Essay On Sylvia Rivera

I believe that Sylvia Rivera is one of the three most important LGBTQ+ figures in America since 1970, because of her actions during her lifetime and the legacy that she left behind. In particular, her activism called out the conservative and exclusionary politics of LGBT rights groups in the 1970s, and the erasure of transgender women and drag queens from larger movements despite their significance to those groups. Much of Rivera’s activism focused on the inclusion and protection of transgender people, and that legacy continues today. For example, the Sylvia Rivera Law Project, an organization that provides legal help to non-cisgender people of color, is named in her honor and fights for many of the same causes that Sylvia herself did. Sylvia, along with her friend and fellow activist Marsha P. Johnson, formed the organization Street Transvestite Action Revolutionaries (STAR) in the 1970s, to advocate for and house homeless drag queens in New York City. Although STAR was not a particularly long-lasting organization, Sylvia’s work through STAR and the Metropolitan Community Church of New York left their mark, and the Metropolitan Community Church of New York’s shelter for LGBT youth is named after Sylvia. Because of her impact upon the LGBT community during and after the 1970s, I think that Sylvia Rivera would be an excellent choice for one of the three most important LGBTQ+ figures since 1970.

Jenni Rivera is not only a Mexican-American singer, but she is a woman who has been through so much that can be considered an example for many people. In a press conference, Jenni said, “I am a woman like any other, and ugly things happen to me like any other woman. The number of times I have fallen down is the number of times I have gotten up”. This quote is saying that it doesn't matter what your situation is... there is always a way to get past it. Anybody can be as strong as Jenni is, and anyone can get through any obstacle in their life. Jenni Rivera is a game changer because she has been through so much and has gotten past it; she is a woman with so many values and so much love.

Maya Angelou is a leading literary voice of the African-American community. She writes of the triumph of the human spirit over hardship and adversity. “Her style captures the ca-dences and aspirations of African American women whose strength she celebrates.” (Library of Chattanooga State, n. d.) Maya has paved the way for children who has had a damaged

Two months before the beginning of the 21st century, Melanie Pillaca-Gutierrez was born in South Florida. She grew up in a sunny suburban community and attended Park Trails Elementary as the only latina in her kindergarten class. At five years old, she was oblivious to the stares she received for the color of her skin or the language she spoke with her parents. Short years after that, she became passionate and vocal against the discrimination and lack of representation her people faced.

I attended “Queer Brown Voices Platica” at the Esperanza Peace and Justice Center in San Antonio, Texas, on October 10, 2015. “Queer Brown Voices, Personal Narratives of Latina/o LGBT Activism” delves into the personal discrimination experiences inflicted upon them not only from the population at large but also from within their own Hispanic communities and their struggle to disrupt the cycle of sexism, racism and homophobia. One of the three books editors, Letitia Gómez (Leti), is my sister-in-law. To fully comprehend their fights to survive and be relevant in mainstream America is awe inspiring. Their activism was not only to negate the prejudices but also for equal access to healthcare particularly during the HIV/AIDS epidemic in the 1980’s.

When she was younger she never knew that there were books about Chicanos. She was never told she could succeed being Spanish. Anzaldua says, “For days I walked around in stunned amazement that a Chicano could write and get published.” (Anzaldua 379.) After learning this she really does her research and she finds out that there is poetry, music and movies all about the Spanish heritage. She talked about how she had pure joy whenever she found new poetry she could read, “ it made me have a sense of belonging” (Anzaldua 379.) Growing up every Thursday night, her and her family would pile up in the car with a cooler full of water and bologna and cheese sandwiches and head to the drive in. Thursday nights the drive in consisted of Spanish related movies, some of them were Nosotros los probes and Cuando los hijos se

Luisa Moreno, a Guatemalan-American born in nineteen-o-seven(1907) in Guatemala City under her real name of Blanca Rosa Lopez Rodrigues. Is a fine example of ‘The American Dream’ of where she fought for the right of the Latino-immigrations and other Latino-American (mostly Xicanos) along with other civil right groups of colors durning her time in the States, with her leftist idealogy, and demond for justice and to be treated as a citizen instead of a third class ‘w*tback.’ Being born in an upper-class family in Guatemala in nineteen-o-seven (1907) moving to Mexico than to United States (New York City, NY) in nineteen-twenty-eight (1928) with her first husband. Within a few years when the Great Dressipion hit the United States she worked as

She found her home to a community of sex workers. She left that community at the age of 18 and became one of the instigators of the Stonewall uprising. She was an eighteen year old drag queen that was a part of the crowd that was gathered outside the stonewall Inn. According to “LGBTHistoryMonth”, “Rivera reportedly shouted, "I'm not missing a minute of this, it's the revolution!" As police escorted patrons from the bar, Rivera was one of the first bystanders to throw a bottle.” After the Stonewall, Rivera joined the Gay Activist Alliance and fought to pass the New York City Gay Rights Bill. She also fought hard against the exclusion of transgender people from the Sexual Orientation Non-Discrimination Act in New York, and was a loud and persistent

Maya Young (her name is misspelled in the article), a 25 year old trans woman of color, was brutally murdered on Sunday, February 21st. She was a self professed geek who loved music, video games and playing Magic the Gathering. Like so many trans people she turned to prostitution to make enough money to live. In an interview a friend and former roommate who called her 'Twix', due to a birthmark on her face; said 'She was sweet, like candy. She loved people and loved being around people. She was a dreamer.'

The Venezuelan telenovela series “Juana la Virgen”, was adapted into a new CW series called “Jane the Virgin”. The creator, Jennie Snyder Urman, has taken the plot of the original series and has put in different obstacles and ‘new fun twists’ to her show (Deadline.com). The show revolves around a young, aspiring teacher named Jane Villanueva. Jane is a 23 year old, Catholic, Latina residing in Miami, Florida. Being in a serious relationship of two years with her boyfriend Michael, she has always worked hard to follow the footsteps of her grandmother, who is also Catholic and Latina, as she remains abstinent until marriage. However, her gynecologist, Dr. Luisa Alver, mistakes her for another patient and inseminates her with her boss’s sperm during at her routinely check up (IMDb.com).

Recently I watched a documentary that was really eye opening. It really pushed me out of my comfort zone and showed a different side of the world that I have never been exposed to. It is a documentary called Mala Mala directed by Antonio Santini, and Dan Sickles. I came across it on Netflix and thought I’d give it a chance. It really surprised me. Santini and Sickles interview a variety of individuals who represent a wide spectrum within the trans-gender community in Puerto Rico. Each individual has different motivations, different lifestyles and different ways of seeing themselves. While some are very flamboyant, others do their best to blend in with society and lead ordinary lives. The one thing they all have in common is that they want their

Marsha P. Johnson, an African American transwoman is identified as one of the first people to fight back against the police during the early start of the Stonewall Riots. Her and many other African American transwomen were the leaders in that monumental year that really began the big push for the fight for LGBT rights as we know it today, and yet, they are rarely mentioned or remembered by popular culture for their efforts. That erasure is not simply a onetime occurrence, African American transwomen are often ignored and not given any visibility in the LGBT nor African American community. The single most evident part of this invisibility, in my opinion, is the utter lack of media/press and discussion of the murders of these young women.

Being the vigilant and hardworking woman that she knows herself to be, Sylvia is a woman who is not very keen on giving up on something she finds passion in. Being involved in the mining industry for a long time, she has experienced working conditions which can be described as over whelming and extravagant. Being the proud feminist that she saw herself, she was strong and capable to be part of the mining industry while keeping concepts of her femininity intact. Sylvia was proud to be a woman in the occupation of mining even though it was a male dominated industry and she never once doubted her choice to continue in the industry. She had many struggles in mining mostly concerning her gender and her will power to withstand the pressures that came with the occupation.

In “Phenomenal Woman” you can see just how much they value themselves. “ It’s in the reach of my arms, the span of my hips, the stride of my step, the curl of my lips”(6). Many wonder what’s the secret to black beauty and Maya simply states everything she loves about herself to answer them. “ Tighten’ up my fro, wrappin up in my blackness, don’t I shine and glow?”(Ain’t That Bad 5). For years black women have loved and embraced everything about them. Their beauty simply defies all beauty. These 3 pieces of Maya Angelou’s work is here to show the pride black people take in themselves. Your culture is what makes you who you are and if you don’t have pride in your culture, do you have pride in

I could relate to Juana because she was young like me and my family including my baby daddy were at loggerheads with me and this made me very depressed because I didn’t have anyone to break bread with. The only thing that kept me going was the foetus inside me and Juana La Virgen’s story.