Felicia Elizondo

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Felicia Elizondo
LGBTQ activism
Websitefeliciaflames.com

Felicia Elizondo (July 23, 1946 – May 15, 2021) was an American

transgender woman with a long history of activism on behalf of the LGBT community. She was a regular at Gene Compton's Cafeteria in San Francisco during the time of the Compton's Cafeteria riot, a historic LGBT community uprising.[3]

Early life

sheepherder, died when she was three years old.[2] From the age of five, she knew that she was "different".[2] At age 14, she moved to San Jose, California, with a gay man, and began to spend time in the Tenderloin neighborhood of San Francisco in her teens.[5]

At age 18, Elizondo joined the

dishonorably discharged in 1965.[2][4] She later successfully petitioned to have her discharge changed to honorable.[2]

Elizondo speaking at an August 2016 event in San Francisco

Activism and career

In the 1960s, Elizondo was a patron of Gene Compton's Cafeteria in San Francisco, where the Compton's Cafeteria riot, an LGBT community uprising, occurred in 1966, three years before the Stonewall riots in New York City.[3] She was featured in Screaming Queens: The Riot at Compton's Cafeteria, a 2005 documentary co-directed and produced by Susan Stryker and Victor Silverman.[3][6]

Elizondo

gay clubs under the name Felicia Flames.[4][8]

Elizondo was diagnosed as

women of color to combat racism in the community.[9]

Elizondo moved to San Francisco permanently in 1991.[2] In 2014, she worked with San Francisco supervisor Jane Kim to get the 100 block of Turk Street renamed to Vicki Mar Lane in honor of her late friend, drag performer Vicki Marlane.[10][11] In 2016, she again worked with Kim to rename the 100 block of Taylor Street to Gene Compton's Cafeteria Way.[12] Elizondo appeared at a number of events in 2016 to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Compton's Cafeteria riot.[13]

Elizondo served as the lifetime achievement grand marshal in the 2015 San Francisco Pride Parade.[3][8]

Death

Elizondo died on May 15, 2021, in San Francisco, at 74.[14]

References

  1. ^ "Testimonies: Trans Lives Matter". First Congregational Church of Oakland. June 14, 2015. Archived from the original on September 14, 2016. Retrieved August 29, 2016.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k "Interview with Felicia Elizondo [6/29/2007]". Veterans History Project. American Folklife Center. June 29, 2007. Archived from the original on September 23, 2016. Retrieved August 30, 2016.
  3. ^ a b c d e f Sayed, Khaled (June 25, 2015). "Elizondo revels in lifetime of service". Bay Area Reporter. Archived from the original on January 14, 2017. Retrieved August 29, 2016.
  4. ^ a b c d "Two community leaders to be honored at SF Pride parade". KTVU. June 23, 2015. Archived from the original on September 24, 2016. Retrieved August 29, 2016.
  5. ^ a b c d e Bajko, Matthew S. (April 24, 2014). "Transgender women reflect on a lifetime of change". Bay Area Reporter. Archived from the original on September 11, 2016. Retrieved August 29, 2016.
  6. ^ Pasulka, Nicole (May 5, 2015). "Ladies In The Streets: Before Stonewall, Transgender Uprising Changed Lives". NPR. Archived from the original on August 29, 2016. Retrieved August 29, 2016.
  7. ^ Hotchkiss, Sarah (July 21, 2016). "The Night That Trans Women Rioted for Their Rights at a Tenderloin Cafeteria". KQED. Archived from the original on September 13, 2016. Retrieved August 29, 2016.
  8. ^ a b c Nahmod, David-Elijah (May 2, 2016). "With 50th Anniversary Approaching, Trans Activist Seeks Recognition For Compton's Riots". Hoodline. Archived from the original on September 21, 2016. Retrieved August 29, 2016.
  9. ^ Bajko, Matthew S. (April 25, 2014). "Ethnic Transgender Women Reflect on a Lifetime of Struggle and Change". New American Media. Archived from the original on October 14, 2016. Retrieved August 30, 2016.
  10. ^ Meronek, Toshio (May 2014). "Trans community gets a public face" (PDF). Central City Extra. Archived (PDF) from the original on June 30, 2016. Retrieved August 30, 2016.
  11. ^ Williams, Kale (April 23, 2014). "S.F. block named for trans icon Vicki Marlane". SFGate. Archived from the original on September 14, 2016. Retrieved August 30, 2016.
  12. ^ Bajko, Matthew S. (May 19, 2016). "Political Notebook: SF honors transgender history with street naming". Bay Area Reporter. Archived from the original on September 11, 2016. Retrieved August 29, 2016.
  13. ^ Hopkins, Brittany (July 25, 2016). "Tenderloin, GLBT Museums Host Events For 50th Anniversary Of Compton's Cafeteria Riot". Hoodline. Archived from the original on September 21, 2016. Retrieved August 29, 2016.
  14. ^ Laird, Cynthia (May 15, 2021). "Trans activist and AIDS survivor Felicia Elizondo dies". The Bay Area Reporter. Retrieved May 16, 2021.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Felicia Elizondo.
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