Jane Adams

1860–1935

Pioneering social reformer, activist for women’s rights and world peace, public philosopher, author, first American woman to receive the Nobel Peace Prize

Roger Casement

1864–1916

Irish patriot, diplomat and pioneering activist for the human rights of indigenous peoples, martyred for his pivotal role in Ireland’s 1916 Easter Rising.

George Choy

1960–1993

Passionate activist for queer Asians and Pacific Islanders and AIDS awareness who was instrumental in bringing LGBT counseling programs into San Francisco public high schools.

Marie Equi

1872-1952

American physician and political radical who fought for peace, an eight-hour workday, women’s suffrage and their right to birth control.

Fereydoun Farrokhzad

1938-1992

Iranian cultural icon and political activist who fought to have a free and open society for his homeland and for people everywhere.

Harry Hay

1912–2002

Sexual revolutionary who defined LGBT as a cultural identity and founded the first enduring gay rights organization in the United States.

Christine Jorgensen

1926–1989

American entertainer whose highly publicized gender change in the 1950s first brought widespread mainstream attention to transgender issues.

Kiyoshi Kuromiya

1943-2000

Japanese-American human rights activist and founder of the Critical Path Project, one of the earliest resources for information about HIV research and treatment.

Del Martin

1921–2008

American feminist, civil rights activist and cofounder of the Daughters of Bilitis, the first social and political organization for lesbians in the United States.

Leonard Matlovich

1943-1988

Decorated American serviceman who outed himself to confront the U.S. military’s ban on gays serving in the armed forces.