Assignment:
Literature of Loss: AIDS and ACT UP (1980-Present).
ONLY 300 words!
Discussion: AIDs and AIDs activism led to the creation of novels, plays, and autobiographies. Select one or more of this week's readings (or one other reading of your choice) and discuss the political and social legacy of AIDs literature.
1. How did it impact our reaction to AIDS, AIDS patients, and the gay community, for example? This is an open-ended question and students have the freedom to explore the literature and this question from multiple angles.
2. Do you agree with Shilts' thesis that the US government only made the AIDs epidemic worse?
Sources:
-ACT UP Oral History Project.
-Act Up Today
- Larry Kramer: 1,112 and Counting
- Interview with Larry Kramer.
- Sarah Schulman Explains How Rent Straightwashed Queer Lives and AIDS Activism
- RENT.