In 1969, the abuse against the gay community in America could no longer be ignored. At the time, it was illegal to engage in gay behavior in public - like holding hands, kissing, or dancing with a person of the same sex. #velshi
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"Pay it no mind". It was a phrase that became popular in the '60s and '70s among members of the LGBTQ community. When facing hate, many adopted the mindset: Pay it no mind. #velshi
In 1969, the abuse against the gay community in America could no longer be ignored. At the time, it was illegal to engage in gay behavior in public - like holding hands, kissing, or dancing with a person of the same sex. #velshi
So, gay, lesbian, and transgender people flocked to bars and clubs where they could express themselves openly and socialize without worry. #velshi
The Stonewall Inn in New York's Greenwich Village was the hub for New York City's gay and trans men and women. Over time, in response to public pressure, bars like that became the target of violent police raids. #velshi
Police would storm into the Stonewall Inn. They'd haul patrons and staff out into the street and arrest them. But on a June night in 1969 on Manhattan's Christopher Street, gay and trans New Yorkers had had enough of the harassment. #velshi
They fought back and the Stonewall Uprising began. Marsha P. Johnson is thought by some to be the person who threw the first shot glass. 1969 was a tough time to be gay - and especially trans - in America, but Marsha P. Johnson was unapologetically herself. #velshi
Bold and fearless, she draped herself in elaborate outfits, painted her face with colorful makeup and told wild tales of modeling for Andy Warhol - tales that her brother would laugh off as just that: tales. #velshi
Indeed, her tales were almost always true. Marsha P. Johnson was a trailblazer, but her life was anything but rainbows and butterflies. She spent much of it living on the street. #velshi
That wasn't uncommon then, nor is it today, for gay and trans kids to be kicked out of their homes, without work, without money. #velshi
Back then, Marsha and her friend, Silvia Rivera, built a safe space for homeless gay and trans people with an organization called STAR: Street Transgender Action Revolutionaries. #velshi
Marsha P. Johnson amassed a cache of nicknames over the years: The Saint of Christopher Street, Drag Mother, Queen of the Village, the Rosa Parks of the LGBTQ movement. One day someone asked her what the "P" in her name stood for. Her answer: "Pay it no mind." #velshi
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