Here in Queeries, we love talking about and reflecting on our queer history. The intersection between LGBTQ+ history and women’s bravery is an interdisciplinary field that explores the history of identity in the United States. March is Women’s History Month, when we commemorate and celebrate the women in America who have played a crucial role in our history. As we continue to talk about queer history, we want to acknowledge the transgender women at Stonewall who paved the way for LGBTQ+ rights, yet were pushed out of the gay rights movement. We owe Women’s History Month to them and could all stand to be better allies in a world that continues to be a dangerous landscape for Black LGBTQ+ individuals.
Marsha P. Johnson and Sylvia Rivera are two trans women of color, and their activism in the late 1960s and early 1970s formed the pillars of the gay liberation movement. Johnson and Rivera were the co-founders of STAR — Street Transvestite Action Revolutionaries — and they fought for gender liberation and LGBTQ+ justice in New York City.
At that point in history, homosexual acts remained illegal in most states. Riots arose in the ’60s because of police raids at gay bars and clubs. On June 28, 1969, members of the New York’s LGBTQ+ community finally fought back. Johnson and Rivera led the charge, throwing bricks and Molotov cocktails at the corrupt police officers and started the uprising that needed to happen.
Not only did Johnson and Rivera act as powerful crusaders, but they also created a community. The two created a branch in STAR which acted as a safe place for LGBTQ+ youth to live and be their authentic selves, specifically helping young queer people of color. These two women helped change pop culture as they created a movement that embraces sexuality and gender expression, regardless of labels.
Historically, trans people of color have been subjected to violence from white, cisgender, heterosexual Americans and face incarceration at disproportionate levels. We must look to the leaders and pioneers of the past to better understand how the liberties and freedoms that exist for many queer people in America are owed to the labor and resilience of Black trans women. We thank them for their contribution to queer liberation efforts. Today, we live in a society in which queer people can openly enjoy civil liberties and freedoms, but this was a wholly different experience for queer people over 50 years ago. The mere existence of this column is a testament to the broadening of queer expression and voice, and we owe much of this opportunity to the queer and trans women who fought hard for the freedom to be queer.
