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Marlee Matlin Honored With Ruderman Award For Disability Activism

Academy Award-winning actress Marlee Matlin speaks at the General Assembly of the Jewish Federations of North America. Image by jfna/ron sachs

By Josefin Dolsten February 22, 2017

(JTA) — Oscar-winning Jewish actress Marlee Matlin is being honored by the Ruderman Family Foundation for her activism on behalf of people with disabilities.

Matlin, who is deaf, will be recognized with the annual Morton E. Ruderman Award in Inclusion, the foundation announced Wednesday in a statement. The actress, who serves as a spokeswoman for the National Association for the Deaf, will receive the award in June during a trip to Israel.

“Marlee Matlin is the embodiment of a force that has broken down barriers and changed perceptions of people with disabilities worldwide,” said Jay Ruderman, president of the Ruderman Family Foundation. “Her long and celebrated career in Hollywood serves as a shining example of the value of including people with disabilities in our society.”

Matlin will receive the award, which is in its fourth year, 30 years after she became the first deaf actor to win a major Academy Award for her performance in the romantic drama film “Children of a Lesser God.”

Josefin Dolsten is a New York-based writer who has reported for the Forward, Jewish Telegraphic Agency, The Times of Israel and other Jewish publications. She currently works as an account director at Fenton Communications, supporting organizations that work to advance racial justice, LGBTQ+ equality, reproductive rights and more. Dolsten earned her B.A. in government from Cornell University and her M.A. in comparative religion and Jewish studies from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.

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