Jennifer Laszlo Mizrahi



Jennifer Laszlo Mizrahi (born May 8, 1964, in Durham, North Carolina) is an American disability rights activist and an advocate for Israel. She was the founder of the disability advocacy non-profit RespectAbility. She is also the co-founder and director of the Mizrahi Family Charitable Fund.

She has published articles on disability and criminal justice reform, inclusion in Hollywood, philanthropy, and inclusion in faith communities.

Career
Mizrahi is a writer and co-founder of multiple organizations. She writes columns for the Huffington Post, Times of Israel, and The Mighty and has published on inclusive philanthropy in various publications. She co-founded The DCJCC Community Services Program, Laszlo & Associates, The Israel Project, and Laszlo Strategies.

In 2002, she co-founded the Israel Project and served as its president for 10 years. In 2012, she re-established Laszlo Strategies and advised clients on medical research and education.

Mizrahi’s transition from working on Israeli and Jewish issues to disability issues was widely covered in the Jewish media. She serves on the board of several organizations and co-founded RespectAbility, a disabilities-focused non-profit organization, in 2013. She is the co-author of Disability & Criminal Justice Reform: Keys to Success.

During the 2016 election, Mizrahi and RespectAbility raised disability awareness. Their publication, The RespectAbility Report, covered presidential candidates and swing races. Mizrahi has advocated for inclusion in Hollywood to reduce stigmas surrounding disability and promotes diversity for people of color with disabilities. She has published op-eds on employment for people with disabilities in more than 30 states. RespectAbility runs the National Leadership Program to advance a diverse leadership talent pool for the disability movement. However, Mizrahi has faced criticism from some within the disability community for perceived racist commentary on the 2016 election.

Recognition
The Jewish Forward has named Mizrahi as one of the 50 most influential Jews in North America three times, each time for a different body of work. In 2018 they listed her as the second most influential Jew in North America. She was also profiled in a chapter of the book Jewish Sages of Today.

In 2017, she was given a major award for being a role model for women by Culver Academy. In June 2018, she was honoured by Sulam. In September 2019, she was named as one of the 50 most influential Jews in the world by The Jerusalem Post.

During the 2018 ReelAbilities Film and Art Festival in Houston, she was presented the Bettie and Bernard Farfel Jewish Family Service Award by Jewish Family Services of Houston.

Personal life
Mizrahi is dyslexic and has attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. She is married to Victor Mizrahi, who heads the company Mizrahi Enterprises. She completed her BA at Emory University in Jewish Studies and International Studies. She was profiled in the Emory Alumni Magazine. She did her Junior Year Abroad at Hebrew University in Jerusalem. She also has completed executive training at Harvard.