How Gay Activists in San Francisco Educated the World About AIDS

A San Francisco nurse named Bobbi Campbell was the first person to publicly announce he had a cancer associated with AIDS in 1981. Around this time, he convinced a Castro drugstore to display pictures of his lesions to educate other gay men in the city. This was the beginning of an activist-led campaign to alert the gay community of a new disease that has since affected millions around the world. And while initially federal officials were turning a blind eye, local activists were shaping San Francisco into the epicenter of a movement that still resonates today.

Guest: Sarah Hotchkiss, KQED Arts’ Visual Arts Editor

Read more of KQED Arts’ series Pride as Protest.

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