Betty DeGeneres (born Elizabeth Jane Pfeffer; May 20, 1930) is an American LGBT rights activist. She is the mother of Ellen and Vance DeGeneres and the first non-gay spokesperson for the Human Rights Campaign's National Coming Out Project and an active member of Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG). She gained notability following her daughter Ellen's highly publicized coming out in 1997.