Who is Marsha P. Johnson honored by Google today?

Marsha P. Johnson is an activist and pioneer of the African-American transgender movement. But much of Johnson's life was ostracized by society.

Nearly 30 years after her death, she is honored with her social activities that were previously denied life, with stories of her activities circulating on Instagram like never before, bringing Her legacy came to the attention of a new generation of fans during the month of Pride.

Marsha P. Johnson on the Google logo today. (Image: Google doodles)

Along with being a social activist, Johnson was also a towing artist, a prostitute and an integral part of New York's Greenwich Village street life for three decades.

Marsha P. Johnson likes to wear skirts from the age of 5

Marsha P. Johnson was born with the name Malcolm Michaels Jr. On August 24, 1945 in Elizabeth, New Jersey, there were six siblings in the family. Johnson's father is Malcolm Michaels Sr., an assembly line worker at General Motors. Johnson's mother, Alberta Claiborne, is a butler.

Marsha P. Johnson first started wearing a skirt at the age of five, but this action of her was harassed by neighbor boys, forcing her to stop.
In a 1992 interview, Johnson described himself as a young victim of sexual assault by a minor boy.

Later, Johnson described the idea as gay as "a dream" , rather than reality and so chose to be asexual until leaving for New York City at the age of 17.

After graduating from the former Edison High School (now Thomas A. Edison Institute of Technology and Career) in Elizabeth in 1963, Johnson left home to New York City for $ 15 and a bag of clothes. After meeting gay people in the city, Johnson finally felt he had found the truth of the river for his life.

Marsha P. Johnson, Joseph Ratanski and Sylvia Rivera in 1973 were painted by Gary LeGault.

At the age of 23, after a police raid on gay village bar, Stonewall Inn on June 28, 1969 Marsha P. Johnson became the leader of the gay rights movement.

After being arrested, Johnson and others - including her close friend, Sylvia Rivera, a gay liberation and transgender Latina activist - led a series of rebellions to oppose the raid.

Not only did the first Gay Pride parade take place in 1970, but Johnson and Rivera went on to form STAR (Street Transvestite Action Revolutionaries), to support young transgender people. Johnson spends most of his life helping others, though suffering from mental health failures which means she is in and out of the mental hospital.

Marsha P. Johnson - A whole life of fighting for gay people

After the Stonewall uprising, Johnson joined the Gay Liberation Front and participated in the first Christopher Street Liberation Pride rally on the first anniversary of the Stonewall rebellion in June 1970. One of the direct actions that caught Johnson's attention when she had a direct conversation in August 1970.

Protest at the Weinstein Hall at New York University along with GLF members after the manager canceled a dance they discovered was sponsored by gay organizations.

Shortly thereafter, Johnson and close friend Sylvia Rivera co-founded the Transvestite (STAR) organization (originally known as the Street Transvestites Actaries Revolutionaries). The two of them have become an integral part of gay liberation marches and other radical political actions.

In 1973, Johnson and Rivera were banned from participating in gay parades prided by gay and lesbian committees who were subject to event management stating they were "not going to allow the queens to drag" at the march of They claim they have "given them a bad name".

Marsha P. Johnson has always been an integral part of the gay rights struggle. (Image: Wikipedia)

Their reaction is to march defiantly before the parade. During a gay rights demonstration at New York City Hall in the early 70s, taken by Diana Davies, a reporter asked Johnson why the group was protesting, Johnson shouted into the microphone:  "Darling I want my gay right now! ".

While interviewed for a book in 1972, Johnson said that her ambition was to see homosexuals being liberated and free and having equal rights as others in the United States.

Marsha P. Johnson mainly takes costumes from the trash, often seen wearing bright red high heels, stacking jewelry, colorful wigs (made entirely of artificial fruit) and sequin-studded dresses. avoid. Such elaborate appearance has become part of her pulling character (Johnson is a founding member of the Hot Peaches pulling group).

Johnson's enthusiasm and perseverance in the face of social stigma at the time was why her story resonated to this day, when many of the battles she fought were not yet fought. won.

According to a 2019 report, up to 331 transgender and gender diverse people were killed worldwide in the year to September, including one in the UK and nine in Europe. Learning from Johnson's example, the struggle for equality and acceptance continues.

At the time of his death in 1992, Johnson was said to be increasingly ill and in a fragile state. Johnson's body was discovered floating on the Hudson River shortly after the pride parade in 1992.

Thanks to Marsha P. Johnson, for inspiring people everywhere to stand up to be themselves.