Before Stonewall became a rallying cry, before Pride was a celebration, there was Stormé DeLarverie—a trailblazing performer, activist, and the woman many believe threw the first punch at the Stonewall riots. A biracial, butch lesbian and longtime drag king, Stormé spent her life challenging gender norms and defending her community. On the night of June 28, 1969, when police raided the Stonewall Inn, Stormé fought back, helping to spark the rebellion that ignited the modern LGBTQ+ rights movement.
A New Orleans native, Stormé DeLarverie was born in 1920 to a Black mother and a white father. As a biracial lesbian growing up in the South, she faced more than her share of adversity. In the 1950s and 1960s, DeLarverie was part of a traveling drag show, The Jewel Box Revue, in which she performed as a male impersonator.
Related: Remembering Storme DeLarverie
There are a number of photos of her from this period: rocking a tuxedo, looking dapper in a flannel suit, or brooding like a bad boi in a leather jacket. And inside those flamboyant clothes was a hero with a heart of gold.
After she died in 2014 at the age of 91, hundreds gathered outside the Stonewall Inn to celebrate the life of one of our movement’s heroes. In 2001, In The Life Media profiled Stormé and asked her about her upbringing in New Orleans, her stage career, and her involvement in the Stonewall uprising.
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