The article reflects on the author's experience as a young gay man in the 1980s and his connection to the work of activist Larry Kramer. The author recalls how Kramer's play, 'The Normal Heart,' depicted the early struggles during the AIDS epidemic and emphasized the importance of community organization. It describes pivotal moments within the play where the need for action and unity is stressed, specifically through the character of Ned Weeks. The author acknowledges how Kramer's insights about fighting back became a foundation for the AIDS Coalition to Unleash Power (ACT UP). It highlights the enduring impact of Kramer's work on the fight against AIDS.
In a pivotal scene, just before Ned Weeks, Larry's alter ego and the play's main character, is booted off the board of the organization he helped found, he screams at Bruce Niles, the organization's president: "It's happened before. It's all happened before. History is worth shit. I swear to God I now understand... Is this how so many people just walked into gas chambers?"
Ned Weeks continued a few minutes later: "Until we organize ourselves block by neighborhood by city by state into a united visible community that fights back, we're doomed. That's how I want to be defined: as one of the men who fought the war."
I am thinking of Larry now because he was right: It wasn't until gay men and their allies organized in ACT UP-the AIDS Coalition to Unleash Power-that our community broke through.
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