One of the biggest surprises that I found when reading about the Stonewall riots was the requirement for there to be a perfect culmination of characteristics in order for the event to leave a lasting impact on the Gay Liberation Movement. Armstrong and Crage show that for an event to be influential it needs to be commemorative, mnemonic, resonant, and it must have “potential for institutionalism” (727). After reading the paper, this “perfect storm,” so to speak, of characteristics required for commemoration make sense. They explain why the Stonewall riots, as opposed to any of the countless other riots that occurred, are now viewed as the turning point in the history of Gay Liberation. In contrast to other riots, the participants of the Stonewall riots included both members of more marginalized groups in the LGBT community (such as poor trans women of color) as well as more privileged groups (such as affluent white gay men). The participation of the privileged groups allowed for broader media coverage and induced more outrage than the marginalized groups would have induced alone. Because of this, however, it is understandable, yet still inexcusable, as to why the more marginalized rioters, despite having a greater impact on the outcome of the riots, have been left out of the history of the Stonewall riots.
Before the readings, I only knew that Marsha Johnson and Sylvia Rivera were part of the Stonewall Riots. I did not know how greatly they impacted the outcomes of the riots until after I had finished the readings. Marsha Johnson was a poor black trans woman who lived on the streets and found ways to make money as a sex worker (Rivera, 6). Although she failed to gain recognition for it, Johnson was a large contributing factor to the Stonewall riots. Johnson believed that the trans community had to work for themselves in order to improve their own situation. Her suggestion to other trans people living in areas without the support of STAR was to create a STAR branch themselves because “if transvestites don’t stand up for themselves, nobody else is going to stand up for transvestites” (Rivera, 28). Johnson knew this because she had lived through it. Despite being a pivotal participant in the Stonewall riots, Marsha Johnson and all trans people, were removed from bills that would advance their cause because the members of the gay community believed that their bill would pass more easily if they left out the trans community. Johnson knew that even the gay community would not always look out for the members of the trans community so the trans community had to look out for themselves.