Reconfiguring Trauma and Sexuality The AIDS epidemic in America brought forth a new wave of gay activism which aggressively fought back at the socio-political system that had repressed queers throughout modern Western history. Previous theoretical writings and activities had approached homosexuality from a more humanistic and assimilatory angle. Queer/AIDS activists such as ACT UP (AIDS Coalition To Unleash Power) and GMHC (Gay Men’s Health Crisis), took a much more anti-assimilatory, anti-establishment and deconstructive approach. During the conservative Reagan era, Christian fundamentalists and the popular media constructed gays and lesbians as deviant, threatening and incorrect. Recognizing this hate speech and misleading portrayal, activists and artists took it upon themselves to fight back with political protests, community health clinics, homemade safe sex videos and films/theatre productions which spoke to the gay community. Looking specifically at cinema, the early 1990s saw an explosion of

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This document is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Australia license. To view a copy of this licence, visit creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/au

This document is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Australia license. To view a copy of this licence, visit creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/au

This document is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Australia licence. To view a copy of this licence, visit creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/au.

This document is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Australia license. To view a copy of this licence, visit creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/au

This document is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Australia licence. To view a copy of this licence, visit creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/au

This document is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Australia licence. To view a copy of this licence, visit creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/au. © State of Queensland (Queensland Health) 2011. You are free to copy, communicate and adapt the work, as long as you attribute

This document is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Australia licence. To view a copy of this licence, visit creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/au. © State of Queensland (Queensland Health) 2011. You are free to copy, communicate and adapt the work, as long as you attribute the