In June, five young men were diagnosed with a rare lung infection, pneumocystis carinii pneumonia (PCP). This would later become recognized as the first outbreak of cases of Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome, or AIDS, in the United States. The AIDS crisis happened as anti-LGBTQ crusaders started to increase their backlash against the community. Both the AIDS Crisis, which had been inappropriately named to demonize the LGBTQ+ community at the time, as well as the rising anti-LGBTQ sentiments, had led to a ‘dark ages’ period in terms of visibility and progress in civil rights. In response though, there was an increase in activists fighting for LGBTQ civil rights like Connie Norman in LA, Marsha P. Johnson in NYC, and Lou Sullivan in San Francisco.
