The misguided myth of Patient Zero
Gay in the 80s Blog
by Colin Clews
2y ago
“For years, several successive editions of a top-selling medical dictionary [Mosby’s Medical Dictionary] – a type of publication frequently considered to bear the ultimate imprimatus of authority – contained an entry for ‘Patient Zero’ which read: “an individual identified by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) as the person who introduced the human immunodeficiency virus in the United States”…The entry…remained unchanged until the tenth edition (2017)”. The above quote, from Richard McKay’s book Patient Zero and the Making of the AIDS Epidemic, indicates just how deeply the ..read more
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1986. Bowers v Hardwick. Upholding US anti-sodomy laws
Gay in the 80s Blog
by Colin Clews
2y ago
  I don’t know who owns this photo but will happily remove or acknowledge ownership if contacted by the owner. On 30th June 1986 the United States Supreme Court handed down its judgement in the Bowers v Hardwick case. It found in favour of Georgia Attorney General Michael J. Bowers. In so doing it validated not only Georgia’s anti-sodomy law but the anti-sodomy laws of many other US states that had this antiquated piece of legislation on their statute books. The Bowers v Hardwick case had its origins in an incident early on the day of August 3rd 1982. Police officer Keith Torick had ent ..read more
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Perry Watkins: Army Homophobia, Queer Community Racism
Gay in the 80s Blog
by Colin Clews
2y ago
Perry Watkins was 19-years old when he received his Army call-up papers in August 1967. It was the middle of the Vietnam War so, like to most other young American men, he didn’t want to go. Watkins had been openly gay since he was a school student and made no exception when it came to completing his Army papers. When it came to the question ‘Are you a homosexual?’, he ticked the ‘Yes’ box.  In doing so, he assumed that that would be the end of his draft procedure and he would be rejected as unsuitable. But that didn’t happen. “They sent me in to a psychiatrist, who said to me – he baited ..read more
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Movie: After 82
Gay in the 80s Blog
by Colin Clews
2y ago
I’ve written extensively in this blog and my book about the early days of HIV/AIDS. And with a new TV drama – It’s a Sin – currently playing in various countries, there’s been a renewed interest in that period. So it’s timely that a documentary about the impact of HIV/AIDS in the UK has also been released recently. In After 82 survivors talk about their experiences of those dark days when no treatments were available and an HIV diagnosis was generally seen as a death sentence. The only issue was how long it would take and whether much suffering would be involved. Respondents come from a varie ..read more
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HIV/AIDS: 1987, BBC Documentary ‘Remember Terry’
Gay in the 80s Blog
by Colin Clews
2y ago
On December 18th 1987, the UK’s BBC Two broadcast ‘Remember Terry’. It was a documentary about the life – and ultimate death – of Terry Madeley, one of the first people in the UK to go public about their AIDS diagnosis. The programme followed Terry through the last 18 months or so of his life with the producer, Pattie Coldwell, talking to him as well as a range of others who were part of his life. Participants ranged from family and friends to doctors and former colleagues. His mother features strongly and she talks quite openly throughout, from the point where we first meet Terry, through the ..read more
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1983. Gay Monopoly: A Celebration of Gay Life!
Gay in the 80s Blog
by Colin Clews
2y ago
Monopoly first appeared in 1935 and since that time it’s makers have produced it in a variety of themes. Some of the more intriguing include an ABBA theme, a ‘007’ theme and a Klingon theme (I kid you not). It would seem almost inevitable then, that we’d see a gay version. And so we did – albeit very briefly – when ‘Gay Monopoly: A Celebration of Gay Life!’ appeared in 1983. As you’d expect, a gay version would have to be very different from all the other Monopoly iterations. And so it was. starting with the layout. Liberally decorated with Tom of Finland style illustrations – as well as image ..read more
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1987. First National Black Gay Men’s Conference in UK
Gay in the 80s Blog
by Colin Clews
2y ago
On 31st October 1987, the UK saw its first ever national conference of Black gay men. Under the title In This Our Lives, participants considered a range of issues. These included Black Lesbian and Gay history, fears and prejudice within the Black community, spirituality, bisexuality and a range of health issues. Organised by the London Black Lesbian and Gay Centre, it was held at Hampden Community Centre in North London. Black men from cities like Manchester, Leeds, Leicester and Bristol attended. But despite the obvious importance of such a conference it seems that there were few, if any, tan ..read more
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1983-85. Television: Gay Morning America
Gay in the 80s Blog
by Colin Clews
2y ago
The first slide in the opening sequence for Gay Morning America. Photo Credit: Collection #49, Gay Morning America, The LGBT Community Center National History Archive, For many of us, the television acronym GMA means either Good Morning Australia or Good Morning America. But from 1983-1985 there was another meaning – Gay Morning America. Gay Morning America was a weekly TV show that ran on public-access cable network in New York City. The first two seasons ran from 7.30-8.30 am on Friday mornings, presumably so that viewers could watch it before heading off to work. The third and final seaso ..read more
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1984. Lou Sheldon and the Traditional Values Coalition (TVC)
Gay in the 80s Blog
by Colin Clews
2y ago
Interesting to note that rabid homophobe Lou Sheldon chose Pride month to die.  Sheldon spent the majority of his life peddling vile propaganda to block any advancement of queer people in the USA. In 1974 he campaigned against California’s decriminalisation of consenting acts between adults in private. By 1977 he was the California Executive Director for homophobe Anita Bryant’s ‘Save Our Children’ campaign. The following year he ran the Briggs Initiative campaign: Senator John Briggs’ attempt to bar queer people from teaching in public schools in California. The Initiative was lost, but ..read more
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HIV/AIDS: A Brief History of AZT – Part Two
Gay in the 80s Blog
by Colin Clews
2y ago
In my last post I outlined the clinical tests that led to the approval of AZT/Zidovudine as the first anti-HIV drug. What I want to do now is look at some of the non-clinical issues that surrounded the approval and use of the drug. I’m sure this list is far from exhaustive so I’m more than happy to hear about other issues. 1) An Expensive Distraction Not everyone believed that HIV was the cause of AIDS (see, for example, here). So, for them, any pursuit of anti-HIV treatments simply distracted attention – and, more importantly, funding – from research into the real cause(s) of AIDS. 2) Approva ..read more
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