Marsha P. Johnson

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“No Pride for some of us without liberation for all of us.” – Marsha P Johnson

Who Was Marsha P. Johnson?

Marsha P Johnson was a Black transgender woman, drag queen, and activist. She was assigned male at birth on August 24, 1945, and recognized early on that she was more comfortable wearing clothing traditionally given to girls. She left home after graduating high school, and she transitioned publicly. She is known for referring to the “P” in her name as standing for “Pay It No Mind” when she was asked about her pronouns (she used she/her pronouns). The term “transgender” was not commonly used yet, so Marsha referred to herself with the term of the time period, which was transvestite. Raised as a Christian, she maintained her Christian faith throughout her life, frequently stating that a core belief she held was the equality of all of God’s children.

Masha faced significant discrimination as a Black trans woman, and turned to sex work in order to survive. On the streets, she met 11-year-old trans girl Sylvia Rivera, who she befriended and protected. Together, Marsha and Sylvia protected other unhoused sex workers, making sure they were fed and had a safe place to sleep. In 1970, after the Stonewall uprising, they founded the Street Transvestite Action Revolutionaries (STAR)

Stonewall

The Stonewall uprising was sparked on June 28, 1969, after a police raid on the Stonewall Inn, a gay bar in Greenwich Village, New York. We know that Marsha was at the Stonewall uprising. While various lore suggests she did everything from starting the uprising by throwing a brick to climbing on a lamp pole to smash police car windshields, there are no records of her specific contributions. All we know is that she was a part of the uprising, fighting for the rights of the entire LGBTQ+ community in the ongoing Gay Civil Rights movement.

Activism

As a founding member of the Gay Liberation Front, a united group of several Gay and Lesbian advocacy groups, Marsha P. Johnson focused on education and immediate mutual aid. She and Sylvia Rivera provided for the needs of the residents of STAR through their own sex work. They marched together in the first Pride parade in New York City on the one year anniversary of the Stonewall uprising, and several others. She also worked with the activism group ACT UP, an HIV/AIDS awareness group seeking to raise awareness of the AIDS epidemic in the 1980s and 1990s to encourage healthcare changes. ACT UP is still in existence today, fighting for health care access and education.

Personal Life

In 1990, Marsha P. Johnson was diagnosed with HIV herself. She continued with her activism through ACT UP and Gay Liberation Front until her death in July 1992. There are documented accounts of Marsha experiencing mental health issues, but her friends say those concerns did not impact her desire to live. Her body was found floating in the Hudson River in New York, with noted trauma to the back of her head. Initially ruled a suicide, her case was later opened as a possible homicide. Her case was never solved.

Legacy

The Marsha P. Johnson Institute was founded in 2019 to advocate for the rights of Black transgendered people. At the time of this writing, in February 2025, the website for the organization is down, but the social media remains up.

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