marsha p johnson primary source
This was the source of my direct quotes from Randy. "Rapping With a Street Transvestite Revolutionary" in Out of the closets: voices of gay liberation. This book talks about STAR in the context of other queer movements in New York at the time, including the GAA and GLF On p.36 youll find the list of STARs political goals which I referenced. For more information specifically on STAR, Id encourage you to check out: Street Transvestite Action Revolutionaries: Survival, Revolt, and Queer Antagonist Struggle. Marsha P. Johnson was born on August 24, 1945, in Elizabeth, New Jersey. My three main sources for this podcast were: For contemporary eye-witness accounts of Stonewall, you can read: Concerning Storm DeLarveries potential identity as theStonewall Lesbian, I referred to: Concerning Sylvia Riveras role in inciting the riots, I referred to: Concerning Marsha P. Johnsons role in inciting the riots, I referred to: James Gallagher, in Pay It No Mind - The Life and Times of Marsha P. Johnson. Johnson and Rivera acted as house mothers, guiding and protecting the young people. To share with more than one person, separate addresses with a comma. In 2019, the head of New York's Police Department apologised for their actions, saying, "the actions taken by the NYPD were wrong". Police allowed Seventh Avenue to be closed while Johnson's ashes were carried to the river. We do this by organizing, advocating, creating an intentional community to heal, developing transformative leadership, and promoting our collective power." The Marsha P. Johnson Institute is dedicated to supporting Black Trans communities. Twenty-five years later, Victoria Cruz, a crime victim advocate of the New York City Anti-Violence Project (AVP) re-opened the case. For anyone wanting to learn more about drag queen and activist Marsha P. Johnson, this entire documentary is available for free on Youtube! VideoWatch Newsround - signed and subtitled, Wildflowers fit for a king: Special seeds for schools to mark coronation, County Antrim pupils record special coronation hymn. [11], Johnson was a founding member of the Gay Liberation Front and co-founded the radical activist group Street Transvestite Action Revolutionaries (S.T.A.R. "[77] This added to the suspicions of foul play and possible murder. Her desire for traditional feminine clothing quickly drew a reprimand from her father, a General Motors assembly line worker and housekeeper mother, as well as from the larger society. Marsha P. Johnson was an African American drag performer and social activist. From the website: "The Marsha P. Johnson Institute (MPJI) protects and defends the human rights of BLACK transgender people. We hope you and your family enjoy the NEW Britannica Kids. In her own words, during a fated interview just 11 days before her death, Marsha expressed: How many people have died for these two little statues to be put in a park to recognize gay people! Shes said that the town had zero tolerance for LGBTQ people and as a woman assigned male at birth, she left as soon as she could. ), alongside close friend Sylvia Rivera. AGender Variance Whos Who provides a short biography of Marsha, as well as a list of further readings, and links to a video of a panel discussion with several people who knew Marsha. It was like Oh my God. Resources Astrological Sign: Virgo, Death Year: 1992, Death date: July 6, 1992, Death State: New York, Death City: New York City, Death Country: United States, Article Title: Marsha P. Johnson Biography, Author: Biography.com Editors, Website Name: The Biography.com website, Url: https://www.biography.com/activists/marsha-p-johnson, Publisher: A&E; Television Networks, Last Updated: September 9, 2022, Original Published Date: December 14, 2017. Johnson gradually cultivated a unique personality and style and eventually began calling herself Marsha P. Johnson. and 18% of those were based on violence perpetrated by police." She is best remembered for her generosity and kindness, happily giving away her belongings, or spending her last two dollars on cookies to share around. She also began to perform as a drag queen initially going by the name "Black Marsha . If you listened to our podcast on drag queen and activist Marsha P. Johnson, and you want to learn more, heres a list of all the sources we used. In 1970, along with fellow activist Sylvia Rivera, she founded STAR - the Street Transvestite Action Revolutionaries - which aimed to provide food, housing, legal aid, and other necessities to homeless trans youth. We are very excited to be coming back from hiatus tomorrow just in time for Pride Month! Download the official NPS app before your next visit, Gay liberation activist, AIDS activist, performer, seven-acre waterfront park in Brooklyn to Marsha P. Johnson. "[71] "I believe [Jesus is] the only man I can truly trust. She was 46 at the time of her death. "[65], Johnson would also make offerings to the saints and spirits in a more personal manner, keeping a private altar at home when possible. [41] Only weeks later, Johnson would also turn up dead under similar circumstances. The flagrant disregard for the life of someone who was Black and queer caused outrage in the community at the time, in an early echo of the type of purpose that powers the Black Lives Matter Movement. The Village AIDS Memorial, on the other hand, attempts to reach a higher ideal, and with names of actual New Yorkers who died, theres no denying the diversity of the LGBTQ community is represented with this memorial. Accessible across all of today's devices: phones, tablets, and desktops. A month after the protests, the first openly gay march took place in New York - a pivotal moment for the gay and trans community everywhere. Marsha P. Johnson (August 24, 1945 - July 6, 1992), also known as Malcolm Michaels Jr., [3] [4] was an American gay liberation [6] [7] activist and self-identified drag queen. https://digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/510d47e3-5fa8-a3d9-e040-e00a18064a99. And he said, 'You know, you might wind up with nothing.' [6] Johnson was known as the "mayor of Christopher Street"[13] due to being a welcoming presence in the streets of Greenwich Village. There is power speaking the names of victims aloud. The P purportedly stands for Pay It No Mind, a flippant saying she used to dismiss antagonists. The same safe and trusted content for explorers of all ages. During the fight he used a homophobic slur, and later bragged to someone at a bar that he had killed a drag queen named Marsha. The Marsha P. Johnson Institute (MPJI) protects and defends the human rights of BLACK transgender people. argued that an individual should have the final say over what medical across the USA. American drag queen and activist Marsha P. Johnson was dedicated to social justice for the gay and transgender communities. At this time, being gay was classified as a mental illness in the United States. Despite this, following the events at Stonewall, Johnson and her friend .css-47aoac{-webkit-text-decoration:underline;text-decoration:underline;text-decoration-thickness:0.0625rem;text-decoration-color:inherit;text-underline-offset:0.25rem;color:#A00000;-webkit-transition:all 0.3s ease-in-out;transition:all 0.3s ease-in-out;}.css-47aoac:hover{color:#595959;text-decoration-color:border-link-body-hover;}Sylvia Rivera co-founded the Street Transvestite Action Revolutionaries (STAR) and they became fixtures in the community, especially in their commitment to helping homeless transgender youth. Street Transvestite Action Revolutionaries by Leslie Feinberg (2006). We can be as active and resilient as Marsha P. Johnson because our fights are far from over." [6][10][11] Though some have mistakenly credited Johnson for starting the riots, Johnson was always forthcoming about having not been present when the riots began. Johnson spearheaded the Stonewall uprising in 1969 and along with Sylvia Rivera, she later established the Street Transvestite (now Transgender) Action Revolutionaries (STAR), a group committed to helping homeless transgender youth in New York City. Johnson was known for her immense generosity. This In June 1969, when Marsha was 23 years old, police raided a gay bar in New York called The Stonewall Inn. Provo, UT, US: Ancestry.com". 2023 BBC. During a tempestuous Christian childhood, around the age of five, Johnson began to dress as a girl. [30] Johnson received leftover flowers after sleeping under tables used for sorting flowers in the Flower District of Manhattan, and was known for wearing crowns of fresh flowers. Birth Year: 1945, Birth date: August 24, 1945, Birth State: New Jersey, Birth City: Elizabeth, Birth Country: United States. In fact, it was likely a Black drag king with a complex gender identity from Louisiana named Storm Delarverie who threw the first brick by punching a police officer. [29] Also discussed are Johnson's experiences of the dangers of working as a street prostitute in drag, and Johnson's husband who was murdered. American drag queen and activist Marsha P. Johnson was dedicated to social justice for the gay and transgender communities. Her life has been celebrated in numerous books, documentaries and films. In 1963, Johnson graduated from Edison High School and promptly moved to New York City with $15 and a bag of clothing. Do you find this information helpful? Marsha is honored as a Stonewall instigator, a drag queen, an Andy Warhol model, an actress and a revolutionary trans activist. Marsha, who was living and working in New York at the time, was one of the key figures who stood up to the police during the raids. (A drag queen is a man who dresses as a woman to entertain others.) [45], Carter writes that Robin Souza had reported that fellow Stonewall veterans and gay activists such as Morty Manford and Marty Robinson had told Souza that on the first night, Johnson "threw a shot glass at a mirror in the torched bar screaming, 'I got my civil rights'". This is where we get a lot of first-hand information from Marsha and most of the quotes of hers which I mentioned in the episode. "[73], Near the time of Johnson's death in 1992, Randy Wicker said Johnson was increasingly sick and in a fragile state. Marsha P. Johnson (Source: USA Today / Originally Netflix . PROTECT AND DEFEND THE HUMAN RIGHTS OF BLACK TRANS PEOPLE! The LGBTQ community was fed up with being targeted by the police and seeing these public arrests incited rioting that spilled over into the neighboring streets and lasted several days. It was common for young gay and trans people to be kicked out of their family homes by their parents. I also mentioned some statistics on the current realities of violence and homelessness for trans people in the USA today, especially trans women of colour. [5] As Edmund White writes in his 1979 Village Voice article, "The Politics of Drag", Johnson also liked dressing in ways that would display "the interstice between masculine and feminine". Johnson came out and said "my life has been built around sex and gay liberation, being a drag queen" and sex work. [45] Souza told the Gay Activists Alliance shortly afterwards that it "was the shot glass that was heard around the world". [31] Johnson was tall, slender and often dressed in flowing robes and shiny dresses, red plastic high heels and bright wigs, which tended to draw attention. Johnson commented, "How many people have died for these two little statues to be put in the park to recognize gay people? I also want to add that just because I referenced these sources doesnt mean I agree with everything they say. Marsha and good friend Sylvia Rivera, who was also an activist , founded STAR - Street Transvestite Action Revolutionaries - an organisation to support gay and trans individuals who had been left homeless. In honour of their upcoming 50th anniversary, well be talking about the Stonewall Riots. Johnson subsequently joined the Gay Liberation Front, which was a catalyst for the gay rights movement. However, none of Johnson's friends or relatives believed Johnson was suicidal. [45][37] Johnson denied starting the uprising. Its available on Netflix. She worked both as a waitress and a sex worker. Marsha P. Johnson Biography, Biography.com, December 14, 2017, https://www.biography.com/people/marsha-p-johnson-112717; Sewell Chan, Marsha P. Johnson A transgender pioneer and activist who was a fixture of Greenwich Village street life, The New York Times.com, March 8, 2018, https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2018/obituaries/overlooked-marsha-p-johnson.html; Eric Marcus, Marsha P. Johnson & Randy Wicker, Making Gay History, March 2, 2017, https://makinggayhistory.com/podcast/episode-11-johnson-wicker/. In the same year, Johnson and Rivera founded Street Transvestite Action Revolutionaries (STAR), which clothed, fed, housed, and advocated for transgender youth from a tenement on the lower eastside. [39], In David France's documentary, The Death and Life of Marsha P. Johnson, Johnson is seen participating in a 1980s memorial service and action for those who've died of AIDS, along with members of the Gay Men's Health Crisis. Marsha P. Johnson (Left) and Sylvia Rivera (Right), Gay Pride Parade, New York City, 1973. Then ask: The police ruled her death a suicide, although friends and family cited a lack of evidence supporting that claim. Marsha was believed to be the person who threw the first piece of debris at the police and led several of the events that unfolded on the 3 days post-raid. [59] According to Bob Kohler, Johnson would walk naked up Christopher Street and be taken away for two or three months to be treated with chlorpromazine, an antipsychotic medication. The Gay Liberation Youth Movement in New York: An Army of Lovers Cannot Fail by Stephen Cohen (2007). Sources:Goodin, Cal. "The Unsung Heroines of Stonewall" National Parks Conservation Association Blog, October 1, 2020. the hole in her head). The Marsha P. Johnson Institute is a fiscally sponsored project of Social Good Fund, a California nonprofit corporation and registered 501 (c) (3) organization, Tax ID (EIN) 46-1323531. [13] Prior to Carter's book, it was claimed Johnson had "thrown a brick" at a police officer, an account that was never verified. She is credited for being an instigator in the Stonewall riots. [62] Johnson was one of the activists who had been drawing attention to this epidemic of violence against the community, participating in marches and other activism to demand justice for victims, and an inquiry into how to stop the violence. [56][57] While the original location of STAR House was evicted in 1971 and the building was destroyed,[54] the household existed in different configurations and at different locations over the years. The two of them became a visible presence at gay liberation marches and other radical political actions. treatment they underwent to affirm their gender identity. Marsha P. Johnson was one of the most prominent figures of the gay rights movement of the 1960s and 1970s in New York City. About Press 2021 Impact Report Donate Subscribe to our Newsletter Resources/ Organization This website uses cookies to improve your experience. The two most extensive sources on Marsha are both documentaries: Pay It No Mind- Michael Kasinos 2012 documentary. David Carter conducted many of his own interviews for this book. These stats were sourced hereand here. During a tempestuous Christian childhood, around the age of five, Johnson began to dress as a girl. [20], Johnson initially used the moniker "Black Marsha" but later decided on the drag queen name "Marsha P. Johnson", getting Johnson from the restaurant Howard Johnson's on 42nd Street, stating that the P stood for "pay it no mind"[25] and used the phrase sarcastically when questioned about gender, saying "it stands for 'pay it no mind'". To re-enable the tools or to convert back to English, click "view original" on the Google Translate toolbar. The witness said that when he tried to tell police what he had seen his story was ignored. Primary sources like this reel-to-reel recording offer crucial insight into LGBTQ history in its historical complexity, providing a window into Johnson and Rivera's ideas about gender and sexuality and political vision at the dawn of gay liberation. From 1987 through 1992, Johnson was an AIDS activist with ACT UP. [38] Johnson, who was also HIV positive,[39] became an AIDS activist and appeared in The Hot Peaches production The Heat in 1990, singing the song "Love" while wearing an ACT UP, "Silence = Death" button. Marsha P. Johnson was a well-known face in New York Citys Greenwich Village, where she lived on the street for many years. Much of Marsha's life was dedicated to helping others, despite suffering several mental health issues. [62][41], Johnson's body was cremated and, following a funeral at a local church, and a march down Seventh Avenue, friends released Johnson's ashes over the Hudson River, off the Christopher Street Piers. Finally, she decided shed make her own fun and started checking out the local scene. (A drag queen is a man who dresses as a woman to entertain others.) Johnson. "[72] Johnson succeeded in pulling Kohler's shirt off and throwing it into the Hudson River. She announced in a June 26, 1992 interview that she had been H.I.V. [12] Johnson was also a popular figure in New York City's gay and art scene, modeling for Andy Warhol, and performing onstage with the drag performance troupe Hot Peaches. Several documentaries have been made celebrating Johnsons life and activism. This documentary uses 1992 interview footage taken with Marsha just weeks before her death, as well as a lot of footage of people who knew her talking about her. Images of Marsha P. Johnson from Andy Warhols 1975 series Ladies and Gentlemen. Read about our approach to external linking. Gay people were regularly threatened and beaten by police, and were shunned by many in society. In 2020 New York Governor Andrew Cuomo announced that a 7-acre (3-hectare) waterfront park in the New York City borough of Brooklyn was being renamed for Johnson. Marsha "Pay it No Mind" Johnson moved to Greenwich Village in 1963 with a high school diploma and $15 to her name. Photographed by Diana Davies.]. Just like 44% of Black trans women living in America today, Marsha was HIV positive and notably took care of many people with AIDS on their deathbeds. [5][15][16][17] Commenting on this upbringing, Johnson said, "I got married to Jesus Christ when I was sixteen years old, still in high school. In the 1980s Johnson became an AIDS activist and joined ACT UP, an organization formed to bring attention to the AIDS epidemic. It was the source of a lot of my background on life for queer youth on the streets of New York, as well as containing some information about Marsha. After the funeral, a series of demonstrations and marches to the police precinct took place, to demand justice for Johnson. After the NYPD reopened the case, the police reclassified Johnson's cause of death from "suicide" to undetermined. On the second night, however, several eyewitness accounts had her climbing up a light post with a brick in her purse which she promptly let drop on a police squad car below, shattering the window. Key moments of black history in the United States, Watch Newsround - signed and subtitled. According to Marshas roommate, gay rights activist Randy Wicker, someone stepped forward claiming to be an eyewitness to the murder of Marsha P. Johnson, but his testimony was ignored by investigators. Notes:[1] Marsha's body was recovered from the Hudson River. Database on-line. Astrological. Marsha P. Johnson grew up in Elizabeth, New Jersey, with her mother. It includes an interview with Marsha, which was the source of her definitions of drag queen, transvestite, and transsexual, which I quote in our podcast. She had $15 and a bag of clothes. A neighbor also said Johnson would pray, prostrate on the floor in front of the statue of the Virgin Mary, in the church across from Randy Wicker's apartment (where Johnson lived in later years). How many years [does it take] for people to realize we are all brothers and sisters and human beings in the human race.. This website uses cookies to improve your experience. If you listened to our podcast on the Stonewall Riots, and youre keen to learn more, heres a list of the sources that I used when researching the episode. Marsha P. Johnson was an African-American gay man and drag artist - someone who dresses extravagantly and performs as a woman - from New Jersey, whose activism in the 1960s and 70s had a huge. Who Is Trans TikTok Influencer Dylan Mulvaney? Best Known For: Marsha P. Johnson was an African American transgender woman and revolutionary LGBTQ rights activist. LGBTQ people were routinely rousted, hassled, and arrested on questionable charges. [5] Johnson spoke of first having a mental breakdown in 1970. [78], According to Sylvia Rivera, their friend Bob Kohler believed Johnson had committed suicide due to an ever-increasing fragile state, which Rivera herself disputed, claiming she and Johnson had "made a pact" to "cross the 'River Jordan' (aka Hudson River) together". Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. [20][45], Johnson was one of the first drag queens to go to the Stonewall Inn, after they began allowing women and drag queens inside; it was previously a bar for only gay men. [45], Johnson has been named, along with Zazu Nova and Jackie Hormona,[46] by a number of the Stonewall veterans interviewed by David Carter in his book, Stonewall: The Riots That Sparked the Gay Revolution, as being "three individuals known to have been in the vanguard" of the pushback against the police at the uprising. She was a leader in the LGBTQ community helping their youth that were struggling with homelessness and discrimination and hate. On May 30, 2019, it was announced that Johnson and Sylvia Rivera would be honored with monuments at Greenwich Village, near the site of the Stonewall club. [41] Johnson had been speaking out against the "dirty cops" and elements of organized crime that many believed responsible for some of these assaults and murders, and had even voiced the concern that some of what Randy Wicker was stirring up, and pulling Johnson into, "could get you murdered. LGBTQ+ stands for lesbian, gay, bi, trans and queer. The police ruled she had committed suicide despite claims from her friends and other members of the local community that she was not suicidal. We're not around right now. It does provide some information about Marshas early life not found elsewhere. Marsha P. Johnson was a trans-rights activist who played a big role in important moments for the LGBTQ+ movement, such as the Stonewall protests. It was incredibly useful in putting together our podcast on Marsha, and well worth a look. Further, she talks about the impact the person on plaque #1 of the Village AIDS Memorial had on her life: Ed Murphy was the one who put me in the Stonewall Car in 1980; he took me from the back of the parades and put me up-front.. As the broader gay and lesbian movement shifted toward leadership from white cisgender men and women, trans people of color were swept to the outskirts of the movement. Marsha is one of many Black Trans women that have left a powerful stamp on history. [13], In 2016, Victoria Cruz of the Anti-Violence Project also tried to get Johnson's case reopened, and succeeded in gaining access to previously unreleased documents and witness statements. She is credited for being an instigator in the Stonewall riots. "I was no one, nobody, from Nowheresville until I became a drag queen. Marsha picketing Bellevue Hospital to protest their treatment of queer people c.1970, holding a sign reading Power to the people. Marsha was educated in the Elizabeth Public School System and graduated from Thomas A. Edison High School in 1963. Marcus Mayer, one of the first people who noticed her corpse floating near the Christopher Street Pier, would go on the record to describe the horror they felt with the way the New York Police Department treated her remains: It was very nasty because the way they pulled her out. To learn more about Marsha, check out our podcast! Marsha P. Johnson was an African American drag performer and social activist. Sadly, at the age of 46, on July 6, 1992, Johnsons body was found in the Hudson River off the West Village Piers. .css-m6thd4{-webkit-text-decoration:none;text-decoration:none;display:block;margin-top:0;margin-bottom:0;font-family:Gilroy,Helvetica,Arial,Sans-serif;font-size:1.125rem;line-height:1.2;font-weight:bold;color:#323232;text-transform:capitalize;}@media (any-hover: hover){.css-m6thd4:hover{color:link-hover;}}Afeni Shakur.