And The Band Played On

The polarization the AIDS crisis elicited in the gay community is best exemplified between how Larry Kramer and Paul Popham, two of the founders of the Gay Men’s Health Crisis (GMHC) approach their sexual identities. While Larry is openly and unapologetically gay and even critical of his own community, Paul prefers to remain less obvious and is wary of confrontation. Paul “prided himself on never getting involved in gay politics” (91) but it is the death of his friends that causes him to fundraise for the epidemic’s research and raise awareness of the disease. For Paul, it appears that being gay is a trait, while for Larry it is a way of life. Even then for the two men, they have differing degrees of transparency about their identities. For instance, while preparing invitations for one of their fundraisers, Paul is embarrassed about the appearance of the word “gay” in them and about his mailman knowing his sexual orientation, to which Larry retorts: “What about your doorman […] You drag tricks up to your apartment every night (135).

However, there also exists another level of shame as Larry notes at the home of a health director who is a closeted gay man.