Hugh Gallagher

Hugh Gregory Gallagher (October 18, 1932 – July 13, 2004) was an author and international disability advocate who worked as an aide for two U.S. Senators.

Early life and education Born in Palo Alto, California, Gallagher grew up in Chicago, New York City and Washington, D.C.

He contracted polio in 1952 at age 19 while studying at Haverford College.

He attended Claremont McKenna College, graduating magna cum laude in 1956. He attended Oxford University on a Marshall Scholarship, graduating with both bachelor's and master's degrees in political science, philosophy and economics. Gallagher said, "The able-bodied world is stealing our hero." Senator Daniel Inouye stated that the memorial would display one of the rare photographs depicting FDR in a wheelchair; it was also the first such memorial to be designed with wheelchair accessibility.

In 1997, Gallagher wrote an amicus brief in Washington v. Glucksberg in which he stated his support for the terminally ill to have the right to physician-assisted euthanasia.

Awards Marshall Scholar, 1956-1959 Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars fellowship, 1982 Kennedy Institute of Bioethics scholar, 1987-1989 Henry B. Betts Award, 1995, for work on behalf of disabled people.

Death Gallagher, who wrote from his home in Cabin John, Maryland, died of cancer in Washington, D.C., on July 13, 2004, aged 71.

Legacy The Hugh Gallagher Award was created by Peter Kovler to commemorate Gallagher, who used his writing to educate the public about injustices, to promote understanding among diverse populations and to draw people into the choice-in-dying movement. The Award is given annually by Compassion & Choices.

Books