# @gettyimages on Instagram

- **Type:** Image
- **Original URL:** https://www.instagram.com/p/CB3avTFFvZO
- **Gondola URL:** https://gondola.cc/posts/16446095-gettyimages-instagram
- **Thumbnail:** https://img.gondola.cc/tr:w-,h-,fo-auto/thumbnails/e226d80ed4.jpg
- **Posted:** 2020-06-25T17:08:56.000+00:00
- **Account Owner:** Getty Images (@GettyImages) — https://gondola.cc/GettyImages

## Caption

"History isn't something you look back at & say it was inevitable, it happens because people make decisions that are sometimes very impulsive & of the moment, but those moments are cumulative realities."
LGBTQ+ activist & the unofficial Mayor of Christopher Street, Marsha P. Johnson attends the second Gay Liberation Day – the forerunner of Pride – in New York, 1971. Held to mark the anniversary of the 1969 Stonewall riots, Johnson played an instrumental role in the demonstrations, sustaining the moment into a movement.
A self-identified drag queen, the ‘P’ in her name stood for “pay it no mind” – Johnson’s response when asked about her gender. Performing with the drag theatre group Hot Peaches & modelling for Andy Warhol, she was a vital figure in the Greenwich Village arts scene, recognised for her flowing dresses & floral crowns, and respected for her advocacy.
In 1970, Johnson founded the Street Transvestite Action Revolutionaries (STAR) with Sylvia Rivera, a transgender collective that campaigned along intersectional lines. Establishing STAR House in 1972 with Johnson & Rivera as mothers, the project provided a home & support to the most vulnerable & marginalised members of the community. Johnson herself would rely on sex work to fund STAR, and faced homophobic violence & police brutality throughout her life. Both Johnson & Rivera also faced discrimination, as drag queens, from other gay & lesbian organisations. Barred from the 1973 Pride March, the pair chose to proudly march ahead of the parade instead.
A trailblazing voice in the call for LGBTQ+ rights, during the 1980s Johnson became a marshal of the AIDS Coalition to Unleash Power (ACT UP).
In 1992, Johnson’s body was found in the Hudson River & her death ruled a suicide. After a campaign from friends & activists, the case was reopened in 2012 & reviewed as a possible homicide. It remains unsolved.
Her legacy is a powerful one, with the Marsha P. Johnson Institute today seeking to eradicate violence against & elevate the Black trans community. 📷: Fred W. McDarrah/Getty Images | gettyarchive | #MovingTheWorldWithPride #GettyImagesPride ⁠#MarshaPJohnson #GettyImages25 #PreservingThePast #GettyArchive

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## Tags

gettyimages25, marshapjohnson, preservingthepast, movingtheworldwithpride, gettyimagespride, gettyarchive

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