominated for an Academy Award. In 2026, she was named one of Time's Women of the Year.
Zelda Rubinstein
American actress (1933-2010)
Mike Gravel
American politician; United States Senator (1930-2021)
Fanny Crosby
19th century Christian hymnist
Melody Gardot
American jazz singer
Wilma Mankiller
Chief of the Cherokee Nation (1945–2010)
Chaz Bono
American transgender activist and entertainer
Patch Adams
American physician, activist, diplomat and author
Lizzie Velasquez
American motivational speaker
Larry Kramer
American screenwriter, novelist, essayist, playwright, LGBT-rights and AIDS activist (1935–2020)
Fannie Lou Hamer
American civil rights activist (1917–1977)
Billy Barty
American film actor (1924-2000)
Judith Heumann
American disability rights activist (1947–2023)
Dennis Prager
American writer, speaker, radio and TV commentator
James Brady
White House Press Secretary under Ronald Reagan (1940-2014)
Montel Williams
American television host and actor
Kate Bornstein
American author, playwright, performance artist, and gender theorist
Sam Berns
American activist (1996–2014)
John Witherspoon
Scottish-American Presbyterian minister and Founding Father of the United States (1723–1794)
Andrew Sullivan
English-American journalist, writer, blogger
Alice Wong
American disability activist (1974–2025)
Stacey Milbern
American disability rights advocate
Donna Edwards
American politician (born 1958)
Thomas Gore
American politician (1870-1949)
Brian Mast
American politician and United States Army veteran
Dorothy Canfield Fisher
American author and social activist (1879–1958)
Mama Cax
American–Haitian model and disability rights activist