Prior to her death last month, Kyle Kennedy — educator and granddaughter of Robert F. Kennedy — became a fierce advocate for the disability community, bringing major accessibility issues to legislators after a spinal cord injury left her paralyzed.
The activist appeared before the Massachusetts State Legislature as recently as June 2025 to testify on discrimination against those with disabilities while receiving healthcare services. Her testimony came just a year before she passed away.
“Blessed with a formidable intellect, dry wit, and beauty, she will be remembered for her devotion to her children Conor, Josephine, and Declan, and her support for educational reform for disadvantaged children and for people living with disabilities,” Kennedy’s obituary reads.
Kennedy died at her home in Westwood, Massachusetts, on Sept. 21, NBC News confirmed with the town clerk, Dottie Powers. She was 42.
Kennedy — who graduated from Georgetown University in Washington, D.C., before earning master’s degrees from New York’s Pace University and Harvard University — spent her early years heavily involved in education, according to her obituary.
She taught in the New York City public school system as part of nonprofit Teach for America before working with tech companies with the aim of advancing school curricula. She also coached educators who worked with young students, the obituary said. However, the spinal cord injury in 2020 prompted her to get involved in a new realm of advocacy.
Speaking to the Joint Committee on Health Care Financing, Kennedy threw her support behind a Massachusetts House bill that seeks to protect disabled people from being denied or de-prioritized for lifesaving treatment, as well as from other forms of discrimination.
In front of state legislators, Kennedy opened up about her experiences receiving healthcare as someone who was paralyzed from the chest down. During her testimony, she shared that she had once been turned away at a dentist’s office because “they couldn’t find an exam room to fit me.” In another instance, she said she was asked, “Well, how disabled are you?” upon calling ahead to inquire about the accommodations for her wheelchair.
Through tears, Kennedy also brought up a number of incidents in which her catheter and bladder issues were insensitively handled by a number of medical personnel.
“I could go on to tell you about how hard it is for me to get a chest X-ray, or that it’s pretty much impossible for me to have a mammogram. But our time is limited,” Kennedy said during her testimony. “I believe that H.130 will make it so that these stories don’t have to happen, or maybe we’ll have a happier outcome for disabled people like myself, and perhaps more training for the people who need it.”
As of July 20, the bill has been referred to the committee on House Ways and Means and needs to go through several other committees before being passed.
According to her obituary, Kennedy continued to demonstrate resilience amid her advocacy and medical struggles.
“The years that followed brought struggles but Kyle fought to maintain her dry wit and determination through it all, trying to be the best possible mother to her sons and caring for her two beloved, ill-behaved Wheaten terriers,” the obituary said.