Sylvia Rivera was a Puerto Rican & Venezuelan trans rights advocate from the Bronx. She had a fluid gender identity and self-identified as a drag queen. Sylvia was instrumental (along with her friend Marsh P. Johnson) in the Stonewall Riots. She threw the second bottle at the police. She and Marsha later co-founded STAR (Street Transvestite Action Revolutionaries) and STAR house serving homeless, transgender youth. She and Marsha kept the organization and house afloat with money earned from sex work. Sylvia fought tirelessly advocating for LGBTQ rights in NY but unfortunately, the gay rights organizations and their political agenda overlooked and excluded the poor, transgender, and people of color. A frustrated Sylvia left activism for 20 years before returning to reprise her role in the fight until her death in 2002. #LGBTQHistory #QTPOCHistory #HispanicHeritageMonth #SylviaRivera #Intersectionality
Happy #LGBTQHistoryMonth! Let’s make sure it’s as #intersectional as possible!
Updated: Nov 6, 2019
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