Women's History Month 2025: Women in the Disability Community from History
[Image Description: The image has a light pink cloudy background with my First Former Buddy Club President logo in the bottom left corner. "Women's History Month" is in center-aligned violet text with "Women in the Disability Community from History" in left-aligned dark purple text below it. The pink female sign is center-aligned below all of this text.]
DISCLAIMER: All of the below photos except photo 1 are from Google Images and I do not take ownership for any of them except photo 1.
1. Kayla Kosmalski
[Image Description: Kayla Kosmalski and I (left to right) are smiling and standing next to each other on a sidewalk at the 2024 CHOP Philadelphia Buddy Walk outside of the Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania]
Kayla Kosmalski is best known for being the Delaware teen who broke barriers by competing as the first contestant with Down Syndrome in the Miss American Teen USA pageant in 2024. Kayla won the title of Miss Delaware. Kayla has been a disability advocate since an early age. In 2015, Kayla was the first model with Down Syndrome for Gap Kids and modeled in the brand's fashion show that same year. When Kayla was only 8 years old, she and her parents, Amy and Rick Kosmalski, contributed to getting the Achieving a Better Life Experience (ABLE) Act passed. The Kosmalskis spent 5 years prior lobbying Congress to pass this law. Kayla is currently a college student at Wilmington University. In October 2024, I actually had the opportunity to meet Kayla, Amy, and Rick at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) Buddy Walk.
2. Harriet Tubman
Harriet Tubman (born as Araminta "Minty" Ross) was a very notable African American abolitionist who is known for escaping slavery and helping other slaves escape during the American Civil War. Harriet was born into slavery in Maryland with her exact birth year nor birthplace unknown just like many other former Black slaves in the United States. This is because the Black slaves were not treated as citizens nor human during the American Civil War. Harriet suffered a Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) at a young age when an angry plantation overseer threw a heavy metal weight intended to hit another slave who was trying to escape but hit her forehead instead. Harriet's TBI caused her to experience dizziness, pain, headaches, and spells of hypersomnia, which makes many historians theorize that she had narcolepsy. In 1849, after one of her slave owners named Edward Brodess died, his wife named Eliza continued and put in place his plan to sell Harriet. So, Harriet escaped slavery alone using the Underground Railroad sometime between October or November in 1849. In 1850 to 1860, Harriet repetitively returned to Maryland and other southern states to help 70 slaves including her family members and others escape slavery in about 13 expeditions. Harriet also provided specific escape instructions to 50-60 slaves. After Harriet's freedom from slavery, she worked many odd jobs in Philadelphia and Cape May, New Jersey, eventually as a cook, nurse, armed scout and spy for the Union Army with little pay. She also worked with many abolitionists to fight for an end to slavery and as an activist in the movement for women's suffrage.
3. Patricia Polacco
Patricia Polacco (she/her/hers) is a very notable American children's book author and illustrator who was born in Lansing, Michigan. She spent the beginning of her childhood living on a farm followed by moving to California. Patricia Polacco began to struggle with her ability to read when she was in Kindergarten; eventually, this led to Patricia Polacco being diagnosed with dyslexia when she was fourteen years old. She faced prolonged bullying from her peers due to her learning disability and overcame her struggles, especially with the help of one of her teachers that she later wrote a memoir book about called Thank You, Mr. Falker.
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4. Frida Kahlo
When Frida Kahlo was six years old, she was told that she had an illness called polio, which made her right leg grow shorter and thinner than her left leg. Frida's disabling illness caused her to be isolated from her peers for months, start school later than her peers, and she was bullied. Frida was a student who performed well academically who planned to attend medical school until she got into a bus accident when she and her boyfriend named Alejandro Gomez Arias were on their way home from school when she was 18 years old. Several passengers were killed in this accident and Alejandro suffered minor injuries while Frida was injured by an iron handrail that went through her pelvis and suffered many other severe injuries. Frida's injuries from the bus accident caused her to have chronic pain and fatigue, be confined to lying in bed for many months to recover and struggling with medical health concerns for the rest of her life. Frida's pain motivated her to paint about her pain and things that she loved to channel her healing. Frida's right leg was amputated at the knee due to gangrene in 1953, which followed by her struggling with severe anxiety and depression and an escalated dependence on painkillers. When her husband named Diego Rivera cheated on her, she attempted suicide. Frida had a high fever and was in extreme pain on the night July 12, 1954, which was followed by her nurse finding her deceased at 6:00am the next morning. While the official cause of death is said to be pulmonary embolism, no autopsy was performed, and biographer Hayden Herrera has argued that Frida died by suicide. Frida grew up in a house called Casa Azul in Mexico City that is now a museum.
5. Demi Lovato
[Image Description: a picture of Demi Lovato]
Demi Lovato is a singer, songwriter, and actress. Demi appeared on the children's television series, Barney & Friends, as a child for her first acting role. In later years, Demi starred on Disney Channel in As the Bell Rings, Camp Rock, Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam, Princess Protection Program, and in her own TV show called Sonny with a Chance. Demi struggled with bulimia nervosa and self-harm along with being bullied as a child, which led to her being homeschooled. In 2010, when Demi was 18 years old, she withdrew from the Jonas Brothers live-in-concert tour to enter a rehabilitation treatment facility for mental and physical health concerns where she was diagnosed with bipolar disorder and drug/alcohol addiction. After being 5 years sober, Demi relapsed and overdosed in 2018. The overdose caused Demi to have three strokes, a heart attack, brain damage, a vision impairment, and a hearing impairment. In 2021, Demi came out as nonbinary and stated in her documentary series, Dancing with the Devil, that she believes that she was misdiagnosed with bipolar disorder and self-diagnoses as having Attention Deficit-Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) instead. Demi is known for her activist work for mental health, disability rights, drug/alcohol addiction recovery, eating disorders, LGBTQ+ rights, women's rights, and bullying prevention.
6. Helen Keller and Anne Sullivan
[Image Description: a black and white portrait of Helen Keller]
[Image Description: a portrait of Anne Sullivan]
Helen Keller became deaf-blind and mute when she was severely ill with what was believed to be rubella or scarlet fever at nineteen months old. Helen was very frustrated and angry about her inability to communicate and frequently expressed herself through tantrums. Mr. and Mrs. Keller desperately contacted the Perkins School for the Blind for support. The Perkins School for the Blind sent one of their former students named Anne Sullivan to the Keller home as a tutor for Helen. Anne was also partially blind due to having trachoma when she was 5 years old and wore glasses with dark lenses to protect her eyes from bright lights. The Keller family questioned whether Anne would be able to support Helen since they were both blind. Anne discovered that Helen's tantrums were actually the result of being spoiled as part of her upbringing instead of a manifestation of her disabilities. Anne consistently persevered to teach Helen about obedience, independence, and communication. Anne consistently taught Helen how to communicate by making tactile connections between her hand and objects in her world and teaching her how to use Sign Language. After a difficult road towards mastering the meaning of words to communicate through Sign Language, Helen made a breakthrough. Eventually, Helen attended Radcliffe College in 1900 and received a Bachelor of Arts Degree in 1904. Helen was the first blind student to attend and graduate college. Helen also worked for the American Foundation for the Blind for over 40 years.
7. Laura Dewey Bridgman
[Image Description: a portrait of Laura Dewey Bridgman]
Laura Dewey Bridgman was a friend of Anne Sullivan. Laura became deaf-blind and lost her sense of smell and taste after contracting scarlet fever when she was two years old. Laura had a mentally disabled friend named Asa Tenney who had some type of expressive language disorder. Asa taught Laura how to express herself using Plains Indian Sign Language (PISL) that he learned from Native Americans. In 1837, Dr. Reuben Mussey who was professor and head of anatomy and surgery in Dartmouth College's medical department visited the Bridgman home after James Barrett who was a student at Dartmouth mentioned her to him. Dr. Mussey observed that Laura was affectionate, intelligent, and very capable of doing household tasks, such as sewing and setting the table. Laura started attending the Perkins School for the Blind two months before her eighth birthday after Dr. Mussey shared his observations with the director named Samuel Gridley Howe. Laura became the first deaf-blind American child to gain a successful education in the English language forty-five years before Helen Keller achieved the same thing. Laura learned how to read and communicate using Braille, the manual alphabet, how to read a map with raised letters and independently write her own name legibly, and arithmetic during her time as a student at the Perkins School for the Blind. Samuel Gridley Howe and a woman named Miss Lydia Hall Drew were Laura's instructors. Laura gained world fame when Charles Dickens wrote about her success in his travel literature, American Notes for General Circulation, after visiting the Perkins School for the Blind to meet her during his 1842 American tour. After Charles Dickens revealed his accounts, thousands of people visited Laura at the Perkins School for the Blind. Laura never became a full-time teacher at the Perkins School for the Blind; however, she assisted the young blind girls in their sewing classes.
8. Temple Grandin
Temple Grandin is a notable female autistic disability advocate. Originally, Temple was diagnosed as brain damaged when she was two years old because most doctors had never heard of autism back then. The doctors also told Temple's mother to institutionalize her, but she refused to do so because she knew that that was unnecessary and that she could help Temple to improve in more productive ways instead. Today, Temple has a Ph.D. in Animal Sciences from the University of Illinois and has designed one-third of all of the livestock handling facilities in the United States and multiple other countries. Temple Grandin is also an associate professor of Animal Sciences at Colorado State University and a motivational speaker at many autism advocacy conferences and resides in Fort Collins, Colorado. In addition, Temple has a biographical drama film about her life and written a total of seven books including The Way I See It: A Personal Look at Autism & Asperger's and Thinking in Pictures and Other Reports from My Life with Autism.
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9. Selma Blair
Selma Blair is an American actress best known for her role as Vivian Kensington in Legally Blonde and many other television and film productions. In 2018, Selma was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis (MS) and diagnosed with Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome (EDS) in 2024. In 2023 interview with British Vogue, Selma opened up about her symptoms starting to appear in her childhood and that her MS being undiagnosed for a prolonged period caused her to have brain damage. Selma developed vision loss in her right eye and mobility loss in her left leg and bladder when she was seven years old. When Selma tried to self-advocate for help, her mother labeled her as an attention-seeker. As her chronic health condition worsened, she was heavily medicated, developed an alcohol addiction, and attempted suicide. Selma had a stem cell transplant in 2019 to treat her MS. Today, Selma raises awareness for the disability community and other causes through charity work and philanthropy. Selma's charity work and philanthropy include the National Multiple Sclerosis Society, Staying Alive Foundation, Marc Jacobs' Skin Cancer Awareness Campaign, H&M's Fashion Against AIDS 2011 Campaign, Children's Action Network, AmFAR AIDS Research 2011, Lange Foundation, Bulgari-Save the Children 2012 Ad Campaign, and No Kid Hungry. Selma has also been chief creative officer of Guide Beauty, a company that creates cosmetic products for people with mobility challenges, since 2022. In addition, Selma collaborated with award winning fashion designer named Isaac Mizrahi to be QVC's Brand Ambassador for Accessibility to create QVC's first ever universal and accessible fashion collection.
10. Brittany Sinitch
Brittany Sinitch is a survivor of the Marjorie Stoneman Douglas High School shooting that occurred on February 14, 2018. Brittany survived this tragedy during his first year of teaching and she was a high school English teacher. Brittany was diagnosed with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) 6 days after the shooting. For many years, Brittany was experiencing symptoms of unknown autoimmune disease connected to her PTSD. In 2023, Brittany was finally diagnosed with Hashimoto's Disease. In 2019, Brittany founded The Unbreakable Organization to support young people's mental health and healing journeys by providing tools, resources, and educational programs. Brittany gave her nonprofit organization its name because she said that she felt unbreakable during the lockdown with her students. Brittany also got married in 2022 and had a baby girl named Lola in 2024.
11. Allegra Ford
Allegra Ford (left) is the great granddaughter of Henry Ford who is the founder of Ford Motor Company. Allegra was diagnosed with severe unspecified learning disabilities when she was 3 years old. Eventually, Allegra went to and graduated college and married Joshua Thomas. The National Center for Learning Disabilities (NCLD) has a scholarship in Allegra's name called the Allegra Ford Thomas Scholarship. The $5,000 scholarship is awarded to a graduating high school senior with a documented learning disability who will enroll in a 2-year community college, vocational or technical training program, or a specialized program for students in the disability community in the fall. In 2003, Allegra's mother named Anne Ford wrote and released a book about Allegra's disability journey called Laughing Allegra: The Inspiring Story of a Mother's Struggle and Triumph Raising a Daughter with Learning Disabilities.
12. Amanda Gorman
Amanda Gorman is an American poet with a speech impediment and Auditory Processing Disorder (APD). Amanda is known for reciting her poem titled The Hill We Climb at Joe Biden's 2021 presidential inauguration. In 2017, Amanda became the first National Youth Poet Laureate. Amanda is also an activist for disability rights, racial equality, feminism, anti-marginalization, and environmentalism.
13. Rosa Marcellino
Rosa Marcellino has Down Syndrome and when she was a child, she and her family did not like that her disability was labeled as "mentally retarded." When Rosa was nine years old, she and her family advocated for legislative and policy levels to change "mental retardation" to "intellectual disability." In 2010, federal legislation passed Rosa's Law, P-L 111-256, that made this terminology name change official. This law was signed Barack Obama was the President of the United States at the time. The law was named after Rosa Marcellino and she and her family persevered in getting this law passed, which first occurred in Maryland, and then, in United States Congress. This law requires court documents, medical reports, and official school records for cases involving this disability category to contain "intellectual disability" instead of "mental retardation."
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14. Greta Thunberg
Greta Thunberg is a notable Swedish autistic environmental and disability activist. Greta is most known for challenging world leaders to reduce the effects of human caused climate change. Greta initially learned about climate change when she was eight years old and was frustrated about the little effort occurring to handle this cause. The issue made Greta so depressed that she stopped talking and eating when she was eleven years old, which eventually led to her losing twenty-two pounds in two months. Greta was soon diagnosed with Asperger's Syndrome, Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD), and selective mutism. Greta's activist work started when she persuaded her parents to use lifestyle choices that reduced their family's carbon footprint. Greta struggled with depression for almost four years before she started her School Strike for Climate campaign. In August 2018, when Greta was fifteen years old, she protested outside of the Swedish parliament where she demanded more action to handle climate change by holding up a Skolstrejk för Klimatet (School Strike for Climate) sign and giving out informational flyers. Greta's powerful speaking and activism impacted her rise to global fame. Greta says that her disabilities "have limited [her] before" and now instead calls her Asperger's Syndrome her "super power."
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15. Emily Dickinson
Emily Dickinson was a notable American classical poet from the 1800s. Emily was born into a well-known family with close connections to their community in Amherst, Massachusetts. Emily attended school at the Amherst Academy for seven years, and then, attended the Mount Holyoke Female Seminary for a short-lived period followed by returning to her family's home. Even though Emily was a gifted writer, her only publications from when she was alive include one letter and 10 out of her almost 1,800 poems. Even though Emily's acquaintances probably knew about her writing, her work did not become public until her youngest sister named Lavinia discovered her collection of poems after Emily's death. Many historians theorize that Emily was autistic due to her rigid habits, such as only wearing white, preference for being alone, communication difficulties, and gifted writing skills that could have possibly been savant skills. Emily's poetry was also usually about atypical topics and exhibited a deeply observant attention to detail, which are other possible signs of autism. There are also theories that Emily had agoraphobia or an anxiety disorder because she never left her family's property after the late 1860s and lived most of her life in social isolation. In addition, there are theories that Emily may have had epilepsy since her doctor diagnosed her with nervous prostration and her prescribed medication was also used for people in the epilepsy community at the time.
16. Wilma Rudolph
Wilma Rudolph was a notable African American sprinter who had infantile paralysis from polio during her childhood. Wilma was born prematurely at 4.5 pounds on June 23, 1940, in Saint Bethlehem, Tennessee. Wilma had multiple illnesses during her early childhood including pneumonia and scarlet fever. She was five years old when she contracted the poliovirus, which led to her infantile paralysis. Although Wilma recovered from polio, she developed loss of strength in her left leg and foot leaving her physically disabled. Wilma wore a leg brace until she was twelve years old. There was little medical care available to African American residents in Wilma's hometown. So, Wilma's parents found treatment for her at the historically black Meharry Medical College (now called Nashville General Hospital at Meharry). Wilma attended weekly treatments in Nashville and received at-home massage treatments for her disability four times a day from her family members and wore an orthopedic shoe for support of her foot for an extra two years. Eventually, after all of these treatments, Wilma was able to walk without a leg brace or orthopedic shoe by 12 years old. Wilma started playing basketball in eighth grade and was first introduced to organized sports in high school. Wilma continued to play basketball in high school and competed in track. When Wilma was in tenth grade, she scored 803 points, which set a new record for high school girls' basketball. Wilma gained many successes in the 1956 and 1960 Olympic Games and became a world-record-holding Olympic champion and international sports figure in track and field. When Wilma competed in the 200-meter dash at the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne, Australia, she won a bronze medal in the 4 x 100-meter relay. When Wilma competed in the 100- and 200- meter individual events and the 4 x 100-meter relay at the 1960 Summer Olympics in Rome, Italy, she won three gold medals. This was when Wilma became the first American woman to win three gold medals in track and field during a single Olympic Games and was declared as the fastest running woman in the world in the 1960s.
17. Dr. Jennifer Arnold-Klein
Dr. Jennifer Arnold-Klein is notable for her role on the former notable reality show called The Little Couple. Jennifer and her husband named Bill Klein have skeletal dysplasia, which is a type of dwarfism also known as little person. Jennifer completed her pediatric residency and Masters of Medical Education at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. Jennifer is a neonatologist at the Texas Children's Hospital. Jennifer and Bill have two adopted children who are little people named Zoey who is from Delhi, India and Will who is from Hohhot, China. In 2013, Jennifer was diagnosed with a rare form of stage 4 cancer called choriocarcinoma and allowed the cameras to document her cancer journey. Jennifer has been in remission since 2014.
18. Simone Biles
Simone Biles is an African American gymnast and advocate for mental health, children in foster care, sexual assault survivors who has won the most Olympic and world medals in United States history. Simone has won 11 Olympic medals (7 gold) and 30 world championship medals (23 gold). Simone withdrew from the 2020 Summer Olympic Games due to mental health concerns. Simone also withdrew again from the finals of the individual all-around competition during the 2021 Summer Olympic Games due to mental health concerns while still open to potentially participating in the balance beam final on the last day of the event finals where she later won the bronze medal. Simone called her bronze medal the most meaningful medal because it symbolized her concentration on mental health and perseverance. Simone was criticized by several commentators for withdrawing twice by being accused of being a "quitter" or selfishly depriving another athlete of the chance to compete. She was also slandered with controversial comments by the media and accused of being "a drug cheat" due to her usage of ADHD medication despite it being a prescription as a therapeutic use exemption for her ADHD diagnosis; however, several gymnasts defended Simone, praised her for prioritizing her well-being, and shared their own stories with struggles with "the twisties", feeling affected by the pressure of the Olympics, and mental health. Simone later revealed that part of her mental health concerns was a trauma response as part of her Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) as a sexual assault survivor. Simone returned to compete in all four events at the 2023 U.S. Classic where she received an all-around score of 59.100 and placed first on balance beam and floor exercise. Simone also earned the qualification score to advance to the 2023 U.S. National Championships where she won eighth national all-around title, first on balance beam and floor exercise again, and third on uneven bars.
19. Phoebe Ray-Taylor
Phoebe Ray-Taylor is best known for her role in the 2024 Disney film called Out of My Mind based on the 2010 novel of the same name. Phoebe plays a mostly nonverbal sixth grade girl named Melody Brooks who has cerebral palsy (CP) and photographic memory. Phoebe uses an electric wheelchair and eventually, a Medi-Talker, which allows her to speak with an electronic voice played by the voice of Jennifer Aniston. In the film, Melody's parents strongly advocate for her right to education and inclusive opportunities and demand action when she is mistreated. Phoebe has CP and uses a wheelchair and verbal communication in real life. Phoebe is a strong advocate for disability rights and the frustrations about low expectations that people have of people in the disability community due to underestimation as they continue to succeed and prove doubters wrong.
20. Avril Lavigne
Avril Lavigne is a Canadian singer and songwriter who encouraged female-driven, punk-influenced pop music in the early 2000s. Avril has released seven albums since she was fifteen years old. As a child, Avril was labeled as "a wild girl" and frequently kicked out of classes for misbehaving and disruptions. In 2010, Avril founded The Avril Lavigne Foundation, which supports individuals with serious illnesses and disabilities through programs and grants to provide hope and transform lives. Avril's prior work with Make-A-Wish Foundation was her inspiration for founding The Avril Lavigne Foundation because she wanted to do more. The Avril Lavigne Foundation has partnerships with Easter Seals, Make-A-Wish Foundation, and Special Olympics. The Avril Lavigne Foundation's beneficiaries are also Able Youth, Center for Courageous Kids (CCK), Fender Play Foundation, Lyme Light Foundation, Lyme Treatment Foundation, Project Hope, Erase MS, and United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund (UNICEF). In 2014, Avril was diagnosed with Lyme Disease, which had her bedridden for two years and resulted in her taking a break from working. In 2015, Avril wrote a song called Fly inspired by her disability advocate work. Avril partnered with the Special Olympics to create a music video to go with the song in celebration of the 2015 Special Olympics World Games Los Angeles. In addition, in 2019, Avril wrote a song called Head Above Water to channel how she was feeling and dealing with her chronic illness.
21. Millie Bobby Brown
Millie Bobby Brown is a British actress known for her roles in Once Upon a Time in Wonderland, Stranger Things, and Damsel. Millie is known for many other television and film roles. Millie is deaf in her left ear. Millie was born with partial hearing loss in one ear, which slowly developed into deafness after years of tubes. Millie has opened up that her deafness causes her to not always fully hear herself and not always hear the director yell "cut" when she is on set. Millie continues to persevere through her passionate acting career despite her disability.
22. Jennifer Aniston
[Image Description: a picture of Jennifer Aniston]
Jennifer Aniston is an American actress best known for her role as Rachel Green in the television sitcom called Friends and Jenny Grogan in Marley & Me as well as many other roles. Jennifer struggled with undiagnosed dyslexia all throughout her childhood and did not receive a diagnosis until her early twenties during an eye exam. In 2014, Jennifer opened up that her undiagnosed dyslexia had affected her education and self-esteem. Jennifer made her believe that she "wasn't smart" and "couldn't retain anything." Jennifer says that after receiving a diagnosis, her outlook toward life changed and was relieved to have explanations for her childhood hardships. Jennifer's struggles in school motivated her to develop an innate humor that she channeled through friendships and acting.
23. Selena Gomez
Selena Gomez is a notable American actress, singer, and producer. Selena appeared on the children's television series, Barney & Friends, as a child for her first acting role. In later years, Selena starred on Disney Channel in Suite Life of Zack & Cody, Hannah Montana, Princess Protection Program, and in her own TV show called Wizards of Waverly Place. Selena has also played several other television and film roles and currently stars in the Hulu series called Only Murders in the Building. After performing in North America and Europe for her Stars Dance Tour in 2013, Selena cancelled the Australian and Asian legs of the tour set for December claiming to be taking a hiatus to spend time with family. In January 2014, news reports revealed that Selena had spent two weeks at Dawn at the Meadows, which is a treatment center that supports young people with addiction and trauma, which her representative confirmed. In 2015, Selena opened up about being diagnosed with lupus and that she went to entered rehab to receive chemotherapy. In 2017, Selena opened up on Instagram that she withdrew from public events during the past few months because she had received a kidney transplant from actress and friend named Francia Raisa. In 2020, Selena opened up about being diagnosed with bipolar disorder. Selena is known for her advocacy work for mental health and gender, racial, and LGBTQ+ equality and being a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador since 2009.
24. Whoopi Goldberg
Whoopi Goldberg is an African American actress, comedian, author, and television personality on The View. Whoopi is known for her advocacy work for human rights, African American culture, anti-racism, anti-terrorism, disability rights, children, and LGBTQ+ rights. Whoopi struggled with learning and labeled as "dumb" and "lazy" during her childhood and became a high school dropout when she was seventeen years old. Whoopi's low self-esteem caused her to develop a drug addiction and was not diagnosed with dyslexia until her adulthood. Whoopi's mother told her that she was not dumb or lazy and encouraged her growth and determination, which led to her sober recovery and success. Whoopi has said that her dyslexia has affected her by making her more thoughtful and slower in how she does things while thinking differently has also contributed to her successes. Whoopi is known for encouraging to listening to audio books when it comes to reading books and enjoying being read to. On September 25, 1978, Whoopi witnessed the Pacific Southwest Airlines Flight 182 midair collision in San Diego, Southern California. This caused Whoopi to develop a fear of flying and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).
25. Oprah Winfrey
Oprah Winfrey is a notable African American talk show host, television producer, author, and media proprietor. Oprah is most notable for her former talk show called The Oprah Winfrey Show, which aired from 1986-2011 and currently hosting the Oprah Winfrey Network (OWN). Oprah was born into poverty in rural Mississippi to a single teenage mother followed by being later raised in inner-city Milwaukee. Oprah has opened up about having Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) from being assaulted during her childhood and being pregnant at fourteen years old. Her son was born prematurely and died during infancy. Oprah was hired for a job in radio while still in high school and was a co-anchor for the local evening news by nineteen years old. Oprah's powerful unscripted emotional delivery led to her promotion to daytime talk show arena and launching her production company. Oprah has also written several books with What Happened to You?: Conversations on Trauma, Resilience, and Healing co-authored by Bruce Perry being one of her most notable books.
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