A presentation I did to talk to my youth group about Sylvia Rivera, a transgender woman who was an activist in many ways but also a participator and inciter in the Stonewall Riots. It includes a video of her reaction to the outcasting of trans* and gender non-conforming people from the Christopher Street Day Parade.

1. {
Sylvia Rivera
American, bisexual, and transgender activist

2.  Born in 1951 in New York City
 Died in 2002
 Puerto Rican and Venezuelan
 Became an orphan at 3 years old
 Raised by grandmother who disapproved of
Sylvia’s gender presentation
 Became homeless at 11 years old
 Joined a community of drag queens
Early Life and Basic Facts

3. Activism and Stonewall
 Began early activism
against the Vietnam
War, civil rights,
feminism, Young Lords
and Black Panthers
 Battled substance abuse
and homelessness
 Participated/incited in
the Stonewall Riots

4. {
After Stonewall came the
Christopher Street
Parade, the predecessor of
the Pride Parade.
Assimilationist gay and
lesbian individuals
rejected gender non-
conforming people, trans
people, and drag
culture, leading Sylvia to
clash with lesbian and gay
groups.
Post-Stonewall Ostracism
 See the video of Sylvia by
going to
http://vimeo.com/45479858

5. STAR and Trans Activism
 Established Street
Transvestite Action
Revolutionaries (STAR)
and created a safe
space for homeless
trans women.
 Became ‚the Rosa
Parks of the modern
transgender
movement‛

6. Life Struggles
 Best friend Marsha P.
Johnson, co-founder of
STAR, found dead in
1992.
 Continued to struggle
with homelessness,
depression, and
addiction.

7. {
In the last five years of her
life, Sylvia continued to
fight for the rights of
transgender people and
LGB people, not only
doing her part to address
homelessness but fight for
trans inclusion in human
rights laws, reinstating
STAR as political org. She
even negotiated on her
death bed.
Later Life Activism

8. {
Sylvia Rivera passed away in 2002 due to complications
from liver cancer and is sometimes not recognised for the
part she played in Stonewall.
Death

9. Continued Legacy
 The Sylvia Rivera Law
Project, named in her
honour, and is dedicated
"to guarantee that all
people are free to self-
determine gender identity
and
expression, regardless of
income or race, and
without facing
harassment, discriminatio
n or violence".

10.  ‘Still at the Back of the Bus': Sylvia Rivera's
Struggle
 A Woman for Her Time: In Memory of
Stonewall Warrior Sylvia Rivera.
 Sylvia Rivera: 1951-2002.
 Remembering Sylvia Rivera.
 Sylvia Rivera Law Project.
More About Sylvia

11. The End