Marsha P. Johnson, born on August 24, 1945, was a pioneering Black transgender activist and a central figure in the LGBTQ+ rights movement. Johnson began wearing dresses at just five years old but stopped doing so after being harassed by other children. When she was 17, she changed her name and headed for New York City to start a new life. Johnson became a muse for famous pop artist Andy Warhol and an iconic fixture of the early drag scene in New York. Capitalizing on the momentum of gay liberation activism following the Stonewall Uprising, Johnson co-founded the Gay Liberation Front and later the Street Transvestite Action Revolutionaries (STAR), providing essential support and advocacy for homeless transgender, gender-nonconforming, and LGBTQ+ youth. In addition to her crucial role as a trans activist in the years after Stonewall, Johnson became an early AIDs activist after her own HIV-positive diagnosis. Johnson disappeared on July 4, 1992. Her body was discovered in the Hudson River two days later. Her death remains unsolved.
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Students will enhance their skills in historical analysis, chronological organization, and storytelling through the guided exploration of a collection of primary sources highlighting the Stonewall Uprising and its lasting impact on the fight for equality.
