Stormé DeLarverie was born in New Orleans to a white father and black mother. During her childhood, she often faced bullying for been biracial. DeLarverie discovered her baritone voice and her love for jazz music at a young age, and at age 15, she began to sing at clubs in New Orleans. Around 18 years old, she realized she was gay and left the city, finally settling in NYC.
In 1955, at the age of 35, DeLarverie joined the Jewel Box Revue – the first racially integrated drag show in the US. She was the only women drag king alongside 25 male drag queens. During the shows, she wore tailored three-piece suits, and with or without her wardrobe, she could pass as either a woman or a man, black or white. At the time, the law required people to wear clothing that matched their assigned gender, and DeLarverie, who obeyed the law, was arrested a couple of times for wearing women’s clothes, been identified as a man in drag. Afterward, DeLarverie wore her suits in the streets and not only on stage. Her androgynous looks inspired other lesbians to wear more “manly” clothes. Today she is credited for influencing gender-nonconforming fashion, years before the unisex style became a trend.
In the early hours of June 28, 1969, 49 years old DeLarverie finished a show and came to the Stonewall Inn gay bar in Greenwich Village. As happened occasionally, the police raided the bar and arrested the people in it, including her, a woman in man’s clothing. During the arrest, she was pushed and hit by at least four policemen. She fought back and shouted to the bystanders, “Why don’t you guys do something?” Though it is unknown who threw the first punch, the rumors said it was her. The crowd began to fight back, and the six days rebellion became known as the Stonewall Riots. This event initiated the gay rights movement.
In the following month, DeLarverie co-founded the Stonewall Veteran’s Association. Throughout the years, she served in various positions in the organization, including Chief of Security, Ambassador, and vice president. For the next few decades, DeLarverie worked as a bouncer in lesbian bars across the city and volunteered to patrol the streets of Greenwich Village with a concealed rifle to protect gay people and keep them safe from the “ugliness” – her term for intolerance, bullying or abuse against the queer community. She also organized benefits for women and children who experienced domestic violence. In her last years, DeLarverie suffered from dementia and lived in a nursing home in Brooklyn. She died at the age of 93.
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