Miss Major Griffin-Gracy, a pioneering figure in the transgender rights movement and a veteran of the historic Stonewall riots, passed away at the age of 78. Miss Major is most notable for her tireless advocacy and community organizing. For more than fifty years, she’s passionately fought the plight of transgender persons and other compatriots of color and marginalized communities. Born in Chicago to a US postal service administrator and beauty shop manager. Though she was dealt a tough hand early on, her struggles as an adolescent became the impetus for a lifelong commitment to advocating for equality and justice.
Miss Major’s journey started at a young age, having been introduced to drag by her parents with early exposure, including attending her first drag show. Their support faded when she began to connect with the performers. This lack of acceptance made for a very tough road for her. Because of this, she was kicked out of her college in Minnesota just for being trans. After this she relocated to NYC where she encountered even more systemic barriers, including navigating survival sex work.
In New York, Miss Major met Frank “Big Black,” who was an important mentor for her while inside penitentiaries. This relationship greatly influenced her personal life and activism that followed. It empowered her resolve to address the systemic injustices that transgender people experience. She saw, firsthand, the brutality of police violence, especially during the Stonewall Inn raid on June 28, 1969.
“The cops beat on you till you drop. Everybody that stood up to them went through that. It wasn’t pretty. It was a riot. We were fighting for our lives. It was so sad.” – Miss Major
After the Stonewall riots, Miss Major provided a jumping-off point for the LGBTQ+ community to reflect hope and resilience. She went on to establish Angels of Care. This cadre of trans women organized around the care of gay men who were dying in droves during the AIDS epidemic. Her impact extended well beyond the role of caregiver. She drove San Francisco’s first mobile needle exchange van, bringing life-saving services to the most vulnerable and at-risk.
Though she experienced opposition from entrenched entities, Miss Major opened San Francisco’s first drop-in center for trans sex workers. This campaign provided space, funding, and support to those most erased by society. She didn’t just pour herself into caregiving, she found the time and energy to start and helm the House of gg. This organization, called Telling It Like It Fuckin’ Is (Tilifi), provided an important space for trans people to commune, celebrate, and heal within their community.
Miss Major’s fierce activism-rebellious, joyous, unbroken spirit-defined her tremendous legacy. She always encouraged us to find joy and to fully live and be ourselves in the face of oppression.
“I’ve gotta make joy here, because it doesn’t exist in the normal world.” – Miss Major
Her fire for justice didn’t stop at her own lived experience. She was a vocal critic of efforts to stifle LGBTQ+ Americans and force them back into the 1950s.
“They want us to live in the 1950s. No. Get off our fucking backs and let us live … I know the world I would like to live in. It’s in my head, but I try my best to live it now.” – Miss Major
Throughout her lifetime, Miss Major Griffin-Gracy became one of the most celebrated pioneers and elders of the U.S. transgender rights movement. Her powerful legacy continues to shine with courage through the darkness. She fights fiercely for those that others can’t, won’t or don’t hear.