Black History Month and LGBTQ+ spotlight: Marsha P Johnson
In honour and respect to Black history month, this blog post is dedicated to Marsha P Johnson. A trans activist, drag queen and sex worker, she was an outspoken gay rights advocate in New York during the 1960’s-1990’s. Marsha holds a dear place in my heart as she was the first queer Black woman I wrote a paper about in my undergraduate degree in interdisciplinary studies of sexuality. She also holds a big place in the LGBTQ+ community as she was a prominent participant in the Stonewall Uprising on June 28th 1969.
But let’s back pedal a little for some queer history - what was the Stonewall Uprising?
It was a multitude of events where the police raided the Stonewall inn in the gay district of NYC and LGBTQ+ protesters fought back. Even though this was not the first time the police raided the bar, the events spread over 6 days. The amount of attention the uprising drew also grew political activism amongst the LGBTQ+ community eventually becoming an annual event of gay pride. The first gay pride happened on June 28th, 1970. Here is more information and a short video of the Stonewall Uprising in NYC.
As a Black trans drag queen and sex worker, Marsha experienced every intersection of marginalization and discrimination. But, being the strong witted and positive person that she is, she gave two big middle fingers to the homophobia racism and co-founded two integral foundations to the gay community. The Gay Liberation Front (GLF) and co-founder of the Street Transvestite Action Revolutionaries (STAR) with Sylvia Rivera. The STAR house was a radical and political collective that also housed homeless LGBTQ+ folx and provide support to sex workers. Marsha and Silvia were the “mothers” of the household.
In addition to being an activist, her drag career kicked off called Hot Peaches. She modled for Andy Warhol in New York. With the rise of HIV/AIDs in the 1980’s, Marsha’s activism grew stronger and joined Act Up- an organization dedicated to the cause still active today.
Unfortunately Marsha was tested HIV positive in 1990. Marsha died July 6th 1992 after the gay pride parade she was found in the Hudson River. Once ruled as a suicide by investigator, it has now been ruled to “undetermined” as her friends said she was not suicidal at the time of her death. An amazing documentary about her life and death on Netfilx is here.
Her dedication and activism has made a lasting impact on the LGBTQ+ community. Being a Black trans voice, her advocacy helped a tremendous amount of people and lead the foundation for historical moments in queer history.
