THE RELEVANT QUEER: Mabel Hampton, Harlem Renaissance Dancer, Lesbian Activist, and Philanthropist

“I have been a lesbian all my life, for eighty-two years, and I am proud of myself and my people.” 

TRQ: Mabel Hampton, Born May 2, 1902

Harlem Renaissance dancer, lesbian activist, and philanthropist Mabel Hampton was born on May2, 1902. She is most known for her early visibility and influence within the lesbian community beginning in the 1930s. 

Hampton was born in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. When she was only 2 months old, her mother died, and she went to live with her grandmother, who died only six years later. At age 7, Hampton moved to New York City to live in Greenwich Village with her aunt and uncle, a minister. He raped Hampton and after a stranger bought her a bus ticket; she fled to New Jersey at age 8. There, a white family took Hampton in, where she lived until age 17. 

By 1919, Hampton regularly spent time in Harlem. At a women’s-only party, police wrongly arrested her for sex-work in a prostitution sting. She served 13 months in Bedford Hills Correctional Facility for Women and believed her arrest to be based on her lesbianism. 

After her time in prison, Hampton danced in clubs and Harlem Renaissance productions where she surrounded herself with notable gay and lesbian artists, actors and dancers. Among others, she worked with Gladys Bentley and Jackie “Moms” Mabley. 

In 1932 Hampton met Lillian Foster, her partner of 45 years. As the Harlem Renaissance came to an end and professional dance opportunities declined, Hampton turned to working in hospitals and cleaning homes in New York. She worked in the family home of Joan Nestle, whom Hampton befriended and later co-founded the Lesbian Herstory Archives with in 1974. Hampton’s friendship with Nestle lasted for decades. Hampton donated lesbian pulp fiction novels and her collection of literature and academic articles to the archive which became an important gay and lesbian resource. 

As a visibly out lesbian couple, Hampton and Foster remained active in the gay rights movement. After Foster’s death in 1978, Hampton’s activism continued. She marched in the first historic demonstration in Washington, D.C. in 1979. She was the grand marshal of the New York City Gay Pride March in 1985. That year the National Coalition of Black Lesbians and Gays awarded her the lifetime achievement award. 

The films Before Stonewall (1985) and Silent Pioneers (1985) feature interviews with Hampton on the struggle for gay rights and equality. For the archives, Nestle also recorded Hampton’s oral histories of relationships with women, facing racism, and striving for sexual freedom as an African-American lesbian. 

“I’m glad I became [a lesbian]. I have nothing to regret. Not a thing. All these people run around going, ‘I’m not this, I’m not that.’ [Being gay] doesn’t bother me. If I had to do it over again, I’d do the same thing. I’d be a lesbian. Oh boy, I would really be one, then! I’d really be one! Oh boy!” — Mabel Hampton

In 1989, Mabel died of pneumonia. She was 87. 

About the Authors

Troy Wise is currently a PhD student at UAL Central St Martins and teaches fashion and graphic design at London College of Contemporary Arts. His background is in marketing and is founder and co-editor of Image Amplified. He lives in, and is continually fascinated by, the city of London.

Rick Guzman earned his most recent MA at UAL Central St Martins in Applied Imagination in the Creative Industries. He currently holds two MA’s and an MBA in the New Media, Journalism and International Business fields. Co-editor at Image Amplified since its start, he lives in London, is fascinated by history and is motivated by continuing to learn and explore. 

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Sources:

Autostraddle

Herstories

NYC LGBT Sites