serenity

“When Josephine Baker traveled, the black performers could not stay in white hotels because of segregation. There were few hotels for blacks because there were not enough blacks who needed that service. The performers had to stay in boardinghouses, where several women shared rooms and beds. Maude Russell, a black dancer and singer who often performed on the same stage as Josephine, explained the situation this way: ‘Many of us had been kind of abused by producers, directors, leading men…And girls needed tenderness, so we had girl friendships, the famous lady lovers, but lesbians weren’t well accepted in show business…I guess we were bisexual, is what you would call it today.’

As they traveled together, Josephine and Clara Smith became lovers. Josephine’s sexual interest in women did not stop when, in later years, she was able to afford her own room. She continued to have female lovers throughout her life, in addition to her relationships with men.”