Civil rights & activism · 1931–2023Daniel Ellsbergmilitary analyst, whistleblower, activistThe Pentagon Papers whistleblower grew up in the Detroit area and graduated from Cranbrook School in Bloomfield Hills.DETROIT / A living lexicon / ¼
Famous Detroiters
People who were born here, moved here or built their careers in Detroit: musicians, carmakers, athletes, writers, inventors, civil-rights leaders and a few notorious names. With their dates, their Detroit story and the places where they lived, worked and played, closed ones included.
- 1,940 famous people
- 270 Detroit places
- 17 fields
Hungarian ties 22 Detroiters with Hungarian ties →
Field
Connection
Born in
A–Z (family name)
16 people
Clear filtersCivil rights & activism · 1931–2023Daniel Ellsbergmilitary analyst, whistleblower, activistThe Pentagon Papers whistleblower grew up in the Detroit area and graduated from Cranbrook School in Bloomfield Hills.
Science & invention · 1934–2015Marshall Rosenbergpsychologist, mediatorPsychologist who created Nonviolent Communication; the Detroit race riot of 1943, which broke out a week after his family moved to the city, shaped his life's work.
Film & TV · born 1937Marlo Thomasactress, producer, author, activistThat Girl star and St. Jude Children's Research Hospital champion, born in Detroit while her father Danny Thomas was a struggling local radio and club entertainer.
Civil rights & activism · 1939–2016Tom Haydenactivist, author, politicianRoyal Oak-raised author of the Port Huron Statement and New Left leader who grew up in Father Coughlin's parish and later served in the California legislature.
Politics · 1939–2021Barbara-Rose Collinspolitician, activistDetroit-born single mother turned activist who rose from the school board and City Council to become the first Black woman from Michigan elected to Congress (1991–1997).
Religion · 1930–2024Thomas GumbletonCatholic auxiliary bishop, peace and social justice activistDetroit-born auxiliary bishop (1968–2006) and nationally known peace activist who spent decades as pastor of St. Leo's, a poor inner-city parish.
Law · 1932–2017Anna Diggs Taylorfederal judge, civil rights lawyerYale-trained lawyer who built her career in Detroit and in 1979 became Michigan's first Black woman federal judge; in 2006 she struck down the NSA's warrantless wiretapping program.
Civil rights & activism · 1938–1989Kenneth Cockrel Sr.radical lawyer, community organizer, city councilmanMarxist lawyer and co-founder of the League of Revolutionary Black Workers who won landmark courtroom battles for poor Detroiters and sat on the City Council (1978–1982).
Civil rights & activism · 1931–2011Eleanor Josaitiscivil rights activist, co-founder of Focus: HOPESuburban homemaker who co-founded Focus: HOPE in 1968 and led it for four decades, called Detroit's Mother Teresa for her work against racism and poverty.The lexicon keeps growing. Every entry lists its sources at the bottom. Dates were checked against Wikidata and Wikipedia. The texts are our own. Famous people's places among the sights ↗