Disability History Month Wall of Fame
Create successful ePaper yourself
Turn your PDF publications into a flip-book with our unique Google optimized e-Paper software.
Swansea University Students’ Union<br />
<strong>Disability</strong><br />
<strong>History</strong><br />
<strong>Month</strong><br />
<strong>Wall</strong> <strong>of</strong> <strong>Fame</strong>
Chloe Morgan<br />
Nominated by Katie Phillips (Welsh Affairs Officer)<br />
Chloe is the previous SUSU <strong>Disability</strong> Officer. She continues<br />
to raise awareness <strong>of</strong> disabilities and accessibility issues in<br />
our ableist world. Chloe has played a key supporting role in<br />
this year’s <strong>Disability</strong> <strong>History</strong> <strong>Month</strong> campaign by planning<br />
events and gathering/creating resources.
Miles Singleton<br />
Nominated by Katie Phillips (Welsh Affairs Officer)<br />
Miles is this year’s SUSU <strong>Disability</strong> Officer. He strives to<br />
make the university more accessible and raise awareness <strong>of</strong><br />
hidden disabilities. He has helped shape the goals and<br />
structure <strong>of</strong> <strong>Disability</strong> <strong>History</strong> <strong>Month</strong> to ensure we are as<br />
inclusive as possible in our campaign.
Sophie Butler<br />
Nominated by Katie Phillips (Welsh Affairs Officer)<br />
Sophie is an online fitness coach, social media influencer<br />
and disability advocate who focuses on uplifting women<br />
and being unapologetically disabled. She believes in<br />
empowerment through education and has a Sunday School<br />
on her Instagram @SophJButler where she raises<br />
awareness around topics such as internalised ableism,<br />
spinal cord injury and microaggressions.
Henry Fraser<br />
Nominated by Katie Phillips (Welsh Affairs Officer)<br />
Henry was 17 years old when he became paralysed from the<br />
shoulders down. He has conquered unimaginable difficulty to<br />
embrace life in his new way <strong>of</strong> living. He has become an<br />
accomplished mouth-painter, author and motivational speaker.<br />
He now sells his artwork and was commissioned by The Times to<br />
produce a piece for the front cover <strong>of</strong> their first rugby World Cup<br />
supplement. He was named as the Powerlist's 7th most<br />
influential person living with a disability in Britain 2017.
Lewis Vaughan Jones<br />
Nominated by Maddie Gilbert (Commuter Students Officer)<br />
Lewis is a BBC presenter who recently made the rounds on social<br />
media for changing his hearing aid battery during the live News. He<br />
had sudden hearing loss (as well as childhood issues with grommets<br />
and scarred eardrums) and now wears a bone anchored hearing aid.<br />
He’s been really open about his experience <strong>of</strong> hearing loss and the<br />
aids he’s using which I think is amazing for raising awareness.<br />
If anyone is interested in finding out a bit more about his story, he<br />
did a piece last year on “Hear Me Out!”:<br />
https://hearmeoutcc.com/episode-12-lewis-vaughan-jones/
Lauren ‘Lolo’ Spencer<br />
Nominated by Theresa Ogbekhiulu (Education Officer)<br />
Lolo is an actress, model and influencer that has<br />
amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. She is an Indie Spirit Award<br />
Nominee for her role in the film Give Me Liberty. Her<br />
performance was listed as one <strong>of</strong> the best by the Sundance<br />
Film Festival in 2019. She’s been interviewed by many<br />
media outlets including, CNN, Buzzfeed and The Hollywood<br />
Reporter. Lolo has a Youtube channel called, Sitting Pretty,<br />
where she talks about living as a disabled person.
Haben Girma<br />
Nominated by Theresa Ogbekhiulu (Education Officer)<br />
Haben Girma is an American disability rights advocate and<br />
the first deafblind graduate <strong>of</strong> Harvard Law School. She<br />
was named a White House Champion <strong>of</strong> Change by<br />
President Barack Obama and got a spot on the Forbes 30<br />
Under 30 list. Haben believes disability is an opportunity for<br />
innovation. She travels the world teaching the benefits <strong>of</strong><br />
choosing inclusion.talks about living as a disabled person.
Marsha Elle<br />
Nominated by Katie Phillips (Welsh Affairs Officer)<br />
Marsha is an amputee model who is trying to combat<br />
ableism within the fashion industry. She aims to give hope<br />
to the community by having disabled representation within<br />
the industry while dismantling ableists oppressive thinking.<br />
In addition to this she is a talented singer-songwriter and<br />
motivational speaker.
Stephanie Thomas<br />
Nominated by Theresa Ogbekhiulu (Education Officer)<br />
Stephanie is an amputee and the founder <strong>of</strong> Cur8able, a<br />
fashion styling service for people with disabilities. Her<br />
<strong>Disability</strong> Fashion Styling System empowers people with<br />
disabilities to dress with dignity and self-reliance. She is<br />
also the author <strong>of</strong> Fitting in: The Social Implications <strong>of</strong><br />
Fashion and Dressing with Disabilities.<br />
If anyone is interested in finding out a bit more about his story, he did a piece last year on<br />
“Hear Me Out!”: https://hearmeoutcc.com/episode-12-lewis-vaughan-jones/
Bernadette Hagans<br />
Nominated by Katie Phillips (Welsh Affairs Officer)<br />
Bernadette is a cancer survivor and amputee model. She had to re-learn to<br />
walk on a prosthesis and was later signed with the Zebedee Management<br />
modelling agency, working with models with disabilities. Her story got the<br />
attention <strong>of</strong> fashion brand Kurt Geiger who recently featured Bernadette as<br />
a campaign ambassador. On the topic <strong>of</strong> her prosthetic she said "People<br />
kept telling me to try to hide it and people were expecting me to get it<br />
skin-coloured, but in my head I was like, if I'm going to have a robot leg, I<br />
want it to look like a robot leg", "I'm trying to show that my leg is an<br />
accessory - it's not something to be ashamed <strong>of</strong> and so I'm just trying to<br />
show that and show that you can still live a happy life."
Keah Brown<br />
Nominated by Theresa Ogbekhiulu (Education Officer)<br />
Keah is a disability rights activist, author, and journalist<br />
with cerebral palsy. She is the creator <strong>of</strong> the hashtag<br />
#DisabledAndCute, which first went viral in February 201.<br />
Her work has appeared in Teen Vogue, ESPNW, Harper’s<br />
Bazaar, and Marie Claire UK, among other publications.
Tatiana Lee<br />
Nominated by Theresa Ogbekhiulu (Education Officer)<br />
Tatiana is an award-winning actress, international model, and<br />
an inclusion activist with spina bifida. She is the voice behind<br />
the blog Accessible Hollywood and its associated YouTube<br />
channel, where she documents her endeavours to fight for the<br />
rights <strong>of</strong> disabled people in Hollywood. Tatiana currently serves<br />
as a Hollywood Inclusion Associate for RespectAbility, a<br />
non-pr<strong>of</strong>it organisation breaking down stigmas and advancing<br />
opportunities for people with disabilities.
Clara Holmes<br />
Nominated by Theresa Ogbekhiulu (Education Officer)<br />
Clara, who has Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome, is a fashion model<br />
and public speaker based in London. She is passionate about<br />
self-love, body positivity and making sure there is a diverse<br />
representation <strong>of</strong> all bodies in the beauty industry. Clara has<br />
been vegan for five years and was vegetarian for many years<br />
before that. Fitness and healthy eating are important to her.<br />
She documents her experiences on her blog and YouTube<br />
channel named, Rollin Funky.
Olivia Attwood<br />
Nominated by Liza Leibowitz (Welfare Officer)<br />
Olivia who starred on season 3 <strong>of</strong> Love Island was<br />
diagnosed with ADHD while in primary school and<br />
continues to experience symptoms as an adult. She has<br />
shared how living with ADHD can be a struggle and has<br />
tried to raise awareness <strong>of</strong> the condition through social<br />
media.
Stephen Hawking<br />
Nominated by Liza Leibowitz (Welfare Officer)<br />
Stephen was an English theoretical physicist whose theory <strong>of</strong><br />
exploding black holes drew upon both relativity theory and<br />
quantum mechanics. In the early 1960s Hawking contracted<br />
amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, an incurable degenerative<br />
neuromuscular disease. He continued to work despite the disease’s<br />
progressively disabling effects. Hawking’s contributions to physics<br />
earned him many exceptional honours, including being made<br />
Commander <strong>of</strong> the British Empire (CBE) in 1982 and a Companion<br />
<strong>of</strong> Honour in 1989.
Millie Bobby Brown<br />
Nominated by Liza Leibowitz (Welfare Officer)<br />
An English actress and producer who starred in Stranger<br />
Things, was born with partial hearing loss. Her hearing<br />
continued to worsen, and she now is deaf in one ear. As a<br />
result, she cannot hear herself perform. She has starred in a<br />
number <strong>of</strong> television shows, films and music videos. In<br />
addition, she has been nominated for several awards and<br />
has won on 10 occasions, despite only being 16 years old.
Daniel Radcliffe<br />
Nominated by Alanna Taylor (Student Voice<br />
(Democracy) Co-ordinator)<br />
Best known for his role in the Harry Potter films, many may<br />
not know that he has dyspraxia (a developmental<br />
co-ordination disorder). He revealed that he had a mild<br />
form <strong>of</strong> dyspraxia in 2008 but has said that he never let it<br />
hold him back and clearly, he has managed to achieve<br />
great things with the condition.
Stevie Wonder<br />
Nominated by Alanna Taylor (Student Voice<br />
(Democracy) Co-ordinator)<br />
Is an American singer, songwriter, musician and record producer. He<br />
became blind shortly after birth. His love <strong>of</strong> music was clear from an early<br />
age as he began playing a number <strong>of</strong> instruments, including piano,<br />
harmonica, and drums. He has recorded music in multiple genres and has<br />
had more than 30 U.S. top ten hits and 20 R&B number one hits. He has<br />
sold over 100 million records. He has won 25 Grammy awards and won an<br />
Academy award for best original song. He has been recognised in the<br />
Rhythm and Blues Music Hall <strong>of</strong> <strong>Fame</strong>, Rock and Rock Hall <strong>of</strong> <strong>Fame</strong> and<br />
Songwriters Hall <strong>of</strong> <strong>Fame</strong> and has received a star on the Hollywood Walk <strong>of</strong><br />
<strong>Fame</strong> and now most notably, has been recognised here in the <strong>Disability</strong><br />
<strong>History</strong> <strong>Month</strong> <strong>Wall</strong> <strong>of</strong> <strong>Fame</strong>.
Ellie Simmonds OBE<br />
Nominated by Chloe Morgan<br />
Ellie is a British Paralympian swimmer competing in S6 events. She was born<br />
with Achondroplasia and moved to Swansea when she was 11 to utilise the<br />
world class swimming pool and attended Olchfa Comprehensive School. She<br />
competed in the Paralympics in Beijing 2008, London 2012 and Rio 2016 -<br />
winning 5 gold medals, 1 silver medal and 2 bronze medals. She also won 21<br />
gold, 6 silver and 4 bronze medals from World Championships and European<br />
Championships. She has been awarded several awards and honours<br />
including being named as BBC Sport Personality <strong>of</strong> the Year in 2008,<br />
becoming the youngest person to be appointed as a Member <strong>of</strong> the Order <strong>of</strong><br />
the British Empire (MBE) in 2009 and was elevated to Officer <strong>of</strong> the Order <strong>of</strong><br />
the British Empire (OBE) in 2013.
Tanni Grey-Thompson<br />
Nominated by Chloe Morgan<br />
She was born in Cardiff with Spina Bifida and discovered a love<br />
for sports in comprehensive school. She went on to have a very<br />
successful athletic career, competing in wheelchair racing for<br />
over 16 years, five Paralympic Games and won 11 gold medals, 4<br />
silver medals and a bronze medal. She now sits in the House <strong>of</strong><br />
Lords after being made a Life Peer in 2010. She has won BBC<br />
sports personality <strong>of</strong> the year 3 times and was appointed as<br />
Dame Commander <strong>of</strong> the Order <strong>of</strong> the British Empire (DBE) in<br />
2005.
Rosie Jones<br />
Nominated by Chloe Morgan<br />
Rosie has ataxic cerebral palsy and is a British<br />
comedian, writer, and actor. She has appeared at the<br />
Edinburgh fringe festival multiple times, performed on<br />
Live at the Apollo, and has appeared on panel shows<br />
like 8 out <strong>of</strong> 10 cats and Mock the Week. She is an<br />
advocate for disability rights and recently appeared on<br />
Question Time where she highlighted how disabled<br />
people are <strong>of</strong>ten ignored.
Lee Ridley<br />
Nominated by Chloe Morgan<br />
Lee was diagnosed with a neurological form <strong>of</strong> cerebral<br />
palsy when he was a baby, which left him unable to talk.<br />
He is the first comedian in Britain to use a<br />
communication aid to perform and is now more<br />
commonly known as Lost Voice Guy. He became a<br />
household name following his appearance on Britain’s<br />
Got Talent in 2018. Lee won the 12th series <strong>of</strong> BGT and<br />
has gone on to tour the country.