“You had to have on three articles of clothing that accorded to your gender. That was a law. So females had to have three pieces of women’s clothing. It could be whatever, as long as the cop decided to accept it.”
- Sylvia Rivera
Marsha P. Johnson
Leader in a New Frontier of Inclusivity in the LGBTQ+ Rights Movement
The Gay Rights Movement in the 60's and 70's
The 1960’s and 1970’s were a period of transformation for the gay rights movement. Organizations advocating for gay rights, such as the Mattachine Society and the Daughters of Bilitis, had existed since the 1950’s, however, the 1960’s brought a new wave of activism that was heavily influenced by the ongoing civil rights movement. Activists turned towards protests and riots in order to gain acknowledgement in their push for equal rights. In the year 1960, gay people were targeted by sodomy laws that existed in all but one state, and transgender people were targeted by laws that prevented cross-dressing.
“The early 60s was not a good time for drag queens, effeminate boys or boys that wore makeup like we did. Back then we were beat up by the police, by everybody.”
- Sylvia Rivera
Police brutality towards gay individuals and raids on gay bars and community spaces were common, resulting in several important riots and protests. These included the riot at Compton’s Cafeteria in San Francisco in 1966, a “sip-in” staged at Julius’ bar in New York in 1966, and the riot at the Stonewall Inn in 1969.
[ Davies, Diana. “Stonewall Inn.” September 9, 1969. New York Public Library. ]
[ Geerdes, Clay. “Compton’s Cafeteria.” 1970. San Francisco Chronicle. ]
Marsha P. Johnson
Marsha P. Johnson was born on August 24, 1945, and left her home when she was 18 to move to New York. She was a transgender woman, however she often referred to herself as a “transvestite” or a “drag queen”; the term “transgender” was coined in 1965, however it was not widely used until years afterwards.
[ Warhol, Andy. “Ladies and Gentlemen (Marsha P. Johnson).” 1975. The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts. ]
“I started out with makeup in 1963-1964 and in 1965 I was coming out more and I was still wearing makeup. But I was still going to jail just for wearing makeup. In 1969, I started wearing female attire full time.”
- Marsha P. Johnson