List of Jewish American activists

This is a list of notable Jewish American activists. For other Jewish Americans, see Lists of Jewish Americans.

A

• Dinah Abrahamson (1954–2013), politician and activist for the African-American Lubavitch community[1]
• Martin Abern (1898–1949), communist youth movement leader[2]
• Bernard Ades (1903–1986), civil rights lawyer[3]
• Lori Alhadeff (born 1975), school safety activist[4]
• Saul Alinsky (1909–1972), community activist and theorist[5]
• Gloria Allred (1941–), lawyer and radio talk show host[6]
• Lindsay Amer, LGBTQ Youtuber and activist[7]

B

• Michael Berg (born 1945), environmental activist and Green Party candidate[8]

C

• Maximilian Cohen, American Socialist Party leader[9]

D

• Serge Dedina, environmental activist and politician[10]

F

• Abraham Feinberg, anti-Vietnam war activist[11]
• Ada Fisher (born 1947), physician and perennial issues candidate[12]
• Clara Fraser, founder of Radical Women and the Freedom Socialist Party[13]
• Betty Friedan (1921–2006), feminist writer and women's movement activist[14]
• Sandra Froman, President of the National Rifle Association (NRA), second female president and first Jewish president[15]

G

• Alicia Garza (born 1981), civil rights and Black Lives Matter activist[16]
• Pamela Geller, pro-Israel activist, author, commentator[17]
• Sally Gottesman, consultant for non-profits[18]

H

• Christopher Hitchens, literary critic and political activist[19][20]
• Dario Hunter (born 1983), environmental activist attorney and first Muslim-born man to be ordained a rabbi[21]

J

• Rashida Jones (born 1976), actress, director, writer, and peace activist[22][23]

K

• Franklin E. Kameny, gay rights leader[24]
• Larry Kramer (1935–2020), LGBT rights activist and playwright[25]
• Julie Kushner (born 1952), trade union organizer[26]

L

• Sandra Lawson (born 1970), social justice activist and the first ever openly gay black female rabbi[27][28]
• Karen Lewis (labor leader) (born 1953), educator and labor leader[29]
• Ben Linder (1959-1987), engineer and internationalist murdered by Contras while working on hydroelectric projects in Nicaragua[30]

P

• Chanda Prescod-Weinstein, cosmologist, science writer, and equality activist[31]

R

• Rob Reiner, actor, director, producer, writer and anti-tobacco activist; son of Carl Reiner[32]
• Shais Rishon, rabbi and anti-racism activist[33]
• David A Rose (judge) (1906-1995), activist for human rights and against anti-Catholic and anti-Jewish bias
• Zelda Rubinstein (born 1933), actress and human rights activist[34][35]

S

• Max Shachtman, American Marxist and labor activist[36]
• Rose Schneiderman (1882–1972), sociologist, feminist activist, and labor union leader[37]
• Robert E Segal activist for displaced people; for housing for Puerto Ricans against discrimination and against anti Semitism.
• Norman Siegel (born 1943), civil liberties activist and attorney[38]
• Michael Signer, attorney and politician[39]

W

• Naomi Wadler (born 2006), student activist against gun violence[40]
• Louis Waldman (1892–1982), labor lawyer and founding member of the Social Democratic Federation[41]
• Rebecca Walker (born 1969), feminist writer[42]
• Bret Weinstein, biology professor and free speech advocate[43]
• Harold Willens (1914–2003), anti-nuclear weapons activist[44]

See also

• Jewish left

Footnotes

1. "A Young Man From Omaha, Who May Perfectly Represent Brooklyn". The New York Times. June 16, 2008.
2. Solon DeLeon with Irma C. Hayssen and Grace Poole, The American Labor Who's Who. New York: Hanford Press, 1925; pg. 1.
3. Marcus, Jacob Rader (January 1, 1990). United States Jewry, 1776-1985 (1st ed.). Wayne State University Press. p. 102. ISBN 978-0814321867.
4. Travis, Scott. "'Action! We need it now!': Mother of Parkland shooting victim turns her grief into a fight for change", Los Angeles Times, September 2, 2018. Accessed August 12, 2019
5. Horwitt, Sanford D. (1989). Let Them Call Me Rebel: Saul Alinsky, his life and legacy. New York: Alfred A. Knopf. p. 3. ISBN 0-394-57243-2.
6. Waxman, Sharon; Richard Siklos (2006-12-19). "New Dispute Over Firing of Publisher". The New York Times. Retrieved 2006-12-18.
7. Amer, Lindsay. "Neo-Nazis targeted me on the internet — here's how I dealt with it". Business Insider. Insider Inc. Retrieved 9 January 2020.
8. Political News And Information
9. Theodore Draper, The Roots of American Communism. New York: Viking, 1957. Page 145.
10. "Serge Dedina Wants To Increase Civic Participation". San Diego Free Press – Grassroots News & Progressive Views. April 8, 2015.
11. Menkis, Richard. "Abraham L. Feinberg". Jewish Virtual Encyclopedia. Encyclopaedia Judaica. Retrieved 23 June 2020.
13. "Clara Fraser, 1923-1998: American rebel and architect of socialist feminism". Archived from the original on 2004-03-09.
14. Frost, Bryan-Paul; Sikkenga, Jeffrey (September 15, 2017). History of American Political Thought. Lexington Books. ISBN 9780739106242 – via Google Books.
15. Weinstein Bilson, Mara. "The President of the National Rifle Association is Jewish?". Moment Magazine. Archived from the original on December 6, 2006. Retrieved 2006-12-04.
16. "Organizers | Jewish Women's Archive". jwa.org. Retrieved 2020-06-13.
17. Elgot, Jessica (June 20, 2013). "Pamela Geller, Robert Spencer To Speak At EDL Rally In Woolwich, Campaigners Call For UK Entry Ban". The Huffington Post. London.
18. http://people.equilar.com/bio/sally-gottesman-american-jewish/salary/688737#.UcNLABaFbzI
19. Look who's talking The Observer, 14 April 2002
20. Hitch-22, page 352.
21. "About Dario". Hunter 2020. Retrieved January 29, 2019.
22. Balfour, Brad (March 11, 2011). "Actors Rashida Jones and Chris Messina Entangle in Monogamy". HuffPost. Retrieved May 25, 2018. Rashida Jones: "I'm proud to be black. I'm proud to be Jewish."
23. About Peace First: Board & Committees, Peace First. Retrieved on March 30, 2011.
24. Johnson, David K. (2002). "Franklin E. Kameny (1925-)". In Bullough, Vern L. (ed.). Before Stonewall: Activists for Gay and Lesbian Rights in Historical Context. New York: The Haworth Press. pp. 209–218. ISBN 978-1-56023-193-6.
25. Timeline Theatre Company (2013), Timeline Theatre Company; The Normal Heart Study Guide (PDF), retrieved May 30, 2014
26. "Deaths: Sheldon Kushner". Jewish Press. 25 September 2009. Retrieved 30 July 2020.
27. "My Story: My Jewish Path And Rabbinic Path". Rabbi Sandra Lawson. Retrieved 2020-06-21.
28. "Rabbi Sandra Lawson named associate chaplain for Jewish life, Jewish educator at Hillel". E-Net! Elon University News & Information. Retrieved 2019-05-12.
29. "Chicago Teachers Union President Karen Lewis on why she converted to Judaism 20 years ago and the role it plays in her life and work" (PDF). Better Newspaper Contest. Chicago Jewish News. July 5, 2013. Retrieved April 19, 2016.
30. Kruckewitt, Joan (1999). The Death of Ben Linder. Seven Stories Press.
31. Prescod-Weinstein, Chanda (July 29, 2015). "Hold Fast to Blackness". Medium. Retrieved April 8, 2019.
32. R. Reiner — "Reiner, however, said Gibson also must do some "major soul-searching." "It's not a matter of just apologizing for some words you've said," said Reiner, who is Jewish. "It's to really understand why it is you're anti-Semitic and where those feelings came from.""
33. Trymaine Lee (Aug 27, 2010). "Black and Jewish, and Seeing No Contradiction". The New York Times. Retrieved 15 January 2018.
34. Rizzo, Frank (2010-02-02). ""Poltergeist"'s Zelda Rubinstein Dies; Starred in Hartford Project". Hartford Courant. Archived from the original on 2013-01-02. Retrieved 2010-02-26.
35. https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:KQ6J-4H7
36. Theodore Draper, The Roots of American Communism. New York: Viking Press, 1957; pp. 340-341.
37. Schrom Dye, Nancy, Rose Schneiderman Archived 2011-07-02 at the Wayback Machine, Papers of the Women's Trade Union League and Its Principal Leaders, Schlesinger Library, Radcliffe College, Research Publications, 1981
38. "NYCLU Executive Director Norman Siegel Steps Down To Run For Public Office". ACLU.org. February 26, 2001.
39. "Forward 50: Finding Inspiration in the Year of Trump". The Forward. Retrieved March 13, 2019.
40. Dias, Marley (April 9, 2018). "Naomi Wadler Is the 11-Year-Old Activist You Need to Know". Elle. Retrieved January 2, 2019.
41. Louis Waldman, Labor Lawyer. New York: E.P. Dutton & Co., 1944; pp. 11, 19-21.
42. Ross, Ross (2007-04-08). "Rebecca Walker bringing message to Expo". Pensacola News Journal. Archived from the original on 2007-07-05. Retrieved 2007-04-08.
43. Frommer, Rachel (June 13, 2017). "Embattled Evergreen State Professor Accused of Hiding Racism Behind His Judaism". Algemeiner Journal. Retrieved February 1, 2019.
44. Kahn, Ellie (February 16, 2015). "Harold Willens, the Life of a Peace Activist". Jewish Journal. Retrieved August 16, 2020.