Tiffany Yu

Tiffany Yu
Tiffany Yu (2018)
Born1988 (age 35–36)
NationalityAmerican
Alma materGeorgetown University

Tiffany Yu is an American entrepreneur and disability rights advocate who founded Diversability, which is a social enterprise to advocate for equality for people with disabilities.

Early life and education

Yu was raised in Bethesda, Maryland. At age nine, she became disabled in a car accident that left her with a permanent brachial plexus injury.[1][2] The accident also resulted in the death of her father. As a result of the accident, Yu developed post-traumatic stress disorder.[3]

Yu graduated from Georgetown College at Georgetown University in 2010.[4]

Activism

In 2009, while studying at Georgetown University, Yu founded Diversability, a social enterprise whose mission is to change the stigma surrounding disabilities and create community.[5] After graduation from Georgetown, Yu continued to run Diversability as she worked at companies including Goldman Sachs, Bloomberg, and Revolt (TV network),[6] and in 2016, she won the Guardian's "My Side Hustle Wins" contest for her work with Diversability.[1]

Yu serves on the Leadership Committee for the Paul K. Longmore Institute's Disability Cultural Center in San Francisco.[7] She was also awarded the Bell Greve Award from the National Rehabilitation Association in 2015.[8] Yu was a speaker at the 2018 World Economic Forum in Davos as part of the "We Need to Talk About" series and named a World Economic Forum Global Shaper.[9][10] She is also a three-time TEDx speaker.[11]

Yu was the 2019 California Miss Amazing Queen.[12] In 2021, she donated $50,000 to Georgetown University to launch an endowment fund for disability inclusion-related initiatives and disability advocacy.[13] Yu also engages in social media activism on TikTok, Twitter, and Instagram.[11] Yu is also the founder of the Disability chapter of Awesome Foundation.[12]

In 2024, Yu's first book, The Anti-Ableist Manifesto:Smashing Stereotypes, Forging Change, and Building a Disability-Inclusive World was published by Hachette Go.[14]

References

  1. ^ a b Shenolikar, Sachin (2016-02-04). "Childhood tragedy leads to a side hustler's inspiring community project". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2019-01-28.
  2. ^ Galic, Bojana (2017-11-07). "Meet the Woman Changing the Way We Talk About Disability". Marie Claire. Retrieved 2021-07-24.
  3. ^ Miranda, Gabriela (2021-07-02). "A chance to 'amplify one another': What is Disability Pride Month?". USA TODAY. Retrieved 2021-07-24.
  4. ^ "Alumna Continues Advocacy on Campus for Those with Disabilities". Georgetown College. 2021-07-19. Retrieved 2021-07-24.
  5. ^ "What We Do". Diversability. Archived from the original on 2019-03-10. Retrieved 2019-01-28.
  6. ^ Beck, Molly Ford. "Tiffany Yu Talks REVOLT Media & TV and Diversability". Forbes. Retrieved 2019-01-28.
  7. ^ "Meet the Disability Cultural Center Leadership Committee! | Paul K. Longmore Institute on Disability". longmoreinstitute.sfsu.edu. Archived from the original on 2020-09-28. Retrieved 2019-01-28.
  8. ^ "Past Award Winners". National Rehabilitation Association. Retrieved 2019-01-28.
  9. ^ Karaian, Jason (January 21, 2018). "Eight things Davos thinks "we need to talk about"". Quartz. Retrieved 2019-01-28.
  10. ^ "Authors". World Economic Forum. Retrieved 2019-01-28.
  11. ^ a b Vargas, Chanel (2021-05-12). ""Ending Discrimination Begins With Self-Reflection": Tiffany Yu on Democratizing Visibility". POPSUGAR Fitness. Retrieved 2021-07-24.
  12. ^ a b Niver, Lisa (2020-07-03). "We Heart: These Seven Feminist Efforts to Achieve the Sustainable Development Goals by 2030 - Ms. Magazine". Ms Magazine. Retrieved 2021-07-24.
  13. ^ Hawkinson, Katie (2021-07-14). "Georgetown Launches Endowment to Support Disability Initiatives on Campus". The Hoya. Retrieved 2021-07-24.
  14. ^ The Anti-Ableist Manifesto. 2024-02-05. ISBN 978-0-306-83366-3.