Marsha P. Johnson

One reason Johnson was such an important activist was that she was a very selfless person who always put others before herself, as shown in this quote: “Rivera and Johnson launched Street Transvestite Action Revolutionaries (STAR), an organization dedicated to sheltering young transgender individuals who were shunned by their families” (Solly). Marsha P. Johnson helped those who were in unfortunate predicaments. She created an organization to help shunned transgender youth, because she went through that herself. This exemplifies how she took her own life trauma and made sure nobody else had to experience it. She also did all of that while homeless. “She spent most of her own life homeless and destitute and experienced severe mental illness”(Solly). Johnson spent most of her time helping others, even when she was homeless, which shows her dedication to the service of her community. She helped others even when she was struggling with her own mental health. This is shown when she “had a series of mental breakdowns and had visited the psychiatric ward many times, but this was not visible in her activism” (Cody). Even when she was having her own mental health issues, she still put her life’s work first and didn’t let it get in the way. She put other people’s needs before her own, no matter what. She kept fighting for others’ rights throughout her life, which did make her unpopular among some groups. On July 6, 1992 Johnson’s body was found in the Houston River. People originally thought that she had killed herself, but her close friends suspected that she had been murdered (Rothberg). Since 1992 was at the time the worst year for anti-LGBTQ+ violence, this idea makes sense. Marsha P. Johnson gave everything to the movement she believed in and was eventually killed for it. Even though she did not choose to be murdered, she still accepted the risks of advocating for minority groups and did not let the danger dissuade her. The selflessness of Johnson’s work is extremely admirable and deserving of recognition, as shown in her impact on the lives of the LGBTQ+ community. 

  Marsha P. Johnson's impact on the lives of these communities was important not only for the policy changes it caused, but also because of the impact it left on the people she interacted with. Marsha tirelessly worked for the rights of minority groups, such as homeless LGBTQ+ youth, and those affected with HIV (Solly). She helped those in need. In order to shake up her part of the world she needed to do something big, so she helped those who needed her most. She helped all of these struggling people with a smile on her face, even in the face of discrimination, sexism and homophobia. She was also impactful on the people she met. The director who did the documentary on Marsha P. Johnson knew her personally, and said many things about her, such as, “‘a kind of saintly presence...we all know of her central involvement in the Stonewall riot… the days after, there were just a handful of people who got  together to form the Gay Liberation Front -- the first of the modern gay rights organizations… She built the foundation for the movement. She was the archetype”(Reynolds). Johnson clearly had a large impact on the director.  She was as important to many others. Her impact on people changed the way many viewed the communities she was a part of. She inspired many to create and be themselves, as evidenced by the creation of the documentary. Marsha P. Johnson had a huge impact on those around her, and deserves to be remembered.