Sylvia Rivera July 2, β February 19, was an American gay liberation and transgender rights activist [ 3 ] [ 4 ] [ 5 ] who was also a noted community worker in New York. Rivera, who identified as a drag queen for most of her life [ 6 ] [ 7 ] [ 8 ] [ 9 ] and later as a transgender person , [ 10 ] [ 11 ] [ 12 ] participated in demonstrations with the Gay Liberation Front. With close friend Marsha P.
Rivera was born and raised in New York City and lived most of her life in or near the city; she was born to a Puerto Rican father and a Venezuelan mother. As a result, in , Rivera left home at ten years old and began living on the streets of New York. She was taken in by the local drag queens , including Marsha P. Johnson , who became Rivera's best friend and protector.
Rivera's activism began in after she participated in actions with the Gay Liberation Front 's Drag Queen Caucus and later joined the Gay Activists Alliance at 18 years old, where she fought for not only the rights of gay people but also for the inclusion of drag queens like herself in the movement.
Rivera's older friend Marsha P. Johnson had been Rivera's protector and friend since Rivera arrived in the city, and the two were close friends from through SONDA prohibits discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation in employment, housing, public accommodations, education, credit, and the exercise of civil rights. While Johnson freely admitted to not being the one to start the Stonewall riots , [ 21 ] [ 19 ] Johnson is one of the few people who multiple, independent witnesses all agree was instrumental in the week of rioting and "known to have been in the vanguard" of the pushback against police once the rioting peaked late the first night.
Johnson, who denied in multiple interviews that Rivera had been there. When the Stonewall riots occurred, Rivera was only 17 years old, and according to Bob Kohler , who was there on the first two nights of the riots, Rivera "always hung out uptown at Bryant Park" and never came downtown. Johnson told gay rights historian Eric Marcus that in the hours prior to Johnson arriving downtown to join the riots, Johnson had attended a party uptown and that "Sylvia Rivera and them were over in [Bryant] park having a cocktail.
