No retrospective on the history of choral music in America would be accurate if it did not acknowledge the startling growth of gay and lesbian choruses over the past three decades. Though not the first chorus with mostly gay members, SFGMC is acknowledged as the first to have used the word gay in its name, and it grew quickly in size and reputation, embarking on its first national tour in 1981. With a spontaneous gathering at a candlelight vigil on the steps of City Hall, the Chorus began in mourning and anger and soon moved on to hope, joy, and more mourning in the 1980s-the decade when AIDS became widespread. Milk was a beloved leader in the early days of the gay rights movement, and immediately after his assassination, the San Francisco Gay Men's Chorus was born. When a bitter San Francisco city councilmember walked into City Hall in November 1978 and shot dead both the Mayor and openly gay Councilman Harvey Milk, the nation was shocked and the gay and lesbian community was stunned. And it would be accompanied by a need for many of those involved to express their anger, sorrow, and hope in music. A political assassination, a deadly virus, an identity long suppressed, and a fear perhaps as old as history-given a list like this, a powerful social upheaval was inevitable.
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