Elaine Noble (born January 22, 1944) is an American

politician A politician is a person who participates in Public policy, policy-making processes, usually holding an elective position in government. Politicians represent the people, make decisions, and influence the formulation of public policy. The roles ...

and LGBT activist who served in the

Massachusetts House of Representatives The Massachusetts House of Representatives is the lower house of the Massachusetts General Court, the State legislature (United States), state legislature of Massachusetts. It is composed of 160 members elected from 14 counties each divided into ...

for two terms starting in January 1975. She was the first openly

lesbian A lesbian is a homosexual woman or girl. The word is also used for women in relation to their sexual identity or sexual behavior, regardless of sexual orientation, or as an adjective to characterize or associate nouns with female homosexu ...

gay ''Gay'' is a term that primarily refers to a homosexual person or the trait of being homosexual. The term originally meant 'carefree', 'cheerful', or 'bright and showy'. While scant usage referring to male homosexuality dates to the late ...

candidate elected to a state legislature. She served two terms as representative for the Fenway-Kenmore and

Back Bay Back Bay is an officially recognized Neighborhoods in Boston, neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts, built on Land reclamation, reclaimed land in the Charles River basin. Construction began in 1859, as the demand for luxury housing exceeded the ...

neighborhoods of

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

Early life and education

Elaine Noble was born in

New Kensington, Pennsylvania New Kensington (known locally as New Ken) is a city in Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 12,170 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. It is situated along the Allegheny River northeast of Pittsburgh ...

, on January 22, 1944. After graduating high school, she worked for a year in a factory before enrolling at

Boston University Boston University (BU) is a Private university, private research university in Boston, Massachusetts, United States. BU was founded in 1839 by a group of Boston Methodism, Methodists with its original campus in Newbury (town), Vermont, Newbur ...

on a scholarship. Noble earned her B.F.A degree from BU in 1966, an

M.S. A Master of Science (; abbreviated MS, M.S., MSc, M.Sc., SM, S.M., ScM or Sc.M.) is a master's degree. In contrast to the Master of Arts degree, the Master of Science degree is typically granted for studies in sciences, engineering and medicine ...

in speech and education at

Emerson College Emerson College is a private college in Boston, Massachusetts, United States. It also maintains campuses in Los Angeles and Well, Limburg, Netherlands (Kasteel Well). Founded in 1880 by Charles Wesley Emerson as a "school of Public Speaking, o ...

in 1970, and an M.Ed. at

Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...

in 1974. At Emerson, she served as an Emerson Homophile Arts Society advisor and co-director of the Massachusetts Women’s Political Caucus. After graduation, she worked at a job-year women's school where she came out as a lesbian.

Activism

Before entering politics, Noble worked as a speech instructor and an advertising manager. She was involved in

LGBT rights Rights affecting lesbian, Gay men, gay, Bisexuality, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) people vary greatly by country or jurisdiction—encompassing everything from the legal recognition of same-sex marriage to the Capital punishmen ...

activism in

. She was a member of the local chapter of the

Daughters of Bilitis The Daughters of Bilitis (), also called the DOB or the Daughters, was the first lesbian civil and political rights organization in the United States. The organization, formed in San Francisco in 1955, was initially conceived as a secret soc ...

. In 1974, Noble participated in a televised debate on the topic of same-sex marriage. Noble helped organize Boston's early

Pride Pride is a human Emotion, secondary emotion characterized by a sense of satisfaction with one's Identity (philosophy), identity, performance, or accomplishments. It is often considered the opposite of shame or of humility and, depending on conte ...

marches. With Ann Lewis, sister of former U.S. Representative from Massachusetts

Barney Frank Barnett Frank (born March 31, 1940) is a retired American politician. He served as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Massachusetts from 1981 to 2013. A Democratic Party (United States), Democrat, Frank served as chairman of th ...

, Noble formed the Massachusetts Women's Political Caucus and served on the Governor's Commission on the Status of Women. Noble was a family friend of Lewis and Frank's, and worked on the campaign that got Frank elected to the State legislature.

Political career

Massachusetts House of Representatives

In 1974, Noble was elected to the state House of Representatives for the 6th Suffolk district with 59% of the vote. against Joseph P. Cimino, the part-owner of a chain of singles bars She has described the campaign as "very ugly", including "shooting through my windows, destroying my car, breaking windows at my campaign headquarters, ndserious harassment". Her election made her the first openly LGBT candidate elected to a state-level office in the United States. She was sworn into office on

New Year's Day In the Gregorian calendar, New Year's Day is the first day of the calendar year, January 1, 1 January. Most solar calendars, such as the Gregorian and Julian calendars, begin the year regularly at or near the December solstice, northern winter ...

1975 by governor

Michael Dukakis Michael Stanley Dukakis ( ; born November 3, 1933) is an American politician and lawyer who served as governor of Massachusetts from 1975 to 1979 and from 1983 to 1991. He is the longest-serving governor in Massachusetts history and only the s ...

. As an educator, Noble supported desegregation of Boston public schools. She encouraged her campaigners to oversee school pick-ups and drop-offs for children in her district. She was the only white member of the Boston delegation that rode school busses with the children. Her support angered her constituents, both conservative as well as gay and lesbian, who expected her to focus solely on gay and lesbian issues. Her house was vandalized and she was threatened with a gun. She also felt burdened and frustrated by the demands of gay men and lesbians who seemed to expect that she speak for all of them. She said, "The gay community expected me to be on call 24 hours a day. It was like they felt they owned me." Noble was an early critic of Father

Paul Shanley Paul Richard Shanley (January 25, 1931 – October 28, 2020) was an American Roman Catholic priest who became the center of a massive sexual abuse scandal in the Archdiocese of Boston in Massachusetts. Beginning in 1967, the archdiocese covered u ...

, a Catholic priest who was ultimately convicted of sex crimes in 2005. She reported Shanley's comments and behavior to Boston officials on several occasions in the 1970s to no avail. Noble was re-elected in 1976 with almost 90% of the vote, and her second two-year term started on January 1, 1977. In March 1977, Noble was part of the first delegation of gay men and lesbians invited to the

White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue Northwest (Washington, D.C.), NW in Washington, D.C., it has served as the residence of every U.S. president ...

under President

Jimmy Carter James Earl Carter Jr. (October 1, 1924December 29, 2024) was an American politician and humanitarian who served as the 39th president of the United States from 1977 to 1981. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party ...

to discuss issues important to the

LGBT community The LGBTQ community (also known as the LGBT, LGBT+, LGBTQ+, LGBTQIA, LGBTQIA+, or queer community) comprises LGBTQ people, LGBTQ individuals united by LGBTQ culture, a common culture and LGBTQ movements, social movements. These Community, comm ...

1978 United States Senate campaign

After two terms in the Massachusetts House, Noble ran for the

United States Senate The United States Senate is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the United States House of Representatives, U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and ...

in 1978. She finished last out of five Democrats who competed in the primary, with 52,464 votes (5.8%). She did not run for re-election to the House.

Later work in politics

She later went to work for Mayor of Boston Kevin White. Noble was required to testify in front of a

grand jury A grand jury is a jury empowered by law to conduct legal proceedings, investigate potential criminal conduct, and determine whether criminal charges should be brought. A grand jury may subpoena physical evidence or a person to testify. A grand ju ...

for nineteen hours in connection with an

FBI The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic Intelligence agency, intelligence and Security agency, security service of the United States and Federal law enforcement in the United States, its principal federal law enforcement ag ...

investigation into bribery in the mayor's office. No charges were brought against Noble. After leaving Mayor White's office, Noble established Noble Consulting, a healthcare consulting group. In 1986, Noble and Ellen Ratner formed an LGBT alcohol and drug treatment center in

Minneapolis Minneapolis is a city in Hennepin County, Minnesota, United States, and its county seat. With a population of 429,954 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the state's List of cities in Minnesota, most populous city. Locat ...

called the Pride Institute. She attempted to establish a similar center in Massachusetts, but was rebuffed by local government. Noble ran unsuccessfully for the

Cambridge, Massachusetts Cambridge ( ) is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. It is a suburb in the Greater Boston metropolitan area, located directly across the Charles River from Boston. The city's population as of the 2020 United States census, ...

city council in 1991 and 1993. In her 1991 campaign, she expressed support for

rent control Rent regulation is a system of laws for the rental market of dwellings, with controversial effects on affordability of housing and tenancies. Generally, a system of rent regulation involves: *Price controls, limits on the rent that a landlord ...

policies, a

domestic partnership A domestic partnership is an intimate relationship between people, usually couples, who live together and share a common domestic life but who are not married (to each other or to anyone else). People in domestic partnerships receive legal be ...

ordinance, and direct election of the city's mayor. Noble also ran on fiscal responsibility at the city-level, offering ideas for cutting spending without raising taxes or cutting funding to essential services. Despite some policy differences, including on

abortion Abortion is the early termination of a pregnancy by removal or expulsion of an embryo or fetus. Abortions that occur without intervention are known as miscarriages or "spontaneous abortions", and occur in roughly 30–40% of all pregnan ...

, Noble endorsed Francis X. Bellotti as Democratic candidate in the 1990 Massachusetts gubernatorial race.

Retirement from public life

In 1994, Noble took work as head administrator at Middlesex County Hospital but resigned after six months. In 2009, she made a rare fundraising appearance at a Stonewall gala benefiting Compass Community Center in

Lake Worth, Florida Lake Worth Beach, previously named Lake Worth, is a city in east-central Palm Beach County, Florida, United States, located about north of Miami. The city's name is derived from the body of water along its eastern border known as the Lake Wort ...

Personal life

Noble had a relationship with writer

Rita Mae Brown Rita Mae Brown (born November 28, 1944) is an American feminist writer, best known for her coming-of-age autobiographical novel, '' Rubyfruit Jungle''. Brown was active in a number of civil rights campaigns and criticized the marginalization of l ...

in the 1970s and has since retained privacy regarding her personal life. She lives in Florida, where she is still active in the Democratic Party.

Legacy

In 2015, she was named by the Equality Forum as one of their 31 Icons of the 2015 LGBT History Month. Noble's successful election in 1974 inspired Minnesota Senator Allan Spear to come out as gay while in-office, making him the first male legislator in the United States to do so.

References

External links

Should Marriage Between Homosexuals Be Permitted?
Debate on Same-sex Marriage, ''The Advocates'', 1974.
''Something Personal''; "A Woman's Place Is in the House: A Portrait of Elaine Noble; 105"
1977-00-00, WGBH,

American Archive of Public Broadcasting The American Archive of Public Broadcasting (AAPB) is a collaboration between the Library of Congress and WGBH Educational Foundation, founded through the efforts of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB). The AAPB is a national effort to di ...

(WGBH and the

Library of Congress The Library of Congress (LOC) is a research library in Washington, D.C., serving as the library and research service for the United States Congress and the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It also administers Copyright law o ...

), Boston and Washington, D.C. * {{DEFAULTSORT:Noble, Elaine 1944 births 21st-century American women American lesbian politicians American LGBTQ rights activists Boston University College of Fine Arts alumni Emerson College alumni Harvard Graduate School of Education alumni LGBTQ people from Pennsylvania LGBTQ state legislators in Massachusetts Living people Members of the Massachusetts House of Representatives Politicians from Boston Politicians from Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania Women state legislators in Massachusetts 20th-century members of the Massachusetts General Court 20th-century American women politicians