Betty Jane DeGeneres (née Pfeffer; born May 20, 1930) is an American LGBT rights activist.

She was the first straight spokeswoman for the Human Rights Campaign's National Coming Out Project[2] and an active member of Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG).

[3] The youngest of three daughters, DeGeneres was born in New Orleans, Louisiana, in 1930, during the height of the Great Depression.

While in college she performed in a number of plays with Joanne Woodward, who would go on to be an Academy Award-winning actress.

[6] DeGeneres returned to LSU after the age of 50 to complete her master's degree in speech pathology.