I now realize that I am a gay man before anything else. Other gays may think they're a Jew first, or black, or a banker, but I'm gay.
Larry KramerRead
We didn't exist. Ronald Reagan didn't say the word 'AIDS' until 1987. I've tried desperately to get a meeting in the White House; Gay Men's Health Crisis is already an established organization. I have a certain presence.
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote highlights the struggle for recognition and support in the fight against AIDS during the 1980s.
Larry Kramer speaks about the lack of acknowledgment and action from political leaders regarding the AIDS epidemic during its early years. He emphasizes the urgency of gaining attention and resources from the government as organizations like Gay Men's Health Crisis were already working tirelessly to address the crisis, yet faced significant obstacles in securing meaningful dialogue and support.
Themes
AidsActivismRecognitionHealthGovernmentSocial Justice
In practice
Example use cases
This quote could be used in a speech about the importance of advocating for marginalized communities.
More from Larry Kramer
All quotes →AIDS is a plague - numerically, statistically and by any definition known to modern public health - though no one in authority has the guts to call it one.
Larry KramerRead
I think being gay and gay people are the most wonderful things in the world. I wish all of us could have the power and pride to benefit from what is rightfully ours. Why isn't there an enormous building in Washington called the 'National Association of Lesbian and Gay Concerns' to lobby for us?
Larry KramerRead
The most important fact is that gays have been here since day one. To say otherwise is a gross denial and stupidity. We played an enormous part in the history of America.
Larry KramerRead
AIDS was allowed to happen. It is a plague that need not have happened. It is a plague that could have been contained from the very beginning.
Larry KramerRead
I was at Yale from 1953 to 1957, and I tried to commit suicide in my freshman year because I was gay, and I thought I was the only person in the school who was. I was just totally and utterly miserable.
Larry KramerRead
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