Famous Activists a to z

Doris Day was a singer and actress most popular in the 1950s and early-1960s. She starred in a television sitcom called "The Doris Day Show" from 1968-1973.

Dorothy Day was an activist who worked for such social causes as pacifism and women’s suffrage through the prism of the Catholic Church.

Maximilien de Robespierre was an official during the French Revolution and one of the principal architects of the Reign of Terror.

Ruby Dee is an American actress, playwright, screenwriter, activist, poet and journalist, perhaps best known for starring in the 1961 film A Raisin in the Sun. She's also known for her civic work with husband Ossie Davis.

With her own talk show, Ellen DeGeneres is one of America's most well-known comedians, also serving as a prominent gay/lesbian role model.

Abolitionist Martin Robison Delany was both a physician and newspaper editor, and became one of the most influential and successful anti-slavery activists of the 19th century.

John Denver was one of the most successful singer-songwriters of the 1970s. His hits include "Take Me Home, Country Roads" and "Thank God I'm a Country Boy."

Leonardo DiCaprio has starred in such films as Titanic, Gangs of New York, The Aviator, The Departed, Inception and Django Unchained.

Grammy Award-winning folk singer and songwriter Ani DiFranco's eclectic musical style and politically charged lyrics have made her both a feminist and rock icon.

Dorothea Dix was an educator and social reformer whose devotion to the welfare of the mentally ill led to widespread international reforms.

Michael Douglas is an American actor best known for his roles on TV's Streets of San Francisco and in the films Wall Street, Fatal Attraction and Wonder Boys.

Frederick Douglass, a former slave and eminent human rights leader in the abolition movement, was the first black citizen to hold a high U.S. government rank.

American football wide receiver Donald Driver, drafted by the Greenbay Packers in 1999, won the 14th season of Dancing with the Stars in May 2012.

W.E.B. Du Bois was one of the most important African-American activists during the first half of the 20th century. He co-founded the NAACP and supported Pan-Africanism.

Actor David Duchovny has played FBI agent Fox Mulder on the television series The X-Files and Hank Moody in HBO’s Californication. He married Téa Leoni in 1997.

Tammy Duckworth is the first Asian-American congresswoman for Illinois and the first disabled female veteran to take a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives.

Prince Andrew, the brother of Prince Charles, is the Duke of York and fourth in line to the British throne.

Andrea Dworkin was an American feminist and author, an outspoken critic of sexual politics, particularly of the victimizing effects of pornography on women.

Steve Earle is a Grammy Award-winning singer-songwriter whose albums seamlessly blend rock, folk and country. He has also appeared on the HBO series The Wire and Treme.

Shirin Ebadi is an Iranian lawyer and human-rights activist. She was the first female judge in Iran, and won the 2003 Nobel Peace Prize.

Daniel Ellsberg strengthened public opposition to the Vietnam War in 1971 when he leaked the Pentagon Papers to the New York Times.

Melissa Etheridge is a rock singer-songwriter and an environmental activist. Her hit songs include "I’m the Only One" and "Come to My Window."

Medgar Evers was a civil rights activist who organized voter-registration efforts, demonstrations and boycotts of companies that practiced discrimination.

Author and activist Myrlie Evers-Williams was the wife of slain civil rights activist Medgar Evers, and served as chair of the NAACP 1995–1998.

Louis Farrakhan has led the Nation of Islam, an African American movement that combined elements of Islam with black nationalism since 1978.

Father Divine was a prominent African-American religious leader of the 1930s who founded the Peace Mission, an important precursor of the Civil Rights Movement.

Joey Fatone sang in the hit boy band 'N Sync. He also hosts a cooking show, and has competed on Dancing with the Stars.

Geraldine A. Ferraro was a member of Congress and the first woman to run for the U.S. vice presidency on a major party platform.

When Larry Flynt published an unflattering parody of Jerry Falwell in Hustler, Falwell waged a suit that eventually went to the U.S. Supreme Court. It ruled in Flynt's favor, citing the First Amendment's protection of freedom of speech.

James Forten was an African-American businessman and black leader in pre-Civil War Philadelphia.

Writer, feminist and women's rights activist Betty Friedan wrote The Feminine Mystique (1963) and co-founded the National Organization for Women.

Margaret Fuller is best known for feminist writing and literary criticism in 19th century America.

Matilda Joslyn Gage was an author and one of the leading figures in the women's rights and suffrage movement that began in the mid-1800s.

Mahatmas Gandhi was the primary leader of India's independence movement and also the architect of a form of civil disobedience that would influence the world.

Henry Highland Garnet was an African-American best known as an abolitionist whose “Call to Rebellion” speech encouraged slaves to rebel against their owners.

Janeane Garofalo is an Emmy Award-nominated TV and film actress, comedian and political activist known for work like Reality Bites and The Truth About Cats & Dogs.

Australian singer and political activist Peter Garrett is best known for his considerable contributions to both the environment and the music industry.

William Lloyd Garrison was an American journalistic crusader who helped lead the successful abolitionist campaign against slavery in the United States.

Jennie Garth is an actress notable for her long stint on TV's Beverly Hill 90210 in the 1990s, and her later appearance on Dancing with the Stars.

Marcus Garvey was a proponent of the Black Nationalism and Pan-Africanism movements, inspiring the Nation of Islam and the Rastafarian movement.

Spanish professional basketball player Pau Gasol is a two-time NBA champion with the Los Angeles Lakers. He was Spain's flag bearer during the opening ceremony of the 2012 Olympic Games in London.

Bob Geldof is best known as the singer of the band the Boomtown Rats and for his political activism, particularly anti-poverty efforts in Africa.

Bernice Gera became the first female umpire of a baseball game in 1972, but later resigned, reportedly because other umpires refused to work with her.

Richard Gere is an American actor best known for his status as an American sex symbol and his leading film roles, including in Report to the Commissioner, American Gigolo, An Officer and A Gentleman, Pretty Woman and Chicago.

Kirsten Gillibrand is a U.S. lawyer and politician from New York who's served in both the House of Representatives and the Senate.

Charlotte Perkins Gilman was a prominent American sociologist, writer and lecturer, best known for her semi-autobiographical short story The Yellow Wallpaper.

David Gilmour was the guitarist and singer for the British rock band Pink Floyd. He is also an aviator and philanthropist.

Allen Ginsberg is one of the 20th century's most influential poets, regarded as a founding father of the Beat Movement and known for works like "Howl."

The poems of Nikki Giovanni helped to define the African American voice of the 1960s, '70s and beyond. She was also a major force in the Black Arts movement.

According to legend, Anglo-Saxon gentlewoman Lady Godiva rode nude through Coventry, England in a deal to reduce taxes. She and her husband Leofric, earl of Mercia, founded a monastery at Coventry.

Leon Golub was an American painter who was both horrified and inspired by the Vietnam War.

Jane Goodall created one of the most trailblazing studies of primates in modern times when she dwelled with Tanzanian chimps to observe their behavior.

Al Gore was the 45th Vice President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. He is also known for his work regarding environmental issues.

Minister and lecturer Sylvester Graham was a major figure of the 19th century dietary reform movement and was also known as the person behind Graham crackers.

Mike Gravel is a former U.S. senator from Alaska, known for his efforts to end the draft during the Vietnam War and for releasing the Pentagon Papers.

Linda Gray is an American actress and director best known for her role as Sue Ellen Ewing on the popular series Dallas.

Adrian Grenier is an American actor recognized for his roles in independent films like The Adventures of Sebastian Cole, as well as for his longtime the popular cable television series Entourage.

Comedian Kathy Griffin relishes in dishing celeb dirt. She poked plenty of fun at her own life too on her reality show, Kathy Griffin: My Life on the D-List.

Abolitionist and feminist Sarah Moore Grimké and her sister Angelina were the first women to testify before a state legislature on the issue of blacks' rights.

Tim Gunn is an American fashion and television personality best known for his fashion mentor role on the TV reality show Project Runway. Gunn’s signature catchphrase, “Make it work,” made him a fan favorite.

Fannie Lou Hamer was a civil rights activists who helped African Americans register to vote and who cofounded the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party.

Alice Hamilton was a physician and authority on lead poisoning and industrial disease. The NIOSH present an award in her name.

Daryl Hannah is an actress with a wide variety of roles under her belt, from that of a mermaid in Splash to an assassin in Kill Bill: Vols 1 and 2

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Woody Harrelson is an actor know for his long-running role on TV's Cheers and his many film roles since.

Caroline Harrison married future U.S. President Benjamin Harrison in 1853. As first lady, she oversaw the installation of electricity in the White House.

Eva Hart was one of the Titanic's most outspoken survivors, criticizing the White Star Line for failing to provide sufficient lifeboats for all of the passengers of the infamous ship.

Tom Hayden is a political activist and writer who served in the California State Assembly and State Senate. He is also the former husband of actress Jane Fonda.

Film and television actress Tippi Hedren was discovered by director Alfred Hitchcock and starred in two of his best known films, The Birds and Marnie.

Dorothy Height was a civil rights and women's rights activist focused primarily on improving the circumstances of and opportunities for African-American women.

Based on his experience, novelist Joseph Heller wrote the satirical novel Catch-22, considered one of the most significant works of postwar protest literature.

Escaped slave and minister Josiah Henson became involved in the Underground Railroad, leading slaves to freedom and developed his own Afro-Canadian community.

Journalist Theodor Herzl responded to the anti-Semitism he witnessed while covering the Dreyfus Affair by starting the World Zionist Organization.

Jimmy Hoffa was became a labor organizer in the 1930s, rising in the Teamsters Union during the next two decades until he reached the office of president.

Hulk Hogan was one of the most beloved figures in the World Wrestling Federation in the 1980s, known for his flamboyance and the frenzy of his fans—Hulkamania.

Maxine Hong Kingston is a Chinese American author of memoirs and fiction. Her best known work is The Woman Warrior: Memoirs of a Girlhood among the Ghosts.