d be dead in less than five years (Kramer himself has now been positively diagnosed with the AIDS virus). If my speech tonight doesn't scare the shit out of you, we're in real trouble. If what you're hearing doesn't rouse you to anger, fury, rage, and action, gay men will have no future here on earth. How long does it take before you get angry and fight back?"
The other main gay political organization, New York's GMHC, was more therapeutic than political. Kramer, a man who seldom hesitates to speak his mind, has criticized GMHC for devoting insufficient energy to political lobbying and advocacy--the New York group was always more focused on patient services--and pleaded for stronger leadership. He stated that all power is the willingness to accept responsibility. The consequence of inaction was death; thus, ACT UP's slogan, "Silence equals death" was born.
GMHC, the largest and perhaps most widely known community-based AIDS organization, was also born around the same time as ACT UP. Like ACT UP, it was a pioneer among gay activist AIDS organi
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