Without her, LGBTQ+ rights and acceptance wouldn’t be where it is today. Unabashed and unafraid to stand up for who she was and what she believed in, Marsha P. Johnson took the world by storm and powerfully influenced how we perceive gender and sexuality.

As a Black, poor, transwoman, life couldn’t have been easy for Johnson in the ‘60s. But even through her mental illness and hardships, she persevered and brought joy and hope into the lives of others.

One of the amazing things Johnson did was co-found STAR house, which she saw as a refuge for homeless LGBTQ+ youth. She envisioned bringing together the community because at the time, transvestites were not as accepted by other gays. Although considered an “other,” Johnson worked hard so that nobody would feel that way.

“I’d like to see the gay revolution get started,” Johnson said during an interview with Voices of Gay Liberation. “When straight people [...] don’t see an action they think, ‘gays are all forgotten now, they’re worn out, they’re tired.”

And Johnson did act. While celebrating her 25th birthday on June 28th, 1969 at the Stonewall Inn—a bar in New York City where the gay community could comfortably get together—the pub was raided and Johnson was one of the first to resist. She ended up being a key figure in the Stonewall Riots and paved the way for today’s gay civil rights movements.

With all that’s going on in America right now, Johnson’s life and legacy reminds us to fight for our rights with the mindset that if you don’t, nobody will.