Moms Mabley and the Civil Rights Movement

Moms Mabley’s comedic performances during the mid-twentieth century Civil Rights movement are historically significant because she publicly highlighted the struggles of African Americans and women while simultaneously criticizing the marginalization and inequality these groups faced. Her commentary on gender, race, and politics demands scholarly attention because her comedy was shaped by her personal experiences as a black woman and because she provides important insight into the attitudes and experiences of African Americans, particularly black women, during the twentieth century. Mabley’s comedy operated as a form of social protest because of her commentary on social issues like racism, her political criticisms, and her commentary on gender and female sexuality. Her work was unique and set her apart from her contemporaries, like male comedians Dick Gregory, Godfrey Cambridge, and later Richard Pryor, because she was dealing with gender as well as race. This intersection of gender and race paralleled the struggle of African-American women. Jackie “Moms” Mabley used her comedic performances to covertly protest racial and gender inequality in the United States during the mid-twentieth century Civil Rights movement. She used the platforms of the stage and comedy recordings to criticize the marginalization of African Americans and the exploitation of women, and did so for integrated audiences. Yet as a mainstream entertainer, whose performances were consumed by black and white audiences, Mabley was unable to explicitly challenge racism and sexism. Instead, she mediated her most subversive messages of protest through humor, song, and the use of the double-voice device.