15 Transgender People You Should Know

From TS Madison to Laverne Cox, these individuals have made strides in queer communities and beyond.

Marsha P. Johnson - From the '60s to the '90s, American transgender rights activist Marsha P. Johnson was known as an immensely popular figure in New York City's gay and art scene. Johnson exercised her passion for transgender rights by spearheading the Stonewall Riots, where she often clashed with the police. Furthermore, she was known as one of the city's most infmaous drag queens, and co-founded Street Transvestite Action Revolutionaries (S.T.A.R.) with fellow trans woman Sylvia Rivera. Tragically, in July 1992, shortly after the 1992 Pride March, Johnson's body was found floating in the Hudson River off the West Village Piers. Though police initially ruled her death a suicide, her peers insisted she wasn't suicidal and protested until police reopened the case as a possible homicide.(Photo: Pay It No Mind/Redux Pictures)
Carlett A. Brown - Paving the way for the trans activists of today, Carlett A. Brown started her journey while serving in the Navy during the 1950s. Introduced by JET Magazine, which she historically covered, as one to attempt the "First Negro Sex Change." She worked as a shake dancer to earn money for gender affirmation surgery after discovering that she was intersex during her time of service. During this time, the surgery she sought was not legal in the United States, so she traveled to Denmark, where her first procedure was done.(Photo: JET Magazine)

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Carlett A. Brown - Paving the way for the trans activists of today, Carlett A. Brown started her journey while serving in the Navy during the 1950s. Introduced by JET Magazine, which she historically covered with the headline the "First Negro Sex Change." She worked as a shake dancer to earn money for gender affirmation surgery after discovering that she was intersex during her time of service. The surgery she sought was not legal in the United States, so she traveled to Denmark, where her first procedure was done. (Photo: JET Magazine)

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