Sylvia Lee Rivera Research Paper

Sylvia Lee Rivera was a Venezuelan/Puerto Rican Stonewall veteran and transgender activist. Born in July of 1951, Sylvia Rivera was born in New York City as Ray Rivera. She was abandoned by her father, José Rivera early in life and became an orphan at three years old when her mother committed suicide by ingesting rat poison. Rivera was then raised by her grandmother, who did not agree with her behavior and fretted her femininity and sexuality and often beat her for being a “trouble maker” . At the age of 10, Sylvia left her grandmother and her neighborhood to seek a new life on 42nd Street in Times Square. This is where the drag queens and boy hustlers performed sex work. Although this left her homeless and estranged from her family, Rivera was able to find a place in this community. Early in her time on the streets, she met Marsha P. Johnson, a black street queen and her best friend for decades to follow.

Although Rivera left her …show more content…
Johnson came together again and found their own group called the Street Transvestite Action Revolutionaries otherwise known as STAR. The purpose of their group was to protect and provide to the street gay people, the street homeless people, and anybody that needed help at that time. STAR was the first group focused on homeless trans youth in New York City. The largest problem for trans youth was shelter. The first STAR house was a trailer truck located in Greenwich Village. It is reported that over two dozen STAR youth lived together in the trailer. Rivera and Johnson decided to get a permanent home at 213 Second Ave after a truck driver removed the trailer from the premises. Together, they fed the people, provided clothing and hustled to pay the rent. The STAR house was recognized as an organization for the first time in 1970 at a demonstration in East Harlem. The STAR house ran successfully for about 2 years until they were evicted for non payment of