Bisexual Jews
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This is a list of LGBT Jews. Each person is both
Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...
(by birth or conversion according to Jewish law, or identifies as Jewish via ancestry) and has stated publicly that they are
bisexual Bisexuality is romantic attraction, sexual attraction, or sexual behavior toward both males and females. It may also be defined as the attraction to more than one gender, to people of both the same and different gender, or the attraction t ...
,
gay ''Gay'' is a term that primarily refers to a homosexual person or the trait of being homosexual. The term originally meant 'carefree', 'cheerful', or 'bright and showy'. While scant usage referring to male homosexuality dates to the late ...
,
lesbian A lesbian is a homosexual woman or girl. The word is also used for women in relation to their sexual identity or sexual behavior, regardless of sexual orientation, or as an adjective to characterize or associate nouns with female homosexu ...
,
transgender A transgender (often shortened to trans) person has a gender identity different from that typically associated with the sex they were sex assignment, assigned at birth. The opposite of ''transgender'' is ''cisgender'', which describes perso ...
, and/or
queer ''Queer'' is an umbrella term for people who are non-heterosexual or non- cisgender. Originally meaning or , ''queer'' came to be used pejoratively against LGBTQ people in the late 19th century. From the late 1980s, queer activists began to ...
or questioning (
LGBTQ LGBTQ people are individuals who are lesbian, Gay men, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, or questioning (sexuality and gender), questioning. Many variants of the initialism are used; LGBTQIA+ people incorporates intersex, Asexuality, asexual, ...
), or identify as a member of the LGBTQ community. Being both Jewish and LGBTQ is a canonical (recognized) example of some facet of each person on this list, such that the below listed person's fame or significance flows from being both Jewish and LGBTQ.


Academia and education

*
Judith Butler Judith Pamela Butler (born February 24, 1956) is an American feminist philosopher and gender studies scholar whose work has influenced political philosophy, ethics, and the fields of third-wave feminism, queer theory, and literary theory. In ...
, philosopher *
Yuval Noah Harari Yuval Noah Harari ( ; born 1976) is an Israeli medievalist, military historian, public intellectual, and popular science writer. He currently serves as professor in the Department of History at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. His first bestse ...
, professor and author *
Martin Duberman Martin Bauml Duberman (born August 6, 1930) is an American historian, biographer, playwright, and gay rights activist. Duberman is Professor of History Emeritus at Lehman College in the Bronx, New York City. Early life Duberman was born into ...
, historian *
Uzi Even Uzi Even (; born 18 October 1940) is an Israeli professor emeritus of physical chemistry at Tel Aviv University and a former politician well known for being the first openly gay member of the Knesset (the Israeli Parliament). Biography Uzi Ev ...
, Israeli chemist and former Knesset member *
Lillian Faderman Lillian Faderman (born July 18, 1940) is an American historian whose books on lesbian history and LGBT history have earned critical praise and awards. ''The New York Times'' named three of her books on its "Notable Books of the Year" list. In addi ...
, American lesbian historian *
Jack Halberstam Jack Halberstam (; born December 15, 1961) is an American academic and author, best known for his book ''Female Masculinity'' (1998). His work focuses largely on feminism and queer and transgender identities in popular culture. Since 2017, Halbe ...
, Professor of English and Director for the Center for Feminist Research at the University of Southern California *
Magnus Hirschfeld Magnus Hirschfeld (14 May 1868 – 14 May 1935) was a German physician, Sexology, sexologist and LGBTQ advocate, whose German citizenship was later revoked by the Nazi government.David A. Gerstner, ''Routledge International Encyclopedia of Queer ...
, sexologist and activist * Ron Huberman, Israeli-born CEO of
Chicago Public Schools Chicago Public Schools (CPS), officially classified as City of Chicago School District #299 for funding and districting reasons, in Chicago, Illinois, is the List of the largest school districts in the United States by enrollment, fourth-large ...
*
Fritz Klein Fritz Klein (24 November 1888 – 13 December 1945) was a Romanian-German Nazi doctor and war criminal, hanged for his role in atrocities at Auschwitz concentration camp and Bergen-Belsen concentration camp during the Holocaust. Early life, ...
, psychiatrist and sexologist *
Joy Ladin Joy Ladin (born March 24, 1961) is an American poet and the former David and Ruth Gottesman Chair in English at Stern College for Women at Yeshiva University. She was the first openly transgender professor at an Orthodox Jewish institution. Ear ...
, American professor and poet, first openly transgender professor at an Orthodox Jewish institution * Arlene Istar Lev, clinical social worker, family therapist, and educator *
George Mosse Gerhard "George" Lachmann Mosse (September 20, 1918 – January 22, 1999) was a German-born, Jewish-American social and cultural historian, who emigrated from Nazi Germany to Great Britain and then to the United States. He was professor of hist ...
, historian *
Oliver Sacks Oliver Wolf Sacks (9 July 1933 – 30 August 2015) was a British neurology, neurologist, Natural history, naturalist, historian of science, and writer. Born in London, Sacks received his medical degree in 1958 from The Queen's College, Oxford ...
, British neurologist, naturalist, and author *
Ludwig Wittgenstein Ludwig Josef Johann Wittgenstein ( ; ; 26 April 1889 – 29 April 1951) was an Austrian philosopher who worked primarily in logic, the philosophy of mathematics, the philosophy of mind, and the philosophy of language. From 1929 to 1947, Witt ...
, philosopher


Activism & civil rights

*
Barbara Brenner Barbara Brenner (October 7, 1951 - May 10, 2013) was an American breast cancer activist, after activist and legal work on several other causes, including anti-Vietnam War activism, women's rights, civil rights, and employment discrimination.Denis ...
, breast cancer activist and leader of
Breast Cancer Action Breast Cancer Action (BCAction) is a U.S.-based grassroots education and activist organization driven by and supporting people living with breast cancer. It was founded in 1990 by Elenore Pred, Susan Claymon, Belle Shayer, and Linda Reyes. Based ...
*
Jonathan Danilowitz Jonathan Danilowitz (; 13 January 1945 – 12 August 2022) was an LGBT activist and former chairman of The Aguda–Israel’s LGBT Task Force. In 2020, he was awarded Tel Aviv’s Yakir Ha’ir in recognition of his struggle for lesbian, gay, b ...
, activist *
Jazz Jennings Jazz Jennings (born October 6, 2000) is an American YouTube personality, spokesmodel, television personality, and LGBT rights activist. Jennings is one of the youngest publicly documented people to be identified as transgender. Jennings receiv ...
, transgender activist *
Frank Kameny Franklin Edward Kameny (May 21, 1925 â€“ October 11, 2011) was an American gay rights activist. He has been referred to as "one of the most significant figures" in the American gay rights movement. During the Lavender scare, in 1957, Kame ...
, prominent gay rights activist from 1957 to 2011 (born to Jewish parents but became an atheist) *
Cameron Kasky Cameron Marley Kasky (born November 11, 2000) is an American activist and advocate against gun violence who co-founded the student-led gun violence prevention advocacy group Never Again MSD. He is notable for helping to organize the March for ...
, gun control activist *
Larry Kramer Laurence David Kramer (June 25, 1935May 27, 2020) was an American playwright, author, film producer, public health advocate, and gay rights activist. He began his career rewriting scripts while working for Columbia Pictures, which led him to Lo ...
, author, playwright, activist with ACT-UP *
Ezra Nawi Ezra Yitzhak Nawi (; 1951 – 9 January 2021) was an Israeli Jew, left-wing, human rights activist and pacifist. He was particularly active among the Bedouin herders and farmers of the South Hebron Hills and against the establishment of Israeli ...
, Israeli human rights activist *
Dana Olmert Dana Olmert (; born 26 December 1972), is an Israeli left wing activist, literary theorist and editor. She is a daughter of Israel's former Prime Minister Ehud Olmert. Olmert graduated with a PhD in literature from the Hebrew University of Jeru ...
, activist * Drăgan Flaviu, a Romanian human rights activist of Jewish origin, Director and Chief Researcher of the Operation for the Research of Nazi Personality and Thinking – Operation "Aurora Rubiniu", and author of the book "Lupta mea pentru viața!" * Etai Pinkas, activist *
Riki Wilchins Riki Anne Wilchins (born 1952) is an American activist whose work has primarily focused on the impact of gender norms. Background Wilchins founded the first national transgender advocacy group ( GenderPAC). Their analysis and work broadened ...
, activist *
Ron Yosef Ron Yosef () is the founder of the Israeli organization Hod, which represents Israeli gay and lesbian Orthodox Jews. His organization has played a central role in the recent reevaluation of the role of religious homosexuals in the Israeli Relig ...
, activist *
Mason J. Dunn Mason J. Dunn (born 1985) is an American lawyer, educator, and LGBTQ+ rights advocate based in Massachusetts (MA). Dunn is known for their long-standing work in transgender rights and public policy, including co-chairing the "Yes on 3" campaign, ...
, American lawyer, educator, and LGBTQ+ rights advocate


Arts

*
Yael Bartana Yael Bartana (; born 1970) is an Israeli artist, filmmaker and photographer, whose past works have encompassed multiple mediums, including photography, film, video, sound, and installation. Many of her pieces feature political or feminist themes ...
, Israeli artist and film-maker *
Claude Cahun Claude Cahun (, born Lucy Renee Mathilde Schwob; 25 October 1894 – 8 December 1954) was a French surrealist photographer, sculptor, and writer. Schwob adopted the pseudonym Claude Cahun in 1914. Cahun is best known as a writer and self-portra ...
, French photographer and writer *
Robert Denning Robert Denning (March 13, 1927 â€“ August 26, 2005) was an American interior designer whose lush interpretations of French Victorian decor became an emblem of corporate raider tastes in the 1980s. Early life Denning was born Robert Dennis ...
, American interior designer *
Yishay Garbasz Yishay Garbasz (; born 1970, Israel) is an interdisciplinary artist who works in the fields of photography, performance and installation. Her main field of interest is trauma and the inheritance of post-traumatic memory. She also works on issues o ...
, artist in photography, installation, and video * Uri Gershuni, Israel photographer and educator *
Gluck Christoph Willibald ( Ritter von) Gluck (; ; 2 July 1714 – 15 November 1787) was a composer of Italian and French opera in the early classical period. Born in the Upper Palatinate and raised in Bohemia, both part of the Holy Roman Empire at ...
, British painter *
Nan Goldin Nancy Goldin (born 1953) is an American photographer and activist. Her work explores in snapshot-style the emotions of the individual, in intimate relationships, and the Bohemian style, bohemian LGBT subcultural communities, especially dealing w ...
, photographerNational Foundation for Jewish Culture
. Jewishculture.org.
*
Elmyr de Hory Elmyr de Hory (born Elemér Albert Hoffmann; April 14, 1906 – December 11, 1976) was a Hungarian-born painter and art forger. It is claimed he was responsible for producing over a thousand forgeries that were sold to reputable art galleries a ...
, Hungarian-born painter and
art forger Art is a diverse range of cultural activity centered around ''works'' utilizing creative or imaginative talents, which are expected to evoke a worthwhile experience, generally through an expression of emotional power, conceptual ideas, tec ...
* Herbert List, photographer *
Adi Nes Adi Nes (; born 1966) is an Israeli photographer. He has had solo exhibitions at Wexner Center for the Arts in Columbus, Ohio and the Legion of Honor in San Francisco. Life and career Adi Nes was born in Kiryat Gat. His parents are Jewish imm ...
, Israeli photographer *
Maurice Sendak Maurice Bernard Sendak (; June 10, 1928 – May 8, 2012) was an American author and illustrator of children's books. Born to Polish-Jewish parents, his childhood was impacted by the death of many of his family members during the Holocaust. Send ...
, illustrator and author of
children's books A child () is a human being between the stages of birth and puberty, or between the developmental period of infancy and puberty. The term may also refer to an unborn human being. In English-speaking countries, the legal definition of ''chi ...
as well as costume and set designer for films, theater and opera *
Al Shapiro Allen J. Shapiro (February 7, 1932—May 30, 1987), better known as Al Shapiro and by his pen name A. Jay, was a gay Jewish American artist active from the 1960s through 1980s. He is credited with the creation of the first-ever gay comic strip, ...
, artist and creator of first gay comic strip *
Simeon Solomon Simeon Solomon (9 October 1840 – 14 August 1905) was a British painter associated with the Pre-Raphaelites who was noted for his depictions of Jewish life and same-sex desire. His career was cut short as a result of public scandal following h ...
, painter


Drag performers

*
Acid Betty Jamin Ruhren (born December 10, 1977), better known by the stage name Acid Betty, is an American drag queen, performer, actor and singer. He rose to national prominence after competing on the RuPaul's Drag Race (season 8), eighth season of ''RuPau ...
, American drag queen *
Alexis Michelle Alexander J. Michaels (born October 16, 1983), stage name Alexis Michelle, is an American drag queen and singer who came to international attention on the RuPaul's Drag Race (season 9), ninth season of ''RuPaul's Drag Race''. As of 2019, she sta ...
, American drag queen *
Denali Denali (), federally designated as Mount McKinley, is the highest mountain peak in North America, with a summit elevation of above sea level. It is the tallest mountain in the world from base to peak on land, measuring . On p. 20 of Helm ...
, American drag queen *
Flawless Sabrina Flawless Sabrina (September 10, 1939 – November 18, 2017), also known as Mother Flawless Sabrina, was an American LGBT activist, drag queen, performer, and actress, based in New York City. Flawless Sabrina was a pioneer for transgender people a ...
, American drag queen and activist *
Jinkx Monsoon Hera Lilith Hoffer (born September 18, 1987), best known by the stage name Jinkx Monsoon, is an American drag queen, actress, singer and comedienne, originally from the Pacific Northwest, and perhaps best-known for winning the RuPaul's Drag Race ...
, American drag queen, winner of ''RuPaul's Drag Race'' and ''RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars'' *
Joey Jay Joseph Richard Jay (August 15, 1935 – September 27, 2024) was an American professional baseball starting pitcher, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from through , Jay played for the Milwaukee / Atlanta Braves (1953–, –, 1966), a ...
, American drag queen *
Lil Miss Hot Mess Lil Miss Hot Mess is the stage name of Harris Kornstein (born 1984), an American drag queen, activist, and children’s book author, known for her work with the #MyNameIs campaign and Drag Queen Story Hour. Early life and career Lil Miss H ...
, American drag queen *
Miz Cracker Miz Cracker (born April 19, 1984) is the stage name of Maxwell Elias Heller, an American drag queen and television personality. He is best known for placing fifth on the tenth season of ''RuPaul's Drag Race'' and for being a runner-up on the fif ...
, American drag queen *
Plane Jane Plane Jane (born February 4, 1998) is the stage name of Andrew Vladimir Dunayevskiy, an American drag performer who competed on ''RuPaul's Drag Race'' season 16. Early life Dunayevskiy is the child of Russian Jewish immigrants. Dunayevskiy w ...
, American drag queen *
Sasha Velour Alexander "Sasha" Hedges Steinberg (born June 25, 1987), known professionally as Sasha Velour, is an American drag queen, artist, actor, and stage and television producer, based in Brooklyn, New York. Velour is known for winning the ninth seaso ...
, American drag queen and winner of ''RuPaul's Drag Race''


Fashion

* Eliad Cohen, Israeli model and entrepreneur *
Marc Jacobs Marc Jacobs (born April 9, 1963) is an American fashion designer. He is the head designer for his own fashion label, Marc Jacobs, and formerly Marc by Marc Jacobs, a diffusion line, which was produced for approximately 15 years, before it was d ...
, American fashion designer *
Calvin Klein Calvin Richard Klein (born November 19, 1942) is an American fashion designer. In 1968, he launched the company that later became Calvin Klein. In addition to clothing, he has also given his name to a range of perfumes, watches, and jewellery. ...
, American fashion designer *
Michael Kors Michael David Kors (born Karl Anderson Jr. August 9, 1959) is an American fashion designer. He is the chief creative officer of his brand, Michael Kors, which sells men's and women's ready-to-wear, accessories, watches, jewelry, footwear, and f ...
, American sportswear fashion designer *
Isaac Mizrahi Isaac Mizrahi (born October 14, 1961) is an American fashion designer, actor, singer, television presenter and chief designer of the Isaac Mizrahi brand for Xcel Brands. Based in New York City, he is best known for his eponymous fashion lines. M ...
, American fashion designer *
Zac Posen Zachary E. Posen (; born October 24, 1980) is an American fashion designer. Early life Zachary E. Posen was born and raised in a American Jews, Jewish family in New York City, residing in the SoHo neighborhood of lower Manhattan. He is the son ...
, American fashion designer *
Arnold Scaasi Arnold Isaacs (May 8, 1930 – August 3, 2015), known as Arnold Scaasi, was a Canadian fashion designer who created gowns for First Ladies Mamie Eisenhower, Barbara Bush, Hillary Clinton, and Laura Bush, in addition to such notable personaliti ...
, Canadian-born American fashion designer


Film, television & theater

*
Chantal Akerman Chantal Anne Akerman (; 6 June 19505 October 2015) was a Belgian film director, screenwriter, artist, and film professor at the City College of New York. Akerman is best known for her films (1974), (1975), and '' News from Home'' (1976). The ...
, film director *
Simon Amstell Simon Marc Amstell (born 29 November 1979) is an English comedian, writer and director. He wrote and directed the films '' Carnage'' (2017) and ''Benjamin'' (2018). His work on television has included presenting '' Popworld'' and '' Never Mind t ...
, comedian and television presenter *
Assi Azar Assi Azar (; born 10 June 1979) is an Israeli television host and screenwriter. He is the creator of the romantic comedy TV series '' Beauty and the Baker'' (2013 - 2021) and co-creator of the new TV series, '' Metukim'' (2024 - present). Biogr ...
, TV personality *
Neal Baer Neal Baer (born 1955) is an American pediatrician and television writer and producer. He is best known for his work on the television shows '' Designated Survivor'', '' ER'' and '' Law & Order: Special Victims Unit''. Early life and education ...
, TV writer, producer *
Orna Banai Orna Banai (; born November 25, 1966) is an Israeli actress, comedian, entertainer, winner of the 2006 Israeli Television Academy Award, and past member of the Tel Aviv-Yafo city Council. Many of her relatives are successful Israeli actors and ...
, actress, comedian * Michael Bennett, choreographer and musical theatre director *
Ilene Chaiken Ilene Chaiken (born June 30, 1957) is an American television producer, director, writer, and founder of Little Chicken Productions. Chaiken is best known as being a co-creator, writer and executive producer on the television series ''The L Word' ...
, creator of ''
The L Word ''The L Word'' is a television drama series that aired on Showtime in the United States from 2004 to 2009. The series follows the lives of a group of lesbian and bisexual women who live in West Hollywood, California. The premise originated wit ...
'' *
George Cukor George Dewey Cukor ( ; July 7, 1899 â€“ January 24, 1983) was an American film director and film producer, producer. He mainly concentrated on comedies and literary adaptations. His career flourished at RKO Pictures, RKO when David O. Selzn ...
, film director *
Barry Diller Barry Charles Diller (born February 2, 1942) is an American billionaire businessman. He is chairman and senior executive of IAC and Expedia Group and founded the Fox Broadcasting Company with Rupert Murdoch and USA Broadcasting. Diller was ind ...
, media executive *
Sandi Simcha DuBowski Sandi Simcha DuBowski is an American director and producer, best known for his work on homosexuality and religion, the intersection of LGBT people and their religion, DuBowski directed the 2001 documentary ''Trembling Before G-d'' and is the pro ...
, documentary filmmaker * Brandon Flynn, actor *
Harvey Fierstein Harvey Forbes Fierstein ( ; born June 6, 1952) is an American actor, playwright, and screenwriter, known for his distinctive gravelly voice. He gained notice for his theater work in '' Torch Song Trilogy'', winning both the Tony Award for Best ...
, actor and playwright *
Diane Flacks Diane Flacks is a Canadian comedic actress, screenwriter and playwright. Early life and education Flacks was raised in the Jewish faith. Her early education took place in Jewish parochial schools. Flacks studied drama at Leah Posluns Institu ...
, Canadian Jewish comedic actress, screenwriter and playwright *
Eytan Fox Eytan Fox (; born on August 21, 1964) is an Israeli film director. Biography Eytan Fox was born in New York City. His family Aliyah, immigrated to Israel when he was two. His father, Seymour Fox, was a Conservative Judaism, Conservative rabbi an ...
, Israeli film director *
Stephen Fry Sir Stephen John Fry (born 24 August 1957) is an English actor, broadcaster, comedian, director, narrator and writer. He came to prominence as a member of the comic act Fry and Laurie alongside Hugh Laurie, with the two starring in ''A Bit of ...
, actor, comedian and writer *
Victor Garber Victor Garber, (born March 16, 1949) is a Canadian stage and film actor and singer. Known for his work on stage and screen, he has been nominated for three Gemini Awards, four Tony Awards, and six Primetime Emmy Awards. In 2022, he was made an ...
, actor, comedian and writer *
Judy Gold Judy Gold (born November 15, 1962) is an American stand-up comedian Stand-up comedy is a performance directed to a live audience, where the performer stands on a stage and delivers humorous and satirical monologues sometimes incorpora ...
, stand-up comedian and actress * Julie Goldman, stand-up comedian *
Amos Guttman Amos Guttman (; 10 May 1954 – 16 February 1993) was an Israeli film director, born in Romania. He directed the first-ever Israeli LGBT-themed film and most of his films were based on events that happened in his own personal life. Biography G ...
, film director *
Todd Haynes Todd Haynes (; born January 2, 1961) is an American film director, screenwriter, and producer. His films span four decades with themes examining the personalities of well-known musicians, dysfunctional and dystopian societies, and blurred gender ...
, film director *
Matan Hodorov Matan Hodorov (; born June 10, 1985) is chief economic commentator and anchorman of "Analyst" Investigative Magazine at Israel's Channel 10 (Israeli TV channel), Channel 10 News. Matan was born in 1985 in Tel Aviv. A pianist as a child, he gradu ...
, journalist, TV presenter *
Nicholas Hytner Sir Nicholas Robert Hytner ( ; born 7 May 1956) is an English theatre director, film director, and film producer. He was previously the Artistic Director of London's National Theatre. His major successes as director include ''Miss Saigon'', '' ...
, theatre and film director *
Moisés Kaufman Moisés Kaufman (born November 21, 1963) is a Venezuelan American theater director, filmmaker, playwright, founder of Tectonic Theater Project based in New York City, and co-founder of Miami New Drama at the Colony Theatre. He was awarded the ...
, award-winning Venezuelan-born playwright and director, US resident * Jessica Kirson, comedian * Asi Levy, actress * Dan Levy, actor, writer, and comedian *
Matt Lucas Matthew Richard Lucas (born 5 March 1974) is an English actor, comedian, writer and television host. He is best known for his work with David Walliams on the BBC sketch comedy series ''Little Britain (TV series), Little Britain'' (2003–2006) ...
, comedian and actor * Michael Lucas, entrepreneur, filmmaker, and pornographic film star *
Miriam Margolyes Miriam Margolyes ( ; born 18 May 1941) is a British and Australian actress. Known for her work as a character actor across film, television, and stage, she received the BAFTA for Best Supporting Actress for her role as Mrs. Mingott in Marti ...
, award-winning British actress best known for her portrayal of Professor Sprout in the ''
Harry Potter ''Harry Potter'' is a series of seven Fantasy literature, fantasy novels written by British author J. K. Rowling. The novels chronicle the lives of a young Magician (fantasy), wizard, Harry Potter (character), Harry Potter, and his friends ...
'' film series *
Ezra Miller Ezra Matthew Miller (born September 30, 1992) is an American actor. Their feature film debut was in '' Afterschool'' (2008), which they followed by starring in the dramas '' We Need to Talk About Kevin'' (2011) and '' The Perks of Being a Wall ...
, actor *
Ben Platt Benjamin Schiff Platt (born September 24, 1993) is an American actor and singer. The son of film and theater producer Marc Platt (producer), Marc Platt and philanthropist Julie Platt, he began his acting career in musical theater as a child and ...
, actor, singer, and songwriter best known for his roles in ''
Dear Evan Hansen ''Dear Evan Hansen'' is a stage musical with music and lyrics by Pasek and Paul, Benj Pasek and Justin Paul, and a book by Steven Levenson. The musical follows Evan Hansen, a high school senior with social anxiety, "who invents an important rol ...
'', ''The Book of Mormon'', and ''
Pitch Perfect ''Pitch Perfect'' is a 2012 American musical comedy film directed by Jason Moore and written by Kay Cannon. It features an ensemble cast, including Anna Kendrick, Skylar Astin, Rebel Wilson, Adam DeVine, Anna Camp, Brittany Snow, Hana M ...
'' * Max Rhyser, actor *
Jerome Robbins Jerome Robbins (born Jerome Wilson Rabinowitz; October 11, 1918 – July 29, 1998) was an American dancer, choreographer, film director, theatre director and producer who worked in classical ballet, on stage, film, and television. Among his nu ...
, choreographer and musical theatre director *
Lili Rosen Lili Rosen is an American transgender actress and cultural consultant. She is best known for her work on the Netflix series Unorthodox (miniseries), ''Unorthodox'', which garnered her the AFI award for best television series in 2020. She made head ...
, American actress, writer and Yiddish cultural consultant * Joshua Rush, actor *
Jonathan Sagall Jonathan Sagall (; born 23 April 1959) is a Canadian-born Israeli actor, director, producer and screenwriter.John Schlesinger John Richard Schlesinger ( ; 16 February 1926 – 25 July 2003) was an English film and stage director, and actor. He emerged in the early 1960s as a leading light of the British New Wave, before embarking on a successful career in Hollywood ...
, film director *
Noah Schnapp Noah Cameron Schnapp (born October 3, 2004) is an American actor. He is known for his role as Will Byers in the Netflix science fiction horror series ''Stranger Things''. In addition to his work in television, Schnapp had a supporting role in ...
, actor *
Antony Sher Sir Antony Sher (14 June 1949 – 2 December 2021) was a British actor, writer and theatre director of South African origin. A two-time Laurence Olivier Award winner and a five-time nominee, he joined the Royal Shakespeare Company in 1982 and ...
, actor *
Kate Siegel Kate Gordon Siegelbaum (born August 9, 1982), known professionally as Kate Siegel ( ), is an American actress and writer. Dubbed a scream queen for her extensive work in the horror genre, Siegel is known for her collaborations with her husband ...
, actor *
Bryan Singer Bryan Jay Singer (born September 17, 1965) is an American filmmaker. He is the founder of Bad Hat Harry Productions and has produced almost all of the films he has directed, as well as multiple television series. After graduating from the Univ ...
, film director *
Joey Soloway Joey Soloway (born Jill Soloway; September 26, 1965) is an American television creator, showrunner, director and writer. Soloway is known for creating, writing, executive producing and directing the Amazon original series '' Transparent'', winnin ...
, writer, director, producer, comedian *
Peter Spears Peter Spears (born November 29, 1965) is an American actor and filmmaker. He was born in Kansas City, Missouri, and raised in Overland Park, Kansas. Spears is best known for winning an Oscar for producing ''Nomadland'' (2020), and for producing ...
, actor and film producer *
Mauritz Stiller Mauritz Stiller (born Moshe Stiller, 17 July 1883 – 8 November 1928) was a Finnish film director of Jewish origin, best known for discovering Greta Garbo and bringing her to America. Stiller was a pioneer of the Swedish film industry, writing ...
, film director *
Robin Tyler Robin Tyler (born Arlene Chernick, April 8, 1942) is the first lesbian or gay comic to come out on national television, a feminist and pioneer in the grassroots struggle for LGBTQ civil rights and marriage equality in the U.S., and a producer. S ...
, comic and activist *
Gal Uchovsky Gal Uchovsky (; born September 27, 1958) is an Israeli screenwriter, producer, journalist, activist and Israeli TV personality. Early life Uchovsky was born in Hadera. His family moved to Vienna while his father was studying there. They returne ...
, actor *
Bruce Vilanch Bruce Gerald Vilanch (born November 23, 1947) is an American comedy writer, songwriter, and actor. He is a two-time Emmy Award-winner. Vilanch is best known to the public for his four-year stint on ''Hollywood Squares'', as a celebrity participa ...
, comedy writer and actor *
Dale Winton Dale Jonathan Winton (22 May 1955 – 18 April 2018) was an English radio DJ and television presenter. He presented the shows '' Supermarket Sweep'' from 1993 until 2001 and again in 2007, the National Lottery game show '' In It to Win It' ...
, TV presenter *
Evan Rachel Wood Evan Rachel Wood (born September 7, 1987) is an American actress. She is the recipient of a Critics' Choice Television Award as well as nominations for three Primetime Emmy Awards and three Golden Globe Awards. She began acting in the 1990s, a ...
, actress, model, and musician


Literature

* Leroy F. Aarons, journalist, editor, author, playwright, activist founder of the
National Lesbian and Gay Journalists Association NLGJA: The Association of LGBTQ+ Journalists, is an American professional association dedicated to coverage of LGBTQ+ issues in the media. It is based in Washington, D.C., and the membership consists primarily of journalists, students, educators, ...
(NLGJA) *
Jon Robin Baitz Jon Robin Baitz (born November 4, 1961) is an American playwright, screenwriter and television producer. He is a two time Pulitzer Prize finalist, as well as a Guggenheim, American Academy of Arts and Letters, and National Endowment for the Art ...
, playwright and screenwriter *
Gad Beck Gerhard "Gad" Beck (30 June 1923 â€“ 24 June 2012) was an Israeli-German educator, author, activist, resistance member, and survivor of the Holocaust. Life and career Gad Beck was born Gerhard Beck in Berlin, Germany, along with twin sister ...
, Holocaust survivor and author *
Steve Berman Steve Berman is an American editor, novelist and short story writer. He writes in the field of queer speculative fiction. Early life and education Berman was born in Philadelphia, and raised in South Jersey. Berman says he realized in junior h ...
, speculative fiction writer * Betty Berzon, author, first psychotherapist in America to come out as gay to the public (1971) *
Kate Bornstein Katherine Vandam Bornstein (born March 15, 1948) is an American author, playwright, performance artist, actor, and gender theorist. In 1986, Bornstein started identifying as gender non-conforming and has stated "I don't call myself a woman, I ...
, writer, playwright, performance artist, gender theorist *
Jane Bowles Jane Bowles (; born Jane Sydney Auer; February 22, 1917 – May 4, 1973) was an American writer and playwright. Early life Born into a Jewish family in New York City on February 22, 1917, to Sydney Auer (father) and Claire Stajer (mother), Jan ...
, novelist and playwright *
Alfred Chester Alfred Chester (September 7, 1928 – August 1, 1971) was an American writer known for his provocative, experimental work, including the novels ''Jamie Is My Heart's Desire'' and ''The Exquisite Corpse'' and the short story collection ''Behold Goli ...
, novelist * Benjamin Cohen, journalist *
Nick Denton Nicholas Guido Anthony Denton (born 24 August 1966) is a British Internet entrepreneur, journalist, and blogger. He is the founder and former proprietor of the blog collective Gawker Media, and he was the managing editor of the New York City†...
, founder of
Gawker Media Gawker Media LLC (formerly Blogwire, Inc. and Gawker Media, Inc.) was an American internet media company and Link farm#Blog network, blog network. It was founded by Nick Denton in October 2003 as Blogwire, and was based in New York City. Incorpor ...
*
Joel Derfner Joel Derfner (born January 12, 1973) is an American writer and composer. He is the author of three gay-themed books: ''Gay Haiku'' (2005), ''Swish: My Quest to Become the Gayest Person Ever and What Ended Up Happening Instead'' (2008), and ''Lawf ...
, writer and memoirist * Gabe Dunn, writer, journalist, comedian, and actor *
Elana Dykewomon Elana Dykewomon (; October 11, 1949 – August 7, 2022) was an American lesbian activist, author, editor, and teacher. She was a recipient of the Lambda Literary Award for Lesbian Fiction. Early life and education Dykewomon was born Elana Mich ...
, American novelist *
Eve Ensler V, formerly Eve Ensler (; born May 25, 1953), is an American playwright, author, performer, feminist, and activist. V is best known for her play ''The Vagina Monologues''.
, playwright and performer *
György Faludy György Faludy (September 22, 1910 – September 1, 2006; ), sometimes anglicized as George Faludy, was a Hungarian poet, writer and translator. Life Travels, vicissitudes, and remembrance Faludy completed his schooling in the Fasori Ev ...
, poet *
Leslie Feinberg Leslie Feinberg (September 1, 1949 – November 15, 2014) was an American butch lesbian, transgender activist, communist, and author. Feinberg authored '' Stone Butch Blues'' in 1993.
, activist, author * Edward Field, poet * Sanford Friedman, novelist * Robert Friend, poet *
Masha Gessen Masha Gessen () is a Russian and American journalist, author, and translator who has written extensively on LGBT rights. Gessen writes primarily in English but also in Russian. In addition to authoring several nonfiction books, Gessen has con ...
, journalist, author, and activist *
Allen Ginsberg Irwin Allen Ginsberg (; June 3, 1926 â€“ April 5, 1997) was an American poet and writer. As a student at Columbia University in the 1940s, he began friendships with Lucien Carr, William S. Burroughs and Jack Kerouac, forming the core of th ...
, US
Beat generation The Beat Generation was a literary subculture movement started by a group of authors whose work explored and influenced American culture and politics in the post-World War II era. The bulk of their work was published and popularized by members o ...
poet *
Richard Greenberg Richard Greenberg (born February 22, 1958) is an American playwright and television writer known for his subversively humorous depictions of middle-class American life. He has had more than 25 plays premiere on and Off-Broadway in New York City ...
, playwright *
Jacob Israël de Haan Jacob Israël de Haan (31 December 1881 - 30 June 1924) was a Dutch Jewish literary writer, lawyer, anti-Zionist and journalist who immigrated to Palestine in 1919. There he became more religiously committed and served as the political spokes ...
, poet *
Marilyn Hacker Marilyn Hacker (born November 27, 1942) is an American poet, translator and critic. She is Professor of English emerita at the City College of New York. Her books of poetry include ''Presentation Piece'' (1974), which won the National Book Award, ...
, poet *
Aaron Hamburger Aaron Hamburger (born 1973) is an American writer best known for his short story collection ''The View from Stalin's Head'' (2004) and novels ''Faith for Beginners'' (2005) and ''Nirvana Is Here'' (2019). Born in Detroit, Michigan, Hamburger wen ...
, novelist *
Max Jacob Max Jacob (; 12 July 1876 – 5 March 1944) was a French poet, painter, writer, and critic. Life and career After spending his childhood in Quimper, Brittany, he enrolled in the Paris Colonial School, which he left in 1897 for an artistic c ...
, poet *
Chester Kallman Chester Simon Kallman (January 7, 1921 – January 18, 1975) was an American poet, librettist, and translator, best known for collaborating with W. H. Auden on opera librettos for Igor Stravinsky and other composers. Life Kallman was born in B ...
, poet and librettist *
Eva Kotchever Eva Kotchever (1891 – 19 December 1943), known also as Eve Adams or Eve Addams, born as Chawa Złoczower, was a Polish-Jewish émigré librarian and writer, who is the author of ''Lesbian Love'' and from 1925 to 1926 ran a popular, openly les ...
, also known as Eve Addams, Polish feminist, writer, owner of the
Eve's Hangout Eve's Hangout was a New York City lesbian nightclub established by Polish-Jewish feminist Eva Kotchever in Greenwich Village, Lower Manhattan, in 1925. The establishment was also known as "Eve Adams' Tearoom", a pun on the names Eve and Adam. H ...
in New York, assassinated at
Auschwitz Auschwitz, or Oświęcim, was a complex of over 40 concentration and extermination camps operated by Nazi Germany in occupied Poland (in a portion annexed into Germany in 1939) during World War II and the Holocaust. It consisted of Auschw ...
*
Larry Kramer Laurence David Kramer (June 25, 1935May 27, 2020) was an American playwright, author, film producer, public health advocate, and gay rights activist. He began his career rewriting scripts while working for Columbia Pictures, which led him to Lo ...
, playwright, author, film producer, public health advocate,
LGBT rights Rights affecting lesbian, Gay men, gay, Bisexuality, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) people vary greatly by country or jurisdiction—encompassing everything from the legal recognition of same-sex marriage to the Capital punishmen ...
activist, and founder of ACT UP *
Lisa Kron Elizabeth S. "Lisa" Kron (born May 20, 1961) is an American actress and playwright. She is best known for writing the lyrics and book for the musical '' Fun Home'', for which she won both the Tony Award for Best Original Score and the Tony Awar ...
, playwright and performer *
Tony Kushner Anthony Robert Kushner (born July 16, 1956) is an American author, playwright, and screenwriter. Among his stage work, he is most known for ''Angels in America'', which earned a Pulitzer Prize and a Tony Award, as well as its subsequent acclaime ...
, playwright and screenwriter *
Arthur Laurents Arthur Laurents (July 14, 1917 â€“ May 5, 2011) was an American playwright, theatre director, film producer and screenwriter. With a career spanning seven decades he received numerous accolades including two Tony Awards, a Drama Desk Award, ...
, playwright, screenwriter and librettist *
David Leavitt David Leavitt (; born June 23, 1961) is an American novelist, short story writer, and biographer. Biography Leavitt was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania to Gloria and Harold Leavitt. Harold was a professor who taught at Stanford University and G ...
, novelist and short-story writer *
Fran Lebowitz Frances Ann Lebowitz (; born October 27, 1950) is an American author, public speaker, and actor. She is known for her sardonic social commentary on American life as filtered through her New York City sensibilities and her association with many p ...
, author and public speaker *
Leo Lerman Leo Lerman (May 23, 1914 – August 22, 1994) was an American writer and editor who worked for Condé Nast Publications for more than 50 years.Grimes, William (August 23, 1994). Leo Lerman, 80, Editor at Conde Nast Magazines. ''The New York Times ...
, writer/editor *
Sue-Ann Levy Sue-Ann Levy (born September 23, 1956) is a Canadian writer and former political columnist for the ''Toronto Sun'' and Postmedia, who focused on municipal and social issues in Ontario. She has been described as 'unapologetically conservative', an ...
, columnist * Michael Lowenthal, novelist *
Jay Michaelson Jay Michaelson is an American writer, journalist, professor, and rabbi. He is a visiting scholar at the Emory Center for Psychedelics and Spirituality and was a visiting professor at Harvard Law School in Spring 2025. Dr. Michaelson is a frequent ...
, writer, columnist, author of ''God vs. Gay?'' *
Herbert Muschamp Herbert Mitchell Muschamp (November 28, 1947 – October 2, 2007) was an American architecture critic. Early years Born in Philadelphia, Muschamp described his childhood home life as follows: "The living room was a secret. A forbidden zone. ...
(1947–2007), ''
New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
'' architecture critic *
Joan Nestle Joan Nestle (born May 12, 1940) is a Lambda Award-winning writer and editor and a founder of the Lesbian Herstory Archives. She is openly lesbian and sees her work of archival work as critical to her identity as "a woman, as a lesbian, and as a ...
, writer, editor and activist, founder of the
Lesbian Herstory Archives The Lesbian Herstory Archives (LHA) is a New York City-based archive, community center, and museum dedicated to preserving history of lesbianism, lesbian history, located in Park Slope, Brooklyn. The Archives contain the world's largest collection ...
* Leslea Newman, children's book author, short story writer, editor *
Harold Norse Harold Norse (July 6, 1916, New York City – June 8, 2009, San Francisco) was an American writer who created a body of work using the American idiom of everyday language and images. One of the expatriate artists of the Beat generation, Norse w ...
, poet *
Marcel Proust Valentin Louis Georges Eugène Marcel Proust ( ; ; 10 July 1871 – 18 November 1922) was a French novelist, literary critic, and essayist who wrote the novel (in French – translated in English as ''Remembrance of Things Past'' and more r ...
, novelist *
David Rakoff David Benjamin Rakoff (November 27, 1964 â€“ August 9, 2012) was a Canadian-born American writer of prose and poetry based in New York City, who wrote humorous and sometimes autobiographical non-fiction essays. Rakoff was an essayist, journ ...
, essayist *
Adrienne Rich Adrienne Cecile Rich ( ; May 16, 1929 – March 27, 2012) was an American poet, essayist and feminist. She was called "one of the most widely read and influential poets of the second half of the 20th century", and was credited with bringing "the ...
, poet and essayist *
Paul Rudnick Paul Rudnick (born December 29, 1957) is an American novelist, playwright, screenwriter, and essayist. His plays have been produced on and off Broadway theatre, Broadway. He wrote the screenplays for ''Sister Act'', ''Addams Family Values'', Jef ...
, playwright, screenwriter and columnist *
Muriel Rukeyser Muriel Rukeyser (December 15, 1913 – February 12, 1980) was an American poet, essayist, biographer, novelist, screenwriter and political activist. She wrote across genres and forms, addressing issues related to racial, gender and class justice ...
, poet *
Siegfried Sassoon Siegfried Loraine Sassoon (8 September 1886 â€“ 1 September 1967) was an English war poet, writer, and soldier. Decorated for bravery on the Western Front (World War I), Western Front, he became one of the leading poets of the First World ...
, poet *
Sarah Schulman Sarah Miriam Schulman (born July 28, 1958) is an American novelist, playwright, nonfiction writer, screenwriter, gay activist, and AIDS historian. She holds an endowed chair in nonfiction at Northwestern University and is a fellow of the New York ...
, journalist, writer and playwright *
Martin Sherman Martin Sherman may refer to: * Martin Sherman (dramatist) (born 1938), American dramatist and screenwriter * Martin Sherman (actor) (born 1971), American actor, director, writer and inventor {{hndis, Sherman, Martin ...
, playwright *
Andrew Solomon Andrew Solomon (born October 30, 1963) is an American writer on politics, culture and psychology, who lives in New York City and London. He has written for ''The New York Times'', ''The New Yorker'', ''Artforum'', '' Travel and Leisure'', and oth ...
, writer on politics, culture and psychology *
Susan Sontag Susan Lee Sontag (; January 16, 1933 – December 28, 2004) was an American writer, critic, and public intellectual. She mostly wrote essays, but also published novels; she published her first major work, the essay "Notes on "Camp", Notes on 'Ca ...
, essayist and novelist *
Gertrude Stein Gertrude Stein (February 3, 1874 â€“ July 27, 1946) was an American novelist, poet, playwright, and art collector. Born in Allegheny, Pennsylvania (now part of Pittsburgh), and raised in Oakland, California, Stein moved to Paris in 1903, and ...
, writer *
Julian Stryjkowski Julian Stryjkowski (born Pesach Stark; April 27, 1905 – August 8, 1996) was a Polish journalist and writer, known for his social prose and radical leftist leanings. He was considered one of the best Polish-Jewish writers of the People's Republi ...
, novelist * Bogi Takács, poet *
Paula Vogel Paula Vogel (born November 16, 1951) is an American playwright. She is known for her provocative explorations of complex social and political issues. Much of her work delves into themes of psychological trauma, abuse, and the complexities of hum ...
, playwright and teacher *
Yona Wallach Yona Wallach (; June 10, 1944 – September 26, 1985) was an Israeli poet. Her surname also appears as Volach. She is considered a revolutionary Israeli Feminism, feminist and Postmodernism, post-modernist. Wallach had wrote poetry from a young ...
, poet


Music

* Aderet (singer), singer-songwriter, DJ, producer *
Howard Ashman Howard Elliott Ashman (May 17, 1950 – March 14, 1991) was an American playwright, lyricist and stage director. He is most widely known for his work on feature films for Walt Disney Animation Studios, for which Ashman wrote the lyrics and Alan M ...
, playwright and lyricist *
Avery Friedman Avery Friedman is a Brooklyn-based musician and singer-songwriter from Cleveland, Ohio. Her lineup includes James Chrisman (Sister. / CIAO MALZ) and Felix Walworth (Florist / Told Slant). She released her debut album 'New Thing' via Audio Anti ...
, musician and singer-songwriter. *
Babydaddy Scott Hoffman (born September 1, 1976), known by his stage name Babydaddy, is an American musician and the Ivor Novello Award-winning multi-instrumentalist, backing vocalist and composer for the U.S. glam rock band Scissor Sisters. He is the br ...
, member of
Scissor Sisters Scissor Sisters are an American pop rock band formed in 2000. The band's current line-up consists of Jake Shears (vocals), Babydaddy (various instruments), Del Marquis (guitar, bass) and Randy Real (drums). Former members include vocalist A ...
*
Jean-Pierre Barda Michel Jean-Pierre Barda (; born 7 March 1965) is a Swedish and Israeli singer, actor, make up artist and hair dresser of French/Algerian Jewish descent. He is one of the founding members of the pop group Army of Lovers. Biography Jean-Pier ...
, singer, actor *
Frieda Belinfante Frieda Belinfante (May 10, 1904 – March 5, 1995) was a Dutch cellist, philharmonic conductor, a prominent lesbian, and a member of the Dutch resistance during World War II. After the war, Belinfante emigrated to the United States and continued ...
, conductor (she has a Jewish father) *
Leonard Bernstein Leonard Bernstein ( ; born Louis Bernstein; August 25, 1918 – October 14, 1990) was an American conductor, composer, pianist, music educator, author, and humanitarian. Considered to be one of the most important conductors of his time, he was th ...
, composer and conductor *
Marc Blitzstein Marcus Samuel Blitzstein (March 2, 1905January 22, 1964), was an American composer, lyricist, and Libretto, librettist. He won national attention in 1937 when his pro-Trade union, union musical ''The Cradle Will Rock'', directed by Orson Welles, ...
, composer * Apollo Braun, musician, author *
Barbara Butch Leslie Barbara Butch (born 17 March 1981) is a French disc jockey and lesbian activist. She campaigns for fat acceptance and has made the short film ''Extra Large''. She was awarded the 2021 "''personnalité LGBTI de l'année''" ("LGBTI person ...
, DJ, musician *
Carrie Brownstein Carrie Rachel Brownstein (born September 27, 1974) is an American musician, actress, writer, director, and comedian. She first came to prominence as a member of the band Excuse 17 before forming the rock trio Sleater-Kinney. During a long hiatu ...
, guitarist in
Sleater-Kinney Sleater-Kinney ( ) is an American rock band that formed in Olympia, Washington, in 1994. The band's lineup features Corin Tucker (vocals and guitar) and Carrie Brownstein (guitar and vocals), following the departure of longtime member Janet We ...
*
Aaron Copland Aaron Copland (, ; November 14, 1900December 2, 1990) was an American composer, critic, writer, teacher, pianist, and conductor of his own and other American music. Copland was referred to by his peers and critics as the "Dean of American Compos ...
, composer *
Joel Derfner Joel Derfner (born January 12, 1973) is an American writer and composer. He is the author of three gay-themed books: ''Gay Haiku'' (2005), ''Swish: My Quest to Become the Gayest Person Ever and What Ended Up Happening Instead'' (2008), and ''Lawf ...
, musical theatre composer *
Brian Epstein Brian Samuel Epstein ( ; 19 September 1934 â€“ 27 August 1967) was an English music entrepreneur who managed the Beatles from 1961 until his death in 1967. Epstein was born into a family of successful retailers in Liverpool, who put hi ...
, manager of
The Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Liverpool in 1960. The core lineup of the band comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are widely regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatle ...
*
Michael Feinstein Michael Jay Feinstein (born September 7, 1956) is an American singer, pianist, and music Revivalist artist, revivalist. He is an archivist and interpreter for the repertoire known as the Great American Songbook. In 1988, he won a Drama Desk Spec ...
, singer and pianist *
William Finn William Alan Finn (February 28, 1952 – April 7, 2025) was an American composer and lyricist. He was best known for his musicals, which include ''Falsettos'', for which he won the 1992 Tony Awards for Tony Award for Best Original Score, Best O ...
, musical theatre composer, lyricist and librettist *
Ezra Furman Ezra Furman (born September 5, 1986) is an American musician and songwriter. Furman was the lead singer and guitarist of Ezra Furman and the Harpoons, formed in 2006, which ended with '' Mysterious Power'' (2011). Her subsequent work has inclu ...
, singer-songwriter *
David Geffen David Lawrence Geffen (born February 21, 1943) is an American film producer, record executive, and media proprietor. In music, he co-founded Asylum Records with Elliot Roberts in 1971 before founding Geffen Records in 1980, DGC Records in 1 ...
, film producer and record executive * God-Des (of God-Des and She) * Ari Gold, pop singer *
Lesley Gore Lesley Gore (born Lesley Sue Goldstein, May 2, 1946 – February 16, 2015) was an American singer and songwriter. At the age of 16, she recorded her first hit song " It's My Party", a US number one in 1963. She follow ...
, pop singer *
Amir Fryszer Guttman Amir Fryszer Guttman (; April 25, 1976 – July 23, 2017) was an Israeli singer, musician, choreographer, actor, theater director and LGBT rights activist. He died after being swept away with his niece, whom he had held above water; his niece su ...
, singer, musician, choreographer, actor, theater director *
Lorenz Hart Lorenz Milton Hart (May 2, 1895 – November 22, 1943) was an American lyricist and half of the Broadway songwriting team Rodgers and Hart. Some of his more famous lyrics include "Blue Moon"; " The Lady Is a Tramp"; "Manhattan"; " Bewitched, Bo ...
, lyricist *
Jerry Herman Gerald Sheldon Herman (July 10, 1931December 26, 2019) was an American composer and lyricist, known for his work in Broadway theatre. One of the most commercially successful Broadway songwriters of his time, Herman was the composer and lyricist ...
, musical theatre composer and lyricist *
Vladimir Horowitz Vladimir Samoylovich Horowitz (November 5, 1989) was a Russian and American pianist. Considered one of the greatest pianists of all time, he was known for his virtuoso technique, timbre, and the public excitement engendered by his playing. Life ...
, classical pianist *
Janis Ian Janis Ian (born Janis Eddy Fink; April 7, 1951) is an American singer-songwriter who was most commercially successful in the 1960s and 1970s. Her signature songs are the 1966/67 hit "Society's Child, Society's Child (Baby I've Been Thinking)" an ...
(born Janis Eddy Fink), American songwriter, singer, musician, columnist, and science fiction author *
Dana International Sharon Cohen (; born 2 February 1969), professionally known as Dana International (), is an Israeli Pop music, pop singer. She has released eight albums and three additional compilation albums. She was the winner of the Eurovision Song Contest ...
, Israeli pop singer *
Rona Kenan Rona (Aharona) Rachel Kenan (; born 26 July 1979) is an Israeli singer-songwriter. Biography Kenan was born on 26 July 1979. Her father is the late Amos Kenan and her mother is the scholar Nurith Gertz. She was attracted to music at a young age ...
, musician *
Dave Koz David Stephen Koz (born March 27, 1963) is an American saxophonist, composer, record producer, and radio personality based in Los Angeles, California. Early life Dave Koz was born in Encino, California, to Jewish parents: Norman, a dermatologis ...
(born David Kozlowski), jazz saxophonist *
Adam Lambert Adam Mitchel Lambert (born January 29, 1982) is an American singer, songwriter and actor. He is known for his dynamic vocal performances that combine his theatrical training with modern and classic genres. Lambert rose to fame in 2009 after ...
, singer and runner-up on the 8th season of ''
American Idol ''American Idol'' is an American Music competition, singing competition television series created by Simon Fuller, produced by Fremantle (company), Fremantle North America and 19 Entertainment, and distributed by Fremantle North America. It a ...
''Adam Lambert, the new face of glam rock
Malcolm Mackenzie, ''The Times'', 4 February 2010.
*
Ivri Lider Ivri Lider (; born 10 February 1974) is an Israeli pop star and part of the duo TYP, also known as The Young Professionals. He served as a judge on the first season of '' The X Factor Israel''. Music career In October 2005 Lider received the ...
, musician, singer *
Lyrik Liran Shoshan, () better known by his stage name Lyrik (), is an Israeli music producer, songwriter and singer born in Jerusalem. He is founder of the production house Lyrik Productions. He has cooperated with renowned international DJs and pro ...
, music producer, singer-songwriter *
Barry Manilow Barry Manilow ( ; born Barry Alan Pincus on June 17, 1943) is an American singer, songwriter and record producer with a career that spans over sixty years. His hit recordings include "Could It Be Magic", "Looks Like We Made It", "Brandy (Scott ...
, singer and songwriter *
Doron Medalie Doron Medalie (; born 5 December 1977) is an Israeli songwriter, composer and artistic director. He co-wrote the song "Toy", which was performed by Netta Barzilai and won the Eurovision Song Contest 2018. Biography Doron Medalie was raised in Ra ...
, songwriter, composer *
Jon Moss Jonathan Aubrey Moss (born 11 September 1957) is an English drummer, best known as a member of the 1980s pop group Culture Club. He has also played with other bands, including London, the Nips, the Damned and Adam and the Ants. Early life ...
, drummer, member of
Culture Club Culture Club are an English new wave music, new wave band formed in London in 1981. The band comprises Boy George (lead vocals), Roy Hay (musician), Roy Hay (guitar and keyboards), and Mikey Craig (bass guitar), and formerly included Jon Moss ( ...
and The Damned *
Offer Nissim Offer Nissim () is an Israeli DJ, remixer, and record producer. He produced the winning entry of the Eurovision Song Contest 1998, "Diva", by Dana International. Besides his work with Dana International, Nissim has often collaborated with Maya ...
, DJ, record producer *
Laura Nyro Laura Nyro ( ; born Laura Nigro; October 18, 1947 â€“ April 8, 1997) was an American songwriter and singer. She achieved critical acclaim with her own recordings, particularly the albums ''Eli and the Thirteenth Confession'' (1968) and ''Ne ...
, singer-songwriter *
Peaches The peach (''Prunus persica'') is a deciduous tree first domesticated and cultivated in China. It bears edible juicy fruits with various characteristics, most called peaches and the glossy-skinned, non-fuzzy varieties called nectarines. Peac ...
, Canadian electro-punk musician and performance artist *
Phranc Phranc (born Susan Gottlieb; August 28, 1957), is an American singer-songwriter whose career began playing in several bands in the late 1970s Los Angeles punk rock scene. Her musical style later shifted during the 1980s as a solo artist, into a ...
, singer-songwriter *
Yehuda Poliker Yehuda Leon Poliker (; born Leonidas Polikaris; 25 December 1950) is an Israeli singer, songwriter, and musician. Poliker first became known in the 1980s as the lead vocalist for the band Benzene. In 1985, after Benzene broke up, he began a sol ...
, singer-songwriter, musician, producer, painter *
Yehudit Ravitz Yehudit Ravitz ( ; born December 29, 1956) is an Israeli singer-songwriter, composer, arranger, and music producer. Active since the 1970s, she is considered one of the prominent figures in Israeli popular music. Music career Ravitz was born in ...
, singer-songwriter, composer, record producer *
Marc Shaiman Marc Shaiman ( ; born October 22, 1959) is an American composer and lyricist for films, television, and theatre, best known for his collaborations with lyricist and director Scott Wittman, actor Billy Crystal, and director Rob Reiner. Shaiman ha ...
, musical theatre and film composer *
Gil Shohat Gil Shohat (; born 7 September 1973) is an Israeli classical music composer, Conducting, conductor, pianist and lecturer. Biography Gil Shohat was born in Tel Aviv. His mother is ''Ha'aretz'' theatre critic Tzipora (Tzipi) Shohat. He grew up in Ra ...
, music composer, conductor and pianist *
Troye Sivan Troye Sivan Mellet ( ; born 5 June 1995) is an Australian singer-songwriter and actor. After gaining popularity as a singer on YouTube and in Australian talent competitions, Sivan signed with Universal Music Australia, EMI Australia in 2013 and ...
, South African-born singer and actor *
Harel Skaat Harel Skaat (; born 8 August 1981) sometimes known by the mononym Harel is an Israeli singer and songwriter. He represented in the Eurovision Song Contest 2010 with the song "Milim" ("", "Words"). Skaat has been singing and performing in publi ...
, singer-songwriter *
Socalled Joshua Dolgin (born December 28, 1976), better known by his stage name Socalled, is a Canadian rapper and record producer, known for his eclectic mix of hip hop, klezmer, and other styles such as drum & bass and folk music. A pianist and accordio ...
, rapper *
Stephen Sondheim Stephen Joshua Sondheim (; March22, 1930November26, 2021) was an American composer and lyricist. Regarded as one of the most important figures in 20th-century musical theater, he is credited with reinventing the American musical. He received Lis ...
, musical theatre composer and lyricist *
Hovi Star Hovav Sekulets (; born 19 November 1986), known by his stage name Hovi Star (), is an Israeli singer. He represented Israel in the Eurovision Song Contest 2016 with the song "Made of Stars" by Doron Medalie. Biography Hovav Sekulets (aka Hovi ...
, singer *
Michael Tilson Thomas Michael Tilson Thomas (born December 21, 1944) is an American conductor, pianist, and composer. He is Artistic Director Laureate of the New World Symphony, an American orchestral academy in Miami Beach, Florida, Music Director Laureate of the S ...
, conductor, composer, and pianist * Brandon Uranowitz, stage and television actor *
Yeho Yeho, real name Yoni Getreuer (; born 25 October 1977), is an Israeli singer and actor. He has performed under the stage names Gatro and Yehonathan. He has had a long collaboration with Israeli music producer Lyrik. Career Yeho was born in T ...
, singer, actor


Politics

* Roberta Achtenberg, former HUD assistant secretary and San Francisco city supervisor *
Noah Arbit Noah Jeremy Arbit (born September 21, 1995) is an American politician who has served as a member of the Michigan House of Representatives since 2023. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, Arbit represents Michigan's ...
, Michigan State Representative *
Yossi Avni-Levy Yossi Avni-Levy (; born 25 May 1962) is an Israeli writer and diplomat. He has served in various positions in Israeli embassies in Berlin, Bonn, Belgrade, and Warsaw. He is Israel’s ambassador to Lithuania. From 2011 until 2016, he was Amb ...
, diplomat *
Tammy Baldwin Tammy Suzanne Green Baldwin (born February 11, 1962) is an American politician and lawyer serving since 2013 as the Seniority in the United States Senate, junior United States senator from Wisconsin. A member of the Democratic Party (United Stat ...
, U.S. Senator for Wisconsin *
Becca Balint Rebecca A. Balint ( ; born May 4, 1968) is an American politician who is a member of the United States House of Representatives from Vermont's at-large congressional district as a member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party. ...
, member of U.S. Congress for Vermont * Sam Bell,
Rhode Island Senate The Rhode Island Senate is the upper house of the Rhode Island General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Rhode Island, the lower house being the Rhode Island House of Representatives. It is composed of 38 Senators, each of w ...
member."RI State Senator-Elect Alleged He is Being Targeted By NeoNazis"
''GoLocal Providence'', October 28, 2018.
*
David Cicilline David Nicola Cicilline ( ; born July 15, 1961) is an American lawyer and politician who served as the U.S. representative for from 2011 to 2023. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the 36th mayor of Providence from 2003 to 2011, the fi ...
, the Mayor of
Providence, Rhode Island Providence () is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Rhode Island, most populous city of the U.S. state of Rhode Island. The county seat of Providence County, Rhode Island, Providence County, it is o ...
, member of the
United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Artic ...
*
Roy Cohn Roy Marcus Cohn ( ; February 20, 1927 – August 2, 1986) was an American lawyer and prosecutor. He first gained fame as a prosecutor of Julius and Ethel Rosenberg in their trials (1952–53) and as Senator Joseph McCarthy's chief counsel duri ...
, lawyer and co-counsel (with
Robert F. Kennedy Robert Francis Kennedy (November 20, 1925 – June 6, 1968), also known as RFK, was an American politician and lawyer. He served as the 64th United States attorney general from January 1961 to September 1964, and as a U.S. senator from New Yo ...
) to Senator
Joseph McCarthy Joseph Raymond McCarthy (November 14, 1908 – May 2, 1957) was an American politician who served as a Republican Party (United States), Republican United States Senate, U.S. Senator from the state of Wisconsin from 1947 until his death at age ...
*
Bevan Dufty Bevan Dufty (born February 27, 1955) is an American politician and Director of HOPE (Housing Opportunity, Partnerships and Engagement) for the City and County of San Francisco. In 2012, Dufty was elected to serve as a Member of the San Francis ...
, former San Francisco city supervisor *
Barney Frank Barnett Frank (born March 31, 1940) is a retired American politician. He served as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Massachusetts from 1981 to 2013. A Democratic Party (United States), Democrat, Frank served as chairman of th ...
, Democratic member of the
United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Artic ...
* Marcia Freedman, former member of the
Israeli Knesset The Knesset ( , ) is the unicameral legislature of Israel. The Knesset passes all laws, elects the president and prime minister, approves the cabinet, and supervises the work of the government, among other things. In addition, the Knesset ...
*
Raffi Freedman-Gurspan Raffi Freedman-Gurspan (born May 3, 1987) is a Honduran American transgender rights activist and the first openly transgender person to work as a White House staffer. She was also the first openly transgender legislative staffer to work in the Ma ...
, first transgender person in the role of LGBT liaison to the White House *
Ron Galperin Ron Shalom Galperin (born August 1, 1963) is an American politician who served as the 19th Los Angeles City Controller from 2013 to 2022. He took office on July 1, 2013 and won re-election in 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, Galperin is t ...
, City Controller of Los Angeles, first openly gay person elected citywide in Los Angeles *
Jackie Goldberg Jacqueline Barbara Goldberg (born November 18, 1944) is an American former politician, activist and educator who served as a member of the Los Angeles Unified School District Board of Education for District 5 from 2019 until 2024. Previously ser ...
, former California State Assembly member for Los Angeles *
Nitzan Horowitz Nitzan Horowitz (; born 24 February 1965) is a politician and former journalist who served as Israel's Minister of Health from 2021 to 2022. He is the former leader of Meretz. He previously was the chief U.S. correspondent and commentator for t ...
, Israeli Member of Knesset, first openly gay person elected to the Knesset *
Rebecca Kaplan Rebecca Dawn Kaplan (born September 17, 1970) is a Canadian-born American attorney, rabbi and politician who served as an at-large member of the Oakland City Council from 2009 to 2025, and currently serves as interim City Council Member for Dist ...
, City Councilmember At-Large,
Oakland, California Oakland is a city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area in the U.S. state of California. It is the county seat and most populous city in Alameda County, California, Alameda County, with a population of 440,646 in 2020. A major We ...
*
Ed Koch Edward Irving Koch ( ; December 12, 1924February 1, 2013) was an American politician. He served in the United States House of Representatives from 1969 to 1977 and was mayor of New York City from 1978 to 1989. Koch was a lifelong Democrat who ...
, former mayor of New York City *
Sheila Kuehl Sheila James Kuehl (born February 9, 1941) is an American politician and retired actress, who served as a member of the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors for the 3rd District from 2014 to 2022. Kuehl was California's first openly gay state ...
, former California State Senator for Los Angeles *
Anne Kronenberg Anne Kronenberg is an American political administrator and LGBT rights activist. She is best known for being Harvey Milk's campaign manager during his historic San Francisco Board of Supervisors campaign in 1977 and his aide as he held that office ...
, American political administrator *
Melissa Lantsman Melissa Lantsman (born April 8, 1984) is a Canadian politician and former public relations executive who serves as the member of Parliament (MP) for Thornhill since 2021. A member of the Conservative Party, she is the party's co-deputy leader ...
, member of parliament for Thornhill,
Conservative Party of Canada The Conservative Party of Canada (CPC; , ), sometimes referred to as the Tories, is a Government of Canada, federal List of political parties in Canada, political party in Canada. It was formed in 2003 by the merger of the two main Right-wing ...
*
Mark Leno Mark Leno (born September 24, 1951) is an American politician who served consecutively in both houses of the California State Legislature from 2002 to 2016. A California Democratic Party, Democrat, he represented the California's 11th State Senat ...
, former California State Assembly member for San Francisco *
Mark Levine Mark Andrew LeVine is an American historian, musician, writer, and professor. He is a professor of history at the University of California, Irvine. Education LeVine received his B.A. in comparative religion and biblical studies from Hunter ...
, former member of the Virginia House of Delegates *
Rafael Mandelman Rafael Mandelman (born October 17, 1973) is an American attorney and politician currently serving as the president of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, representing District 8. Early life Mandelman grew up in Laguna Beach, California wit ...
, San Francisco city supervisor *
Carole Migden Carole Migden (born August 14, 1948, in New York City) is an American politician from San Francisco who represented the California's 3rd State Senate district, third district of the California State Senate from 2004 to 2008 and the California's ...
, former California State Senator for San Francisco *
Harvey Milk Harvey Bernard Milk (May 22, 1930 – November 27, 1978) was an American politician and the first openly gay man to be elected to public office in California, as a member of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors. Milk was born and raised i ...
, former San Francisco city supervisor, first openly gay person to be elected to public office in the United States *
Jeremy Moss Jeremy Allen Moss (born June 23, 1986) is an American politician from Southfield, Michigan currently representing the 7th State Senate District, which includes all of Auburn Hills, Bloomfield Hills, Bloomfield Township, Lake Angelus, Lathrup ...
, Michigan State Senator *
Amir Ohana Amir Ohana (; born 15 March 1976) is an Israeli lawyer, former Shin Bet official and politician who has served as the Speaker of the Knesset since 2022, and as a member of the Knesset for Likud. He previously held the posts of Ministry of Just ...
, first openly gay Israeli minister and Knesset speaker *
Jared Polis Jared Schutz Polis ( ; ; born May 12, 1975) is an American politician and businessman serving as the 43rd governor of Colorado since 2019. He served one term on the Colorado State Board of Education from 2001 to 2007, and five terms as the Unite ...
, first openly gay man man elected to U.S. Congress (as non-incumbent) and first openly gay governor of Colorado *
Stan Rosenberg Stanley C. Rosenberg (born October 12, 1949) is an American politician who served as President of the Massachusetts Senate from January 2015 until December 2017. Rosenberg was elected to the Massachusetts House of Representatives in 1986 and ser ...
, President Pro Tempore, Massachusetts State Senate *
Elly Schlein Elena Ethel "Elly" Schlein (; born 4 May 1985) is an Italian politician who has been serving as the secretary of the Democratic Party (Italy), Democratic Party (PD) since 12 March 2023. She is a member of Italy's Chamber of Deputies (Italy), Ch ...
, Italian politician, member of Italy's
Chamber of Deputies The chamber of deputies is the lower house in many bicameral legislatures and the sole house in some unicameral legislatures. Description Historically, French Chamber of Deputies was the lower house of the French Parliament during the Bourb ...
and Secretary of the Democratic Party *
Barbra Casbar Siperstein Barbra Casbar Siperstein (November 20, 1942 – February 3, 2019), commonly known as Babs Siperstein, was an American political and transgender-rights activist. She came out as a trans woman in the late 1980s. When her wife died in 2001 she chann ...
, first openly transgender member of the
Democratic National Committee The Democratic National Committee (DNC) is the principal executive leadership board of the United States's Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party. According to the party charter, it has "general responsibility for the affairs of the ...
* Lynn Schulman, New York City Council member * Itzik Shmuli, politician *
Scott Wiener Scott Wiener (born May 11, 1970) is an American politician who has served in the California State Senate since 2016. A Democrat, he represents the 11th district, encompassing San Francisco and parts of San Mateo County. He is also the co-chair ...
, California State Senator for San Francisco


Religion

* Rebecca Alpert, lesbian professor in the Departments of Religion and Women's Studies at Temple University *
Lionel Blue Lionel Blue (né Bluestein; 6 February 1930 – 19 December 2016) was a British Reform Judaism, Reform rabbi, journalist and broadcaster, described by ''The Guardian'' as "one of the most respected religious figures in the UK". He was best know ...
, first British rabbi publicly to come out as gay; wrote ''Godly and Gay'' (1981) * Deborah Brin, one of the first openly gay rabbis and one of the first hundred women rabbis *
Denise Eger Denise may refer to: * Denise (given name), people with the given name ''Denise'' * Denise (computer chip) The Original Chip Set (OCS) is a chipset used in the earliest Commodore International, Commodore Amiga computers and defined the Amiga' ...
, first female and the first openly gay President of the Board of Rabbis of Southern California; in March 2015 she became president of the
Central Conference of American Rabbis The Central Conference of American Rabbis (CCAR), founded in 1889 by Rabbi Isaac Mayer Wise, is the principal organization of Reform rabbis in the United States and Canada. The CCAR is the largest and oldest rabbinical organization in the world. ...
, the largest and oldest rabbinical organization in North America, and she was the first openly gay person to hold that positionTess Cutler
"Rabbi Denise Eger seeks to open doors wider to all Jews"
''
The Jewish Journal of Greater Los Angeles ''The Jewish Journal of Greater Los Angeles'', known simply as the ''Jewish Journal'', is an independent, nonprofit community weekly newspaper serving the Jewish community of greater Los Angeles, published by the nonprofit TRIBE Media Corp. I ...
'', March 4, 2015.
* Steven Greenberg (b. 1956), first out Orthodox rabbi and staff member of CLAL * Dario David Hunter, American-Israeli lawyer,
rabbi A rabbi (; ) is a spiritual leader or religious teacher in Judaism. One becomes a rabbi by being ordained by another rabbi—known as ''semikha''—following a course of study of Jewish history and texts such as the Talmud. The basic form of t ...
, educator and politician considered the first Muslim-born person to be ordained as a rabbi * Jason Klein, first openly gay man to head a national rabbinical association of a major US Jewish denominations (2013), when he was chosen as president of the
Reconstructionist Rabbinical Association The Reconstructionist Rabbinical Association (RRA) founded in 1974, is the professional association of rabbis affiliated with Reconstructionist Judaism. It has approximately 300 members, most of whom are graduates of the Reconstructionist Rabbinica ...
; also the first Hillel director to hold the presidency;NJ native to lead rabbinical association , NJJN
. NJjewishnews.com.
as of this election, he is the executive director of Hillel at the
University of Maryland, Baltimore County The University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC) is a Public university, public research university in Catonsville, Maryland named after Baltimore County, Maryland, Baltimore County. It had a fall 2022 enrollment of 13,991 students, 61 un ...
, a post he has held since 2006;Major US Jewish group elects 1st openly gay rabbi , JPost , Israel News
. Jpost.com.
he will be president of the Reconstructionist Rabbinical Association for two years *
Sharon Kleinbaum Sharon Kleinbaum (born 1959) is an American rabbi who served as spiritual leader of Congregation Beit Simchat Torah in New York City for thirty-two years. She was appointed the synagogue's first senior rabbi emerita. She has actively campaigned ...
, first rabbi of
Congregation Beit Simchat Torah Congregation Beit Simchat Torah ("CBST") is a non-denominational Jewish, pluralistic, progressive, and LGBTQ+ synagogue located at 130 West 30th Street in Manhattan, New York City. The congregation was founded in 1973 by and for LGBTQ people, ...
, one of the most influential rabbis in the United States *
Debra Kolodny Debra Kolodny is a bisexual rights activist and congregational rabbi. They served in the past as Executive Director of Nehirim. Background Kondny came out as bisexual in 1984 and has continued to be open about their orientation in the context of ...
, openly bisexual American rabbi; edited the first anthology by bisexual people of faith, ''Blessed Bi Spirit'' (2000), to which she contributed "Hear, I Pray You, This Dream Which I Have Dreamed," about Jewish identity and bisexuality *
Amichai Lau-Lavie Rabbi Amichai Yehuda Lau-Lavie (; born April 22, 1969) is a social entrepreneur, human rights activist and LGBT, Conservative rabbi, founder and spiritual leader of the Lab/Shul community in New York. Biography Lau-Lavie is the fourth son of Na ...
, founder of Storahtelling and Lab-Shul. *
Sandra Lawson Sandra Lawson (born 1970) is an American rabbi and the first director of Racial Diversity, Equity and Inclusion at Reconstructing Judaism. She previously served as Associate Chaplain for Jewish Life at Elon University. Lawson became the first ope ...
, became the first openly gay African-American and the first African-American admitted to the
Reconstructionist Rabbinical College The Reconstructionist Rabbinical College (RRC) is a Jewish seminary in Wyncote, Pennsylvania. It is the only seminary affiliated with Reconstructionist Judaism. It is accredited by the Commission on Higher Education of the Middle States Assoc ...
in 2011; became the first openly gay, female, black rabbi in the world in 2018 * Stacy Offner, openly lesbian American rabbi who accomplished important firsts for women and lesbians in the Jewish community;Alpert, R.T.
Like Bread on the Seder Plate: Jewish Lesbians and the Transformation of Tradition
Columbia University Press, 1998.
Rabbi Offner
, Union for Reform Judaism website. Retrieved 2011-11-05.
first openly lesbian rabbi in a traditional congregation; first openly lesbian rabbi hired by a mainstream Jewish congregation; first female rabbi in Minnesota; first rabbi elected chaplain of the Minnesota Senate; first female vice president of the
Union for Reform Judaism The Union for Reform Judaism (URJ), formerly known as the Union of American Hebrew Congregations (UAHC) until 2003, founded in 1873 by Rabbi Isaac Mayer Wise, is the congregational arm of Reform Judaism in North America. The other two arms establ ...
; first woman to serve on the US national rabbinical pension board *
Toba Spitzer Toba Spitzer is an American rabbi, writer, and activist. She is the first openly lesbian or gay rabbi to head a rabbinical organization in the United States. Early life and education Toba Spitzer is a native of Chevy Chase, Maryland and grew up in ...
, first openly lesbian or gay person chosen to head a rabbinical association in the United States in 2007, when she was elected president of the
Reconstructionist Rabbinical Association The Reconstructionist Rabbinical Association (RRA) founded in 1974, is the professional association of rabbis affiliated with Reconstructionist Judaism. It has approximately 300 members, most of whom are graduates of the Reconstructionist Rabbinica ...
*
Abby Stein Rabbi Abby Chava Stein (; born October 1, 1991) is an Israeli-American author, rabbi, activist, blogger, model, and public speaker. A member of New York's ultra orthodox Jewish community and an ordained rabbi, Stein made headlines after she cam ...
, transgender activist, former Hasidic Jew *
Margaret Wenig Margaret Moers Wenig (born 1957) is an American rabbi and writer. Career In 1976, she co-wrote with Naomi Janowitz ''Siddur Nashim'', the first Jewish prayer book to refer to God using female pronouns and imagery. Wenig graduated from Brown Univ ...
, American rabbi and instructor of liturgy and homiletics at
Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion Hebrew (; ''ʿÎbrit'') is a Northwest Semitic language within the Afroasiatic language family. A regional dialect of the Canaanite languages, it was natively spoken by the Israelites and remained in regular use as a first language until ...
; in 1976, she and Naomi Janowitz published ''
Siddur Nashim ''Siddur Nashim: A Sabbath Prayer Book for Women'' is a feminist siddur written in 1976 by Naomi Janowitz and Margaret Wenig of the Brown University Women's Minyan. It is the first siddur to use female imagery (a biblical transgression) and pronou ...
'', the first Jewish prayer book to refer to God using female pronouns and imagery; in 1990 she wrote the sermon "God Is a Woman and She Is Growing Older *
Sherwin Wine Sherwin Theodore Wine (Hebrew name שמעון בן צבי, Shimon ben Tzvi; January 25, 1928 â€“ July 21, 2007) was an American rabbi and a founding figure of Humanistic Judaism, a movement that emphasizes Jewish culture and Jewish history ...
(1928-2007), rabbi and founding figure in
Humanistic Judaism Humanistic Judaism () is a Jewish movement that offers a nontheistic alternative to contemporary branches of Judaism. It defines Judaism as the cultural and historical experience of the Jewish people rather than a religion, and encourages Jews ...
*
Ron Yosef Ron Yosef () is the founder of the Israeli organization Hod, which represents Israeli gay and lesbian Orthodox Jews. His organization has played a central role in the recent reevaluation of the role of religious homosexuals in the Israeli Relig ...
(b. 1974) (Hebrew: רון יוסף), Orthodox rabbi who helped found the Israeli organization Hod, which represents gay and lesbian
Orthodox Jew Orthodox Judaism is a collective term for the traditionalist branches of contemporary Judaism. Theologically, it is chiefly defined by regarding the Torah, both Written and Oral, as literally revealed by God on Mount Sinai and faithfully tran ...
s; his organization has played a central part in the recent reevaluation of the role of religious homosexuals in the Israeli
Religious Zionist Religious Zionism () is a religious denomination that views Zionism as a fundamental component of Orthodox Judaism. Its adherents are also referred to as ''Dati Leumi'' (), and in Israel, they are most commonly known by the plural form of the fi ...
movement *
Reuben Zellman Reuben Zellman is an American teacher, author, rabbi, and musician. He became the first openly transgender person accepted to the Reform Jewish seminary Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion in 2003. Education Zellman received his B ...
, American teacher, author, and assistant rabbi and music director at Congregation Beth El in
Berkeley, California Berkeley ( ) is a city on the eastern shore of San Francisco Bay in northern Alameda County, California, United States. It is named after the 18th-century Anglo-Irish bishop and philosopher George Berkeley. It borders the cities of Oakland, Cali ...
; first openly transgender person accepted to the Reform Jewish seminary
Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion Hebrew (; ''ʿÎbrit'') is a Northwest Semitic language within the Afroasiatic language family. A regional dialect of the Canaanite languages, it was natively spoken by the Israelites and remained in regular use as a first language until ...
in
Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ; colloquially nicknamed Cincy) is a city in Hamilton County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. Settled in 1788, the city is located on the northern side of the confluence of the Licking River (Kentucky), Licking and Ohio Ri ...
(2003); ordained by the seminary's
Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
campus in 2010


Sports

*
Sue Bird Suzanne Brigit Bird (born October 16, 1980) is an American former professional basketball player who played her entire career with the Seattle Storm of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). Bird was drafted first overall pick by t ...
, American-Israeli basketball player who has won three WNBA championships (
2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and Its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 60 ...
,
2010 The year saw a multitude of natural and environmental disasters such as the 2010 Haiti earthquake, the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, and the 2010 Chile earthquake. The 2009 swine flu pandemic, swine flu pandemic which began the previous year ...
,
2018 Events January * January 1 – Bulgaria takes over the Presidency of the Council of the European Union, after the Estonian presidency. * January 4 – SPLM-IO rebels loyal to Chan Garang Lual start a raid against Juba, capital of ...
), four Olympic gold medals, (
2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and Its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 60 ...
,
2008 2008 was designated as: *International Year of Languages *International Year of Planet Earth *International Year of the Potato *International Year of Sanitation The Great Recession, a worldwide recession which began in 2007, continued throu ...
,
2012 2012 was designated as: *International Year of Cooperatives *International Year of Sustainable Energy for All Events January *January 4 – The Cicada 3301 internet hunt begins. * January 12 – Peaceful protests begin in the R ...
,
2016 2016 was designated as: * International Year of Pulses by the sixty-eighth session of the United Nations General Assembly. * International Year of Global Understanding (IYGU) by the International Council for Science (ICSU), the Internationa ...
), two NCAA Championships (2000 and 2002), and four
FIBA World Cup The FIBA Basketball World Cup is an international basketball competition between the senior men's national teams of the members of the International Basketball Federation (FIBA), the sport's global governing body. It takes place every four ye ...
s (2002, 2010, 2014, and 2018) * Robert Dover, six-time Olympic equestrian * Fredy Hirsch, German Jewish athlete and youth movement leader known for his attempts to save children during the Holocaust *
Gili Mossinson Gili Mossinson (; born 29 September 1978 in Tel Aviv, Israel) is an Israeli basketball player who played for several teams in the Israeli Basketball League including Hapoel Tel Aviv, Maccabi Rishon LeZion and Hapoel Galil Elyon. He came out as b ...
, basketball player *
Tzipora Obziler Tzipora "Tzipi" Obziler (; born 19 April 1973) is an Israeli former professional tennis player. She reached her career-high singles world ranking of No. 75 in on 8 July 2007, and career-high doubles ranking of No. 149 on 10 April 2000. Early a ...
, tennis player *
Renée Richards Renée Richards (formerly Richard Raskind; born August 19, 1934) is an American ophthalmologist and former tennis player who competed on the professional circuit in the 1970s, and became widely known following male-to-female medical affirmati ...
, tennis player *
Jake Heitritter Jake may refer to: Name * Jake (given name), including a list of persons and fictional characters with the name * Katrin Jäke (born c. 1975), German swimmer * Jake (gamer), American ''Overwatch'' player and coach * Jake, a member of the band Enhy ...
, Fantasy Football Player


Business, industry and labor

*
Sam Altman Samuel Harris Altman (born April 22, 1985) is an American technology entrepreneur, investor, and the chief executive officer of OpenAI since 2019 (he was Removal of Sam Altman from OpenAI, briefly dismissed and reinstated in November 2023). He ...
, CEO of
OpenAI OpenAI, Inc. is an American artificial intelligence (AI) organization founded in December 2015 and headquartered in San Francisco, California. It aims to develop "safe and beneficial" artificial general intelligence (AGI), which it defines ...
*
Stuart Appelbaum Stuart Harris Appelbaum (born 1953) is an American trade union leader. Appelbaum has been the president of the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union (RWDSU) since May 1, 1998. He is also president of the Jewish Labor Committee. In February ...
, American trade union leader *
Yotam Ottolenghi Yotam Assaf Ottolenghi (; born 14 December 1968) is an Israeli-born British chef, restaurateur, and food writer. Alongside Sami Tamimi, he is the co-owner of nine delis and restaurants in London and Bicester Village and the author of several be ...
, chef *
Joel Simkhai Joel Simkhai (; ; born c. 1976) is an Israeli-American-French tech entrepreneur. He's the founder and former CEO of Grindr and Blendr. His original goal in starting Grindr was for people with similar interests to find new friends nearby. In 202 ...
,
Grindr Grindr () is a location-based social networking and online dating application for gay, bisexual, queer, and transgender people. It was one of the first geosocial apps for gay men when it launched in March 2009, and has since become the large ...
founder and former CEO *
Randi Weingarten Rhonda "Randi" Weingarten (born December 18, 1957)''Who's Who in America'', 2007. is an American labor leader, attorney, and educator. She has been president of the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) since 2008, and is a member of the AFL-CIO ...
, current president of the
American Federation of Teachers The American Federation of Teachers (AFT) is the second largest teacher's labor union in America (the largest being the National Education Association). The union was founded in Chicago. John Dewey and Margaret Haley were founders. About 60 pe ...


Miscellaneous

*
Felice Schragenheim Felice Rahel Schragenheim (9 March 1922 – between 31 December 1944 and March 1945) was a Jewish resistance fighter during World War II. She is known for her tragic love story with Lilly Wust. She was murdered either on a death march from Gross- ...
, Jewish resistance fighter and Holocaust victim *
Ari Shapiro Ari Michael Shapiro (born September 30, 1978) is an American radio journalist. In September 2015, Shapiro became one of four rotating hosts on National Public Radio's flagship drive-time program ''All Things Considered''. He previously se ...
, American radio journalist


See also

*
Homosexuality and Judaism The subject of homosexuality and Judaism dates back to the Torah. The book of Vayikra (Leviticus) is traditionally regarded as classifying sexual intercourse between males as a (something abhorred or detested) that could be subject to capital p ...
* Keshet Rabbis *
LGBT clergy in Judaism The first openly lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender clergy in Judaism were ordained as rabbis and/or hazzan, cantors in the second half of the 20th century. History 20th century Allen Bennett became the first openly gay rabbi in the United ...
*
Timeline of LGBT Jewish history This is a timeline of LGBT Jewish history, which consists of events at the intersection of Judaism and queer people. Timeline 1st millennium BCE 4th century BCE * c. 486 BCE - Darius the Great adopted the Holiness code of the Book of Levi ...


Footnotes


External links


World Congress of Gay & Lesbian Jews
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lgbt Jews, List Of
LGBT Jews This is a list of Homosexuality and Judaism, LGBT Jews. Each person is both Jewish (by birth or conversion according to Jewish law, or identifies as Jewish via ancestry) and has stated publicly that they are bisexual, gay, lesbian, transgender, a ...
Jews Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...