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Deaf videoconference-by David Fulmer-

20 Inspiring Famous Deaf People

It is not unexpected that some of our most talented historical figures, celebrities, and influencers are deaf or hard of hearing given that there are an estimated 466 million people with hearing loss globally. There are numerous well-known deaf and hard-of-hearing individuals who have founded numerous organizations, paved the way for deaf education, penned books, painted well-known works of art, set world records in sports, appeared in a number of well-known television shows and motion pictures and even started newspapers. Many of these gifted people have achieved amazing things without letting their deafness hold them back, demonstrating that the deaf population is capable of everything they set their minds to. Here is a list of inspiring deaf people.

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Famous Deaf People in Education

1. Alice Cogswell

Alice Cogswell (later Alice Cogswell Bemis)-by Unknown author-

Making history is not something you consider when you are nine years old. At the age of nine, Alice Cogswell created history by initiating the development of American Sign Language and deaf education in the United States. Thomas Hopkins Gallaudet, the man who started deaf education in America, is credited with being motivated by a young deaf child named Alice. Alice Cogswell was born in 1805 and was diagnosed with “spotted fever,” a form of meningitis when she was just 2 years old. Later, she also lost her ability to speak.

2. Laurent Clerc

Laurent Clerc 1869-by Unknown author-

Being the country’s first deaf instructor of the deaf, Laurent Clerc made a significant contribution to the development of American Sign Language. He was among the first of these instructors on the globe and was dubbed “The Father of the Deaf” and “The Apostle of the Deaf in America.”Laurent Clerc was not only a co-founder of the first deaf school in America but also a strong proponent of sign language instruction over spoken instruction, a promoter of deaf people’s rights, and a driving force behind the expansion of deaf education in the country. Additionally, Laurent Clerc was the first American who was deaf to address both Congress and the President of the United States. The fact that 58% of American Sign Language can be credited to Clerc’s teachings is one of the greatest legacies he has left in the annals of sign language.

3. Andrew Foster

In the history of the Deaf, Andrew Foster is a crucial figure. He is referred to as the “Father of the Deaf” of Africa since he established the first school for the deaf there and went on to find 31 more. Foster, who was born in Ensley, Alabama, in 1925 lost his hearing at the age of 11 as a result of spinal meningitis. He attended the Alabama School for the Negro Deaf in Talladega because he was drawn to a career in education. He was the first Black person to receive a degree from Eastern Michigan University and Gallaudet College in Washington, D.C., both in 1954.

From Seattle Pacific Christian College, Foster later obtained a second master’s degree. He was the first African American Deaf person to receive a bachelor’s degree from Gallaudet University. For most of his life, he established schools in Africa for six months of the year and raised funds for those schools for the other six months in the United States. In celebration of his achievements, Gallaudet awarded him an honorary doctor of the humane letter in 1970.

4. Dr. Gerard Buckley

With more than 30 years of experience in higher education, Dr. Gerard Buckley has spent more than 20 years working at NTID in a number of roles. Before spending five years as the director of NTID’s Center for Outreach and an assistant professor on the RIT/NTID Social Work Support Team, Buckley worked as the department’s chair and assistant professor of educational outreach at NTID from 1990 to 1993. He held the post of NTID assistant vice president for college advancement from 2004 until assuming his current position as president of NTID and vice president of RIT on January 1, 2011.

Prior to that, he held the position of NTID associate dean for student services from 1998 to 2003. He formerly held the positions of President of the Lexington School for the Deaf Board of Trustees in New York City and President of the American Deafness and Rehabilitation Association’s Board of Directors. On Senator Robert Dole’s recommendation, he also served on the National Advisory Board of the National Institute on Deafness (retired).

Famous Deaf People in Movies and Television

5. Nyle DiMarco

Nyle DiMarco Citation Presentation (29540852135)-by Maryland GovPics-

Nyle DiMarco gained notoriety after taking home the 2015 America’s Next Top Model title. DiMarco asserted in a Yahoo Life interview that his entire family is deaf. He is the fourth generation of his family to be deaf, joining his two siblings, parents, grandparents, and even great-grandparents. DiMarco is fluent in English and can read lips. He played the lead in the 2013 American Sign Language Films independent film In the Can. DiMarco also triumphed in the 2016 season of Dancing with the Stars. He has made use of his platform to promote accessibility and deaf culture.

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6. Marlee Matlin

The only deaf performer to date to get an Academy Award is Marlee Matlin. Over the course of her nearly five-decade career, she has received praise for a number of roles, notably the lead in 1986’s Children of a Lesser God, for which she won an Academy Award and a Golden Globe. Matlin, who was diagnosed with profound hearing loss at the age of 18 months, has 20% hearing in one ear and is completely deaf in the other. She used to go to a synagogue for the hearing impaired. For her Bat Mitzvah, she learned her portion of the Torah and studied Hebrew phonetically. She began performing in children’s theater at the age of seven with the Chicago Center on Deafness. Matlin is currently a prominent proponent of disability awareness.

7. Linda Bove

Linda Bove is a deaf American actress who made her popularity as Linda the Librarian in the beloved children’s series, Sesame Street. In her job, Linda taught millions of children sign language and helped increase awareness about Deaf culture. Bove holds the record for the longest-running role on American television for a person with a disability after playing the part for more than 30 years. The fact that Bove was born deaf didn’t surprise her deaf parents. They enrolled her in the St. Joseph School for the Deaf in New York when she was three years old.

She continued her studies in library science and developed a passion for theater. Bove met Ed Waterstreet, another deaf performer, at the National Theatre for the Deaf, where they later got married. Both of them have devoted a lot of time to the theater for the hearing impaired. Together with friends, Linda founded the Little Theatre of the Deaf.

8. Millie Bobby Brown

Millie Bobby Brown (29895755373)-by Gage Skidmore-

Millie Bobby Brown, the star of the popular Netflix series Stranger Things, is deaf in one ear. She was born deaf in her right ear due to severe hearing loss in one ear that has worsened over time. Brown never ceases to astound viewers in her role as the dangerous and enigmatic Eleven on Stranger Things. Brown, who is now the youngest person to appear on the list of the 100 most influential people in the world, was included in the Time 100 list in May 2020. She became the organization’s youngest Goodwill Ambassador in November 2018.

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9. CJ Jones

CJ Jones 2014-by Halyna Haiko-

It’s incredible that CJ Jones, an actor, comedian, writer, and director, was one of seven hearing children born to deaf parents. His parents spoke to each other in ASL. Jones developed spinal meningitis when he was seven years old, which caused him to lose his hearing. Jones is best known for his starring performance in the critically acclaimed 2017 movie Baby Driver. He portrays his deaf foster father in the movie alongside Ansel Elgort. In addition to producing multiple one-man performances that have traveled internationally and the children’s television series Once Upon a Sign, Jones launched the International Sign Language Theater Festival.

10. Russell Harvard

American actor Russell Harvard, who was deaf from birth, co-starred with Daniel Day-Lewis in the critically acclaimed There Will Be Blood. Harvard is a third-generation member of a deaf family. His paternal grandmother is deaf, as are both of his parents. Although Harvard uses a hearing aid to hear certain sounds, he considers American Sign Language to be his primary language and describes himself as deaf. Among Harvard’s many noteworthy performances, his portrayal of Billy, the deaf kid of an intelligent, albeit troubled, hearing British family, in Nina Raine’s Tribes (2012) Off-Broadway production, earned him the Theatre World Award for Outstanding Debut Performance.

Famous Deaf Musicians

11. Paul Stanley

Paul Stanley (1992)-by Tilly Antoine-

Paul Stanley wasn’t a probable contender to become a rock star when he was younger. He was born deaf on the right side due to a facial abnormality called microtia, which prevented his right ear from developing normally. How did Stanley rise above this circumstance to become the lead singer of KISS, one of the most enduring and popular bands in history? In one of his interviews, he said that he changed it by incrementally succeeding. In his most recent book, Face the Music: A Life Exposed, published by HarperOne on April 8, Stanley walks readers through each of these small steps, dissecting what initially seems to be an impossibly difficult feat into its constituent components.

12. Evelyn Glennie

By the time she was 12, the Grammy-winning drummer and composer had almost entirely lost her hearing, but her hearing impairment gave her a deeper appreciation for and connection to the music she adores. She is the focus of the documentary Touch the Sound, which investigates this unique and fascinating method of percussion. Glennie has a thriving solo career and has worked with a variety of musicians, from Björk to classical orchestras. She has performed on thousands of concert stages all over the world throughout the course of her career, and she has also released 12 albums.

She has won two Grammy Awards: one for her performance of Bartók’s Sonata for Two Pianos and Percussion and another for her 2002 collaboration with Bela Fleck. In order to advocate for an investment of 332 million pounds in music education and musical resources in Britain, she founded the Music Education Consortium with fellow artists Julian Lloyd Weber and Sir James Galway. She was inspired by music and the importance of musical literacy.

13. Sean Forbes

Sean Forbes Rapping-by Jeffrey Sauger-

Sean Forbes disapproves of the idea that deafness is a quiet epidemic. The 35-year-old American hip-hop artist continues to push boundaries and shatter preconceptions with his beats, inspiring a generation of hearing, hard-of-hearing, and Deaf people for years. Sean, who was born hearing, believes that a spinal meningitis infection caused him to go deaf when he was a few months old. Sean had the best possibilities and musical experiences thanks to his passions and the support of his family, but he didn’t meet other music lovers until he enrolled at the National Technical Institute for the Deaf in New York. He established DPAN.TV, an online platform for sign language media that houses a variety of sign language content, is motivated to bring about change. 

14. Johnnie Ray

JohnnieRayNoBusinesstraile-by Trailer screenshot-

John Ray was born partially deaf. At the age of fifteen, he began performing on radio stations. He was discovered in 1951 while performing in nightclubs, and he quickly gained renown. In 1952, his debut record was made public. Several songs from that album reached the top and helped to maintain his popularity growth. Giving up was not an option, as seen by the fact that he pursued his love and worked extra hard to stay in the current. He never allowed his hearing limitations to get in the way of pushing himself and going after his objectives. In 1954, he appeared in one and only motion feature, There’s No Business Like Show Business.

15. Darius McCall

Darius McCall, often known as Prinz-D, is a Gallaudet University alum who refers to himself as “The First Deaf Rapper.” Given the severity of his hearing loss, he finds that interacting with others, from sound engineers to audience members, can be challenging. Darius McCall, who was nominated for a Best Lead Actor award for his performance as Franco Wicks in Superior Donuts, has played both modern and traditional parts such as Thomas in The Shipment, Wil Â鶹APPh in Flyin’ West, and Old King Solomon (The Bloody Banquet). Darius rides horses and practices shooting at his neighborhood range. He is currently a fluent American Sign Language speaker and an Advanced Beginner in Spanish (ASL).

Famous Deaf People In Organizations

16. Juliette Gordon Low

Juliette Gordon Low 1923-by Underwood and Underwood, New York-

In 1912, Juliette Gordon Low (1860–1927), popularly known as “Daisy,” created the Girl Scouts of the USA. As Girl Scouts has done since she made the goal of a movement where all girls may unite and enjoy their individual abilities and passions a reality. Daisy also strongly believed that everything Girl Scouts do should help girls reach their full potential and gain confidence. This is a powerful legacy that still resonates with all Girl Scouts, past and present, even though she might not have recognized the Digital Photography or Cybersecurity badges that Girl Scouts earn today. The very first Girl Scout troop in 1912 and modern-day Girl Scouts still have a lot in common. They engage with their communities, venture outside, set goals for themselves, and look for ways to improve the world.

17. Rocky Stone

Howard “Rocky” Stone, a hard-of-hearing rights activist and former CIA operative who, early in his career, helped spark the 1953 coup that put the shah of Iran back on the throne. In 1944, Mr. Stone experienced severe hearing loss while undergoing Army basic training. He established Self Help for Hard of Hearing People (SHHH) more than fifty years later, and the organization quickly gained notoriety around the world. He overcame a severe hearing loss to work for the Central Intelligence Agency for 25 years. Throughout his time at the CIA, he interacted with people by paying close attention to their body language and facial expressions as well as a small amount of lip reading. He claimed that occasionally, his penetrating gaze terrified people into confessing the truth.

Famous Deaf Athletes

18. Dummy Hoy

Dummy-hoy-1903-new-york-by George Grantham Bain-

As the first deaf player in major league baseball, Dummy Hoy made history. Additionally, he wasn’t simply well-known for being deaf; he was also an exceptionally gifted and accomplished baseball player. He couldn’t hear because of childhood sickness. But he wasn’t going to let this setback prevent him from realizing his dream. Although he was also known as Dummy, Billy Hoy, and Bill Hoy, Hoy’s real name is William Ellsworth Hoy. Hoy frequently corrected people and really called himself “Dummy” instead of William. That is how he came to get that moniker.

19. LeRoy Colombo

When Leroy Colombo was seven years old, he contracted spinal meningitis and went blind. He became a wonderfully skilled lifeguard as he matured. Leroy’s deafness may have precluded him from being a lifeguard in some situations, but also seemed to enhance his abilities. He was included in The Guinness Book of World Records for a long time due to the record number of lives he rescued. It was listed as 907 by the Galveston Chamber of Commerce, though there were probably more.

20. Gertrude Ederle

Gertrude Ederle-by Bain News Service, publisher-

On August 6, 1926, American swimmer Gertrude Ederle made history by being the first woman to swim across the English Channel. She beat the male record by 1 hour, 59 minutes, finishing the journey in under 14 hours, 31 minutes. Gertrude Caroline Ederle was born on October 23, 1905, in New York City. Ederle started competing in swimming at a young age. By 1922, she had gained enough expertise to set seven records in a single session at a meet in Brighton Beach, New York. She earned two individual bronze medals and a gold as a part of the freestyle relay team at the 1924 Olympics. She set a total of 29 separate national and global amateur records before going pro in 1925.