Can we shout out Stormé DeLarverie this pride month?
DeLarverie (1920-2014) was a Black butch lesbian and drag king for whom being credited as the one who incited the Stonewall Uprising—never call it a riot, DeLarverie “wasn’t no f’ing rioter!”—is one of the less interesting things about him. In the decades prior to Stonewall, they were in the Jewel Box Revue, a traveling drag revue that went all over the US, popularizing and showcasing Black drag two decades before RuPaul was even born. DeLarverie was at the Stonewall Inn on the night of June 27th, 1969 and undoubtedly took part in the Rebellion, though he denied being the first to start throwing bricks and shot glasses. What isn’t up for debate is that, after retiring as a drag performer in their 40s, he devoted nearly three decades to the armed protection of gay establishments in New York, especially those catering to lesbians. The community was able to give back to their stalwart protector in the end and DeLarverie died in the care of community at the age of 93 and was honored in many publications.
*Stormé DeLarverie’s pronouns are the subject of some debate**. Most sources default to she/her, but I felt this erased DeLarverie’s identity as a drag king. Others have mixed she and they, while the Stonewall Rebellion Veterans Association uses he/him pretty exclusively on their website. An oft repeated quote is that DeLarverie responded to the pronoun question with whatever “makes YOU most comfortable”. I feel most comfortable using a mix of pronouns, favoring he/they, in honor of Stormé DeLarverie’s queer expression.
**I told you the “first brick at Stonewall thing” was one of the less interesting things about this wondrous lesbian icon. Just his pronouns warrant this much attention and reverence!
