Primary Source Set: HIV/AIDS
The HIV/AIDS epidemic continues to be one of the most significant public health crises in the world. When AIDS emerged in San Francisco in the early 1980s, the effects on the gay community were devastating. In the face of federal government apathy, health workers, local activists, and community organizers demanded action and worked to provide care and support to their friends, lovers, and family members. The sources selected here will introduce you to the diverse responses and strategies employed in the first 20 years of the epidemic.
Still from ACT UP San Francisco demonstration video, 1989. Charles Cyberski Videotapes.
Selected Source Set
Additional Resources
“AIDS Treatment Activism: A Bay Area Story” online exhibit from GLBT Historical Society.
“They Were Really Us: The UCSF Community’s Early Response to AIDS” online exhibit on Calisphere.
Digitized AIDS material from GLBT Historical Society on Calisphere.
Pride videos featuring AIDS contingents over several years.
Contact reference@glbthistory.org for research questions or information about reproductions and permissions.
These primary source sets are just a small sampling of our digitized materials. Additional resources are available in our digital collections. Our extensive archival holdings are searchable through our catalog.