Eleanor Roosevelt: Were They Gay?

You've probably heard the rumours of this certain First Lady and thought, "she can't be gay, she was married!"

Well, she fell in love with a female reporter...

Eleanor Roosevelt, the First Lady from 1933 to 1945, a more modern choice in this series so far, thought I'd take a break from all the queer writers we were conspiring about before. Eleanor stayed by her husband's side for all four of his terms in office, causing her to be the longest serving First Lady of the United States.

As First Lady, she accomplished many things (I mean, she sure had the time to). She advocated for many liberal causes and helped draft the UN's Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948). She was later awarded the United Nations Prize in the Field of Human Rights. She was such an influence that the Clinton Administration created the Eleanor Roosevelt Award for Human Rights in 1998, until 2001, given to promoters of human rights in the US.

Fair to say, she was loved and extraordinary. But was she queer?

nytimes.com

There is a lot of evidence behind this. Eleanor Roosevelt fell in love, and had a long-term relationship, with journalist Lorena Hickock.

In a letter to Hickock, Eleanor wrote:

Funny, everything I do my thoughts fly to you. Never are you out of my heart.

Other letters include this one from March 7th, 1933:

Hick darling, All day I've thought of you & another birthday I will be with you, & yet tonite you sounded so far away & formal. Oh! I want to put my arms around you. I ache to hold you close. Your ring is a great comfort to me. I look at it and think she does love me, or I wouldn't be wearing it.

Their relationship began in September 1928, when Hickock was doing some news coverage of FDR in his hopes to being governor in New York.

In 1932 a spark ignited when Hickock sat down for her first official interview with Eleanor. The rest is history. Secret history. Queer history.

Not so secret when you hear about how Hickock's editor sent her a note telling her to "not get too close to your sources."


More on Eleanor Roosevelt:
https://www.liveabout.com/eleanor-roosevelt-was-she-a-lesbian-or-bisexual-2170766
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-06-28/eleanor-roosevelt-lorena-hickok-white-houses-love-affair/9918614
https://www.autostraddle.com/24-very-gay-excerpts-from-eleanor-roosevelts-love-letters-with-lorena-hickok-346115/
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3809738/How-prim-proper-Lady-Eleanor-Roosevelt-fell-love-200-pound-WOMAN-reporter-drank-like-fish-played-mean-game-poker-smoked-cigars-swore-blue-streak.html
https://www.haaretz.com/.premium-in-out-eleanor-roosevelts-lesbian-affair-1.5395258
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/the-first-lady-of-gay-rights_b_7608122?guccounter=1&guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZ29vZ2xlLmNvbS8&guce_referrer_sig=AQAAAExHyEKDABdi7sY3W5G4xhESeo97VhlEl2w26O43MKxspYkvEgD1dd3StYZYg1YqWjuOjG8enw7sjfd73zZuYwx_lvmI_kaYC7xSIX8TugvesxQQ4ASqFkjxD67mTGMcBdLlEZHO0jc-VpychJcCv72xTG44Ph0bM8Z2N0d7kKan