Craig G. Harris (April 8, 1958 – November 26, 1991) was an African-American writer, poet, health educator, and

HIV/AIDS activist Socio-political activism to raise awareness about HIV/AIDS as well as to advance the effective treatment and care of people with AIDS (PWAs) has taken place in multiple locations since the 1980s. The evolution of the disease's progress into w ...

Life

Harris was born on April 8, 1958, in the South Bronx, New York. He studied English and Education at

Vassar College Vassar College ( ) is a private liberal arts college in Poughkeepsie, New York, United States. Founded in 1861 by Matthew Vassar, it was the second degree-granting institution of higher education for women in the United States. The college be ...

, graduating in 1980. Harris was

HIV positive The human immunodeficiency viruses (HIV) are two species of ''Lentivirus'' (a subgroup of retrovirus) that infect humans. Over time, they cause AIDS, acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), a condition in which progressive failure of th ...

during his time as an activist. He was diagnosed with pulmonary

Kaposi's sarcoma Kaposi's sarcoma (KS) is a type of cancer that can form masses on the skin, in lymph nodes, in the mouth, or in other organs. The skin lesions are usually painless, purple and may be flat or raised. Lesions can occur singly, multiply in a limite ...

in January 1991 and died on November 26, 1991. He was 33 years old.

Activism

Harris began his AIDS/HIV activism when he moved to

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

in 1986. He worked with the National Coalition of Black Lesbian and Gays (NCBLG) to organize the first National Conference on AIDS in the Black Community at the D.C. convention center in July 1986. This conference included over 400 people from all over the country who wanted to discuss how to address the impact of the

AIDS epidemic The global pandemic of HIV/AIDS (human immunodeficiency virus infection and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome) began in 1981, and is an ongoing worldwide public health issue. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), by 2023, HIV/AIDS ...

within the Black community. In 1987, the

American Public Health Association The American Public Health Association (APHA) is a Washington, D.C.–based professional membership and advocacy organization for public health professionals in the United States. APHA is the largest professional organization of public health pr ...

held their annual convention with, for the first time, a focus on HIV/AIDS. Despite the disproportionate

impact Impact may refer to: * Impact (mechanics), a large force or mechanical shock over a short period of time * Impact, Texas, a town in Taylor County, Texas, US Science and technology * Impact crater, a meteor crater caused by an impact event * Imp ...

of AIDS on the Black community, particularly on Black gay men, they did not involve any panelists of color. During the conference, Harris rushed onto the panel and took the microphone while shouting, "I will be heard." He announced the formation of the National Minority AIDS Council to address HIV/AIDS in communities of color where the government would not. The National Minority AIDS Council was founded in 1987 by Harris and other activists, including Paul Kawata, Calu Lester, Don Edwards, Suki Ports, Timm Offutt, Norm Nickens,

Carl Bean Carl Bean (May 26, 1944 – September 7, 2021) was an African-American singer and activist who was the founding prelate of the Unity Fellowship Church Movement, a liberal Protestant denomination that is particularly welcoming of lesbians, gay a ...

, Gilberto Gerald, Marie St.-Cyr, and Sandra McDonald. Harris worked with the National Minority AIDS Council and the Spectrum AIDS Project in Washington, D.C. until 1988, when he moved to New York to work as the Executive-Director of the Minority Task Force on AIDS. The last position that he held was with the

Gay Men's Health Crisis The GMHC (formerly Gay Men's Health Crisis) is a New York City–based non-profit, volunteer-supported and community-based AIDS service organization whose mission statement is to "end the AIDS epidemic and uplift the lives of all affected." Foun ...

(GMHC), an organization that still assists and advocates for gay men with HIV/AIDS, particularly gay Black men. Harris' work involved sexual health education, with a focus on helping people of color.

Writing

Harris was a prominent writer and journalist in the Black gay community of the 80s and 90s. His articles, and essays were published in places like the NCBLG's ''Black/Out'' magazine, ''

The Advocate An advocate is a professional in the field of law. The Advocate, The Advocates or Advocate may also refer to: Magazines * The Advocate (magazine), ''The Advocate'' (magazine), an LGBT magazine based in the United States * ''The Harvard Advocate' ...

'', ''

Ebony Ebony is a dense black/brown hardwood, coming from several species in the genus '' Diospyros'', which also includes the persimmon tree. A few ''Diospyros'' species, such as macassar and mun ebony, are dense enough to sink in water. Ebony is fin ...

'', '' Gay Community News'', ''

New York Native The ''New York Native'' was a biweekly gay newspaper published by Charles Ortleb in New York City from December 1980 until January 13, 1997. It was the only gay paper in New York City during the early part of the AIDS epidemic, and pioneered repo ...

'', ''

Outweek ''OutWeek'' was a gay and lesbian weekly news magazine published in New York City from 1989 to 1991. During its two-year existence, ''OutWeek'' was widely considered the leading voice of AIDS activism and the initiator of a cool new sensibility ...

'', and ''

The Washington Blade The ''Washington Blade'' is an LGBTQ newspaper in the Washington metropolitan area. The ''Blade'' is the oldest LGBTQ newspaper in the United States and third largest by circulation, behind the '' Philadelphia Gay News'' and the '' Gay City New ...

.'' Harris was involved in the "Other Countries" writers collective in New York.

Poetry and stories in anthologies (selected)

* ''In the Life: A Black Gay Anthology'', Joseph Beam, 1986 * ''New Men New Minds: Breaking Male Tradition'', Franklin Abbott, 1987 * ''Tongues Untied (Gay Verse)'', Dirg Aab-Richards, 1987 * ''The Road Before Us: 100 Gay Black Poets,''

Assotto Saint Assotto Saint (October 2, 1957 - June 29, 1994) was a Haitian-born United States, American poet, publisher and performance artist, who was a key figure in LGBT and African-American art and literary culture of the 1980s and early 1990s.Luca Prono"Sa ...

, 1991 * ''Brother to Brother: New Writings by Black Gay Men'', Exxex Hemphill & Dorothy Beam, 1991 * '' Freedom in this Village: Twenty-Five Years of Black Gay Men's Writing'', E. Lynn Harris, 2005 * ''Persistent Voices: Poetry by Writers Lost to AIDS'', David Groff & Philip Clark, 2010

Other works (selected)

* ''I'm Going to Go Out Like a Fucking Meteor!'' (Biographical essay) * ''Black, Gay, and Proud'' (article in ''VENUS'' magazine, 1997) * ''Hope Against Hope'' (unfinished final volume of poetry)

Legacy

''The Craig G. Harris Papers, 1986-1993'' is a collection of Harris' poetry, articles, speeches, essays, and personal documents hosted by the

New York Public Library The New York Public Library (NYPL) is a public library system in New York City. With nearly 53 million items and 92 locations, the New York Public Library is the second-largest public library in the United States behind the Library of Congress a ...

. In addition, recordings of Harris's memorial service after his death and recordings from his life are held by the New York Public Library Manuscripts and Archives. A photograph of his dedicated

AIDS memorial quilt The NAMES Project AIDS Memorial Quilt, often abbreviated to AIDS Memorial Quilt or AIDS Quilt, is a memorial to celebrate the lives of people who have died of AIDS-related causes. Weighing an estimated 54 tons, it is the largest piece of communit ...

, along with several other photographs from his life, are also included in the collection. On June 27, 2017, the Counter Narrative Project hosted several events in

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georg ...

Oakland Oakland is a city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area in the U.S. state of California. It is the county seat and most populous city in Alameda County, with a population of 440,646 in 2020. A major West Coast port, Oakland is ...

, and

for their ''I Will Be Heard'' National Day of Action in honor of Craig G. Harris and to commemorate National HIV Testing Day, including a theatre production by the Brave Souls Collective in D.C.

References

External links

Craig G. Harris papers (1986-1993)
at the

Archives and Manuscripts
Craig G. Harris photograph collection
at

ArchiveGrid ArchiveGrid is a collection of over five million archival material descriptions, including MARC records from WorldCat and finding aids harvested from the web. It contains archival collections held by thousands of libraries, museums, historical ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Harris, Craig G. 1958 births 1991 deaths 20th-century African-American writers 20th-century American male writers 20th-century American LGBTQ people American HIV/AIDS activists American gay writers African-American activists African-American LGBTQ people Activists from New York City Vassar College alumni