Every June, cities around the world are decked out in rainbows and glitter, their streets flooded with people flying flags in honour of Pride Month. But what we know today as a celebration of love and visibility and, yes, pride did not begin as a party. 

It began as a riot. And that riot began with Marsha P. Johnson.

It is, in fact, disputed whether or not Johnson was at the Stonewall Inn when the riots first broke out in the early hours of June 29th 1969. Johnson herself claimed that she only arrived at around 2:00am, when the building was already on fire. Others, however, have reported that she threw a shot glass into a mirror, screaming, “I got my civil rights”. Still more say that Johnson actually threw a brick at police – her legacy in the LGBTQ+ community is that of the woman who threw the first brick at Stonewall. 

We probably won’t ever know the truth of it for sure. What we do know is that she was there and, from that moment on, her influence would shape the direction of the LGBT movement.

As a poor, Black, gay, transgender woman, Johnson knew better than most what being an outcast was like. She was ostracised from society, including the very community she dedicated her life to fighting for, which at the time was largely made up of white gays and lesbians. They did not welcome her; she was not like them.

Johnson repeatedly claimed that the ‘P’ in her name stood for ‘Pay It No Mind’ – this was a mantra she seemed to carry through life. When the gay and lesbian committee banned her and fellow drag queen and friend, Sylvia Rivera, from the 1973 gay pride parade, their response was to march at the front. Whatever she was forced to confront, Johnson faced it with her trademark grace and flair.

The first modern-day gay rights organisation – the Gay Liberation Front (GLF) – was founded in the days after Stonewall by a small handful of people. Marsha P. Johnson was one of them. As director David France puts it, ‘She built the foundation of the movement. She was the archetype.’

Her face eventually became well known in the streets of New York, particularly along Christopher Street upon which the Stonewall Inn sits. Indeed, it was not a face easily forgotten – Johnson was known for her flamboyant style, often sporting flower-adorned wigs, red high heels, costume jewellery, and sequined dresses. This became part of her drag queen persona, which ended up catching the attention of Andy Warhol, who included her in his 1975 polaroid portfolio, Ladies and Gentlemen.

How many years does it take for people to see that we’re all brothers and sisters and human beings in the human race? I mean how many years does it take for people to see that we’re all in this rat race together.

Marsha P. Johnson, 1992

Though she never identified as transgender (the term was not in wide usage at the time, in preference to words such as transvestite), Johnson is considered the mother of the trans movement. In 1972, she and Rivera established STAR – the Street Transvestite Action Revolutionaries – which helped homeless trans and gender non-conforming people, drag queens, and LGBT youth. 

Johnson was the ‘drag mother’ of the STAR House, and the rent was paid for with the money she and Rivera earned as sex workers. She provided food, shelter, care and support, and likely saved the lives of many LGBT people by getting them off the streets.

She was also an organiser with ACT UP (AIDS Coalition To Unleash Power) during the early years of the AIDS crisis in New York. She herself was diagnosed with HIV in 1990.

Johnson struggled with homelessness and mental health issues, and was a victim of homophobic and transphobic abuse. At the time of her death in 1992, her then roommate, Randy Wicker, described her as being in a fragile state. Nevertheless, she continued her activism and continued being a beacon of hope and passion for New York’s gay youth until the end.

Johnson’s body was found floating in the Hudson River in July 1992. Police ruled her death a suicide, but many others aren’t so sure, her friends stating that Johnson was never suicidal. Several times, people have tried to get her case reopened and investigated as a homicide, especially after witnesses came forward saying that they’d seen Johnson in distress and being chased on the night of her death. 

Much like the extent of her contribution to Stonewall, we will likely never know the truth. Her death was a blow to the LGBT community as it lost one of their greatest leaders. An outpouring of grief followed, and thousands turned out to remember her life. 

One thing, though, is beyond doubt. Marsha P. Johnson revolutionised the gay rights movement, and those of us who are lucky enough to enjoy LGBT civil rights owe much to her influence.

Sources:

• https://www.vogue.co.uk/arts-and-lifestyle/article/who-was-marsha-p-johnson
• Morris III, Charles E., ‘Paying Mind to GLBTQ Pasts’, QED: A Journal in GLBTQ Worldmaking, 1.2 (2014), v-vii
• Reynolds, Daniel, ‘WHAT WOULD MARSHA P. JOHNSON DO?: Director David France and producer Sara Ramirez discuss why the story of an LGBT pioneer’s loss matters now.’, Advocate, 1092 (1092), 29
• France, David, dir., The Death and Life of Marsha P. Johnson (Netflix, 2017) <https://www.netflix.com/title/80189623> [accessed 23 August 2020]