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Martin Bauml Duberman

マーティン・B・デューバーマン

Martin Bauml Duberman

Profile

Gender
Male
Born
1930-08-06 （New York City, U.S.）
Nationality
United States
Languages
English
Religion
Judaism
Residence History
Bronx, New York City → Mount Vernon, New York

Career

Occupations
Historian, Biographer, Playwright, Gay rights activist, Essayist, Educator
Active Years
1957-
Affiliations
Lehman College (CUNY), CUNY Graduate Center (CLAGS)
Memberships
Gay Academic Union (founding member, keynote speaker), National Lesbian and Gay Task Force (founding board member), Lambda Legal Defense Fund (founding board member), Queers for Economic Justice (founding board member)
Nominations
Reaching Ninety (memoir) - Lambda Literary Award for Gay Memoir or Biography (shortlisted, 2024)

Education

Yale University (Yale College)
Country: United States
Specific faculty/department and graduation year not specified
Harvard University
Country: United States
Specific degree and graduation year not specified

Awards

Bancroft Prize
1961
Work: Biography of Charles Francis Adams, Sr.
Organization: Columbia University / Bancroft Prize Committee
Result: winner
National Book Award (finalist)
1966
Work: Work on James Russell Lowell
Organization: National Book Foundation
Result: finalist
Vernon Rice/Drama Desk Award
1963
Work: In White America (play)
Category: Best Off-Broadway Production
Organization: Drama Desk
Result: winner
Lambda Literary Award
2014
Work: Hold Tight Gently: Michael Callen, Essex Hemphill, and the Battlefield of AIDS
Category: Nonfiction
Organization: Lambda Literary Foundation
Result: winner
Manhattan Borough President's Gold Medal in Literature
1988
Organization: Manhattan Borough President's Office
Result: winner
NYPL George Freedley Memorial Award
1989
Work: Paul Robeson (biography)
Organization: New York Public Library
Result: winner
American Historical Association Lifetime Achievement Award
2007
Organization: American Historical Association
Result: winner
Bill Whitehead Award for Lifetime Achievement in Non-Fiction
2008
Organization: Bill Whitehead Award Committee
Result: winner
Honorary Degree (Doctor of Humane Letters)
2012
Organization: Amherst College
Result: honorary degree conferred
Honorary Doctor of Letters
2017
Organization: Columbia University
Result: honorary degree conferred
Harvard Centennial Medal
2024
Organization: Harvard University
Result: winner
American Library Association Stonewall Honor Book for Non-Fiction
2015
Work: Hold Tight Gently
Organization: American Library Association
Result: honor
Lambda Awards (other)
2015
Work: Hold Tight Gently (editor/anthology involvement)
Organization: Lambda Literary Foundation
Result: winner

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

In White America

1965 Play

A play addressing racial issues in America, thematically linked to the civil rights era of the 1960s.

RaceCivil rightsInjustice

Black Mountain: An Exploration in Community

1972 History / Cultural study

A study of the history and community of Black Mountain College.

EducationCommunityAmerican culture

Paul Robeson: A Biography

1989 Biography 880 pages

A detailed biography of Paul Robeson, examining the intersection of politics and art in his life.

Race and politicsRole of the artist in societyLife of an activist

Stonewall

1993 History

A historical account and analysis of the Stonewall riots and their significance.

LGBTQ historyProtest movementsCommunity formation

Hold Tight Gently: Michael Callen, Essex Hemphill, and the Battlefield of AIDS

2014 Nonfiction / Edited volume

An edited nonfiction volume reflecting on activists and poets who confronted AIDS.

AIDSMemoryGay liberation movement

Jews Queers Germans

2017 Novel / Historical fiction

A novel exploring intersections of Jewish, queer, and German histories.

Memory and identityPersecution and survival

Reaching Ninety

2023 Memoir

A memoir written at age ninety, recounting personal experiences, activism, and intellectual development.

ReminiscenceGay historyEducation and activism

Bibliography

  • In White America (1965)
  • Black Mountain: An Exploration in Community (1972)
  • Paul Robeson: A Biography (1989)
  • Stonewall (1993)
  • Left Out: A Political Journey (1999)
  • Haymarket: A Novel (2004)
  • The Worlds of Lincoln Kirstein (2007)
  • Radical Acts: Collected Political Plays (2008)
  • Howard Zinn: A Life on the Left (2012)
  • Hold Tight Gently (2014)
  • Jews Queers Germans (2017)
  • Luminous Traitor (2018)
  • Naomi Weisstein (2020)
  • Andrea Dworkin: The Feminist as Revolutionary (2020)
  • Reaching Ninety (2023)

Style & Themes

Literary Style
Scholarly, detail-oriented academic proseBiographical works combine narrative with critical analysisPlays use a political and didactic tone
Recurring Motifs
Social justiceRecovery of marginalized voicesCommunity and memoryActivism and pedagogy

Legacy

Duberman is known for prolific work spanning civil rights, labor history, LGBTQ history, and biography. His scholarly contributions and organizing in gay rights and educational institutions have been widely recognized.

Academic Societies

  • American Historical Association

Archives

  • New York Public Library (Martin B. Duberman papers, 1917–2010)
  • State Archives of North Carolina (Martin Duberman Collection, 1933–1980)

In Popular Culture

  • Frequently cited in discussions of Stonewall and LGBTQ movement history

Trivia

  • Born 1930 into a Jewish family.
  • Reflected autobiographically on coming out in his 1972 book Black Mountain.
  • Signed the 1968 Writers and Editors War Tax Protest and was jailed for civil disobedience.
  • Founded CLAGS at the CUNY Graduate Center and served as its first director (1986–1996).
  • Author of more than 25 books.
  • Received an honorary Doctor of Letters from Columbia University (2017) and the Harvard Centennial Medal (2024).