Cynthia Nixon is probably best known as the lawyer Miranda from the series “Sex and the City.” But, since the series ended in 2004, Nixon has focused much of her attention to charitable contributions.
Nixon, herself a product of New York City schools, first became an education activist. She became involved in the Alliance for Quality Education (AQE), in part because her own children attended NYC schools. The AQE fights for quality education and funding for the public schools.
In 2003, Nixon left her longtime boyfriend, Danny Mozes, and began dating education activist Christine Marinoni. In 2006, she was diagnosed with breast cancer after undergoing a routine mammogram. Nixon kept quiet about the diagnosis for over a year, finally revealing she had battled the disease, undergoing a lumpectomy and radiation therapy, on “Good Morning America.”
Since then, she has become a breast cancer activist as well. Nixon is an Ambassador for the Susan G. Komen for the Cure organization, founded by Nancy Brinker in honor of her sister Susan Komen, who died from the disease. She auctioned off two tickets that included a flight to London and limo service to the world premiere of the Sex and the City movie to raise money for the organization.
But, Nixon’s activism wasn’t just because by her own breast cancer. Her mother also battled the disease. Nixon said, “As the daughter of a breast cancer survivor, and a breast cancer survivor myself, I have experienced the disease from both sides. I will do whatever it takes to end breast cancer.”
Nixon went on to say, “One of my main reasons I got involved [with Komen for the Cure] was that I feel like I have a very concrete story to tell. It’s my mother’s and my story, which is be proactive, get your mammograms, don’t be afraid. Luckily, because of Susan G. Komen, and because of all the medical advances in the last 25 plus years, this is a really handleable disease if you catch it in time.”
The actress convinced NBC to air a breast cancer special titled “Stand Up to Cancer.” Actress Edie Falco also starred in the special aimed at educating both cancer patients and their families about the disease and treatment. Falco was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2003.
In addition to her work for education and cancer, Nixon also won a Grammy for Best Spoken Word Album for her appearance on the album “An Inconvenient Truth.”