Marion Louise Sykes is the mother of American stand-up comedian, actress, and writer Wanda Yvette Sykes. Marion’s daughter Wanda Sykes has earned the spot as one of the funniest stand-up comics. She ranks among Entertainment Weekly’s 25 Funniest People in America. She was first recognized for her work as a writer on The Chris Rock Show. Also, she is known for voicing characters in animated films such as Over the Hedge, Barnyard, Brother Bear 2 (all in 2006), and Rio (2011).
Marion Louise Sykes: Bio Summary
| Name | Marion Louise Sykes |
| Date of birth | September 4, 1937 |
| Gender | Female |
| Famous as | mother of Wanda Sykes |
| Birthplace | United States |
| Parents | N/A |
| Spouse | Harry Ellsworth Sykes |
| Children | Wanda Sykes and Harry Sykes |
| Occupation | Banker |
Who Is Wanda Sykes’ Mother, Marion?
Marion Louise (née Peoples) was born on September 4, 1937. She is the mother of Wanda Sykes. She worked as a banker. She and Wanda’s father, Harry Ellsworth Sykes, a U.S. Army colonel employed at the Pentagon had two children: Wanda Sykes and her brother Harry Sykes. The family moved to Maryland at the time Wanda was in her third grade. There isn’t much information about Marion as she has lived a private life.
Marion Louise Sykes’ daughter Wanda Sykes was born on March 7, 1964, in Portsmouth, Virginia, U.S. Wanda once revealed that when she was young, her mouth would always put her in trouble. She said whenever her parents had guests over, they would send her to her grandmother’s house to avoid embarrassing them. Her parents were highly religious.
Wanda Sykes’ family history has been under scrutiny. In an episode of the TV show “Finding Your Roots,” some facts about her origin were discovered. Her ancestry was traced back to a 1683 court case involving her ancestor, Elizabeth Banks, a free white woman and indentured servant, who gave birth to a biracial child, Mary Banks, fathered by a slave, who inherited her mother’s free status.
The Sykes family history is “the only such case that I know of in which it is possible to trace a black family rooted in freedom from the late 17th century to the present”, according to historian Ira Berlin.
ALSO READ: Harry Ellsworth Sykes: Everything About Wanda Sykes’ Father
Marion’s Relationship With Her Daughter Wanda
Marion Louise Sykes and her daughter Wanda Yvette Sykes became estranged from each other after Wanda openly came out as lesbian. Wanda publicly came out as a lesbian at an equality rally in Las Vegas in 2008, regarding Proposition 8. She delivered an impromptu speech and says she has “no regrets” about coming out as a lesbian.
According to Wanda Sykes, coming out as a lesbian “was not planned at all,” she told Meredith Vieira in 2015. She has used her platform to raise LGBTQ+ voices and champion equality. Today, she is one of the most prominent LGBTQ+ Americans. She came out to her parents Marion Louise Sykes and Harry Ellsworth Sykes when she was 40 years old.
Marion Louise Sykes and Harry Ellsworth Sykes both had a difficult time accepting their daughter Wanda’s homosexuality. Even at the time Wanda Sykes was getting married to her wife Alex Niedbalski, a French woman, whom she met in 2006, Marion and Harry refused to attend her wedding with Alex. Wanda and Alex have been married since October 25, 2008.
Previously, Wanda Sykes was married to American record producer Dave Hall but their marriage lasted from 1991 to 1998. Wanda and her parents Marion Louise Sykes and Harry Ellsworth Sykes had a brief period of estrangement because of Wanda being a lesbian. It took time but eventually, her parents, Marion and Harry had to accept their child’s sexuality and they have since reconciled with her.
Wanda Sykes said: “Relationship after relationship, I eventually decided to be honest. I thought, “My family’s not going to be cool with this.” Everything’s great now, but it took a long time for us to get there. I had to practice a lot of patience. The more I felt comfortable with myself, with who I was, I became confident and stopped arguing with them.”
“It became their problem, it wasn’t mine. Then I think my parents realized that “Oh, she’s not going to change. This is who she is. If we want to be involved in her life, I guess we have to roll with this.” She added: “Most parents do love you. It’s not even about them. They’re more concerned about what other people are going to say. They’re more fearful of that.”
Wanda Sykes also said: “The drive behind me coming out publicly was when it became political, back when Proposition 8 was being talked about. I felt like I had to say something. You’re inspecting my life, the life that I have? You’re saying that my marriage isn’t legal? That’s when I said alright, it’s important to speak out. Also, I wanted to put a face on who that was affecting, not just white gay men.
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“There are women. There are mothers. There are real people involved in these votes that affect lives and kids. After I gave my speech in Las Vegas, by the time I went back to the hotel, it was on TV and I was like, “Oh, okay. I’m out.” It was like, “Oh, cool.” I already said what was the truth.”
Wanda Sykes gave out advice to everyone saying: “My advice for anyone in the process of coming out? I’ll just be honest: it depends on the community that you live in. If you’re still in school, for example, just hang in there. That’s what we do in our community. We make other families. If your family isn’t supportive, you’re going to find somebody who would be that surrogate parent who will love you and take care of you. You’ll make family. I did. Know that there’s places and people who will love you—and you can and you will have an amazing life.”
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