July 6, 1992: Today in LGBTQ+ history: Marsha P. Johnson is found dead…
Marsha P. Johnson was a transgender entertainer and activist at the forefront of some of the most pivotal moments in LGBT history. A veteran of the Stonewall Riots, she worked with Sylvia Rivera in the 1970s to found Street Transvestite Action Revolutionaries (STAR), an organization that provided shelter to homeless queer youth in New York City. Johnson also left her mark on the NYC cultural scene, posing for Andy Warhol and posthumously providing inspiration for the name of Antony Hegarty’s band, Antony and the Johnsons.
On July 6, 1992, her body was discovered floating in the Hudson River, near the Christopher Street piers. The police quickly ruled her death a suicide, despite the fact that her close friends and community members insisted Johnson was not suicidal and that the back of her head had a massive wound.
Finally, in 2012, transgender activist Mariah Lopez got the New York City Police Department to reopen the investigation. The case officially remains open.
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