Frances Thompson

Last updated
Frances Thompson
Frances Thompson 2 (cropped).png
Frances wearing a dress, an 1876 illustration for The Days' Doings
Born1840
Alabama
Died1876(1876-00-00) (aged 35–36)
Known for Memphis Riots of 1866 testimony, living as a black trans woman in the 19th century

Frances Thompson was an American, formerly enslaved Black trans woman and anti-rape activist. She was one of the five Black women to testify before a congressional committee that investigated the Memphis Riots of 1866. She is believed to be the first trans woman to testify before the United States Congress. Thompson and a housemate, Lucy Smith, were attacked by a white mob and were among many freedwomen who were raped during the riots. [1] In 1876, Thompson was arrested for "being a man dressed in women's clothing". [2]

Contents

Early life

Thompson was born into slavery in Alabama and assigned male at birth. By the age of 26, Thompson was living as a free woman in a Black community in Memphis, Tennessee. She worked as a laundress and lived openly as a woman, keeping her face clean-shaven and wearing brightly colored dresses. [3]

Memphis Massacre of 1866

The Memphis Riots of 1866 began after a group of Black people began to gathered in a public space in South Memphis. Police attempted to disperse the group, arresting two Black soldiers, which led to gunfire and the outbreak of rioting. [4] Over the course of three days, a white mob targeted Black communities, setting fires, killing Black residents, and raping Black women. [5]

During the Riots, Thompson and Smith's house was targeted by white men who questioned their affiliation with Union soldiers. [1] Thompson later testified before a congressional committee that the men demanded they prepare food, which Thompson and Smith did. After which, the men demanded a "woman to sleep with", which Thompson refused; the men then gang-raped both Thompson and Smith and robbed them. The group of attackers included two police officers. [1] [3]

Congressional testimony

Thompson was among a group of 170 people who testified before the U.S. Congress during a committee hearing to document the terror, death, rape, arson, and theft they experienced during the Memphis Riots. [6] [7] In her testimony, Thompson stated that she and her housemate, Smith, did not consent.

Following the hearing, Thompson's testimony became widely known throughout the South, resulting in ten years of increased scrutiny and persecution related to her gender identity. She faced harassment and false accusations, including claims that she operated a brothel. [3]

Arrest and death

In July 1876, Thompson was fined $50 (~$1,431 in 2023) and jailed for "cross-dressing." She was subjected to multiple examinations by physicians, who deemed her "biological sex" to be male. [8] [2] Southern Democrats used her arrest to discredit her testimony about being raped during the 1866 Memphis Riots. Thompson's attest fueled a broader campaign to deny and refute accounts of white racial violence against Black people in the South. [2] Thompson's identity was also weaponized to discredit other Black women's claims of rape by white men and to undermine the congressional report on the Memphis Riots, suggesting it was propaganda in favor of Reconstruction. [1]

Death

After her arrest, Thompson was sentenced to the city's chain gang, where she was forced to wear men's clothing and was abused. Following her release, she moved to North Memphis and died later that year of dysentery. Coroner's reports stated that Thompson was anatomically male, but contemporary newspaper accounts suggested some in Memphis believed her to be intersex, with Thompson reportedly describing herself as "of double sex." [9]

Legacy and impact

Frances Thompson testified before the U.S. Congress at a time when free Black women rarely had access to legal support, particularly in cases involving aggression by white men. [3] [10]

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