Marsha P. Johnson

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Marsha P. Johnson, a prominent figure in the gay liberation movement of the 1960s and 1970s, dedicated her life to advocating for the rights and visibility of transgender individuals and the LGBTQ+ community. Her contributions to the fight for equality, her role in the Stonewall Uprising, and her revolutionary activism have solidified her legacy as a trailblazer in the ongoing struggle for LGBTQ+ rights. Marsha P. Johnson was born on August 24, 1945, in Elizabeth, New Jersey, into a working-class, religious family. Assigned male at birth, Johnson began to express her gender identity at a young age, often wearing dresses, which prompted bullying and violence from other children. Despite hiding her authentic self due to societal pressure, Johnson moved to New York City immediately after graduating high school with little more than the clothes she was wearing. There, she found solace and community among other LGBTQ+ individuals and adopted the full name Marsha P. Johnson - the “P” stands for “Pay It No Mind,” which is what Johnson would say in response to questions about her gender. Source

Lavender Balloon

I have a Lavender balloon

I’m going to blow it up

Quite soon

It’s going to take me

to the Moon

I’m simply waiting for

A tune

Together we’ll Fly Away

We’re going to Float right

through the day

We’re going to Drift right

through the Night

Together we’ll be

Out of sight

Me and My Lavender balloon

Published:

None

Length:

Shorty

Literary Movements:

Gay Rights Movement

Anthology Years:

2025

Themes:

Agency

Joy & Praise

LGBTQ+ Experience

Music & Sports

Literary Devices:

Assonance

The repetition of similar vowel sounds that takes place in two or more words in proximity to each other within a line; usually refers to the repetition of internal vowel sounds in words that do not end the same.

End Rhyme

when a poem has lines ending with words that sound the same

Rhyme

correspondence of sound between words or the endings of words, especially when these are used at the ends of lines of poetry