James Roberts was born in North Philadelphia to African American parents on January 25, 1950. In the fall of 1967, Roberts began attending Temple University. While at Temple, Roberts joined the Gay Liberation Front in 1970. In 1972, Roberts was briefly a member of the Gay Activist Alliance but left due to white members’ attitudes about making the organization more racially inclusive. After graduating from Temple, Roberts worked as an actor in Philadelphia, including at Germantown Theater Guild and as part of the Bicentennial celebration. In the 1980s and 1990s, Roberts used his connections with health services to help friends find resources to help with AIDS treatment. As of 2021, Roberts lives in Georgia. For more on James Roberts, see Philadelphia LGBT History Project, 1940-1980, by Marc Stein.