As scientists around the world work toward developing a vaccine for COVID-19, we are observing the NIAID’s HIV Vaccine Awareness Day by highlighting the work of our OUT at CHM committee. The OUT at CHM committee leads the creation and implementation of an annual programming series that invites people who live a range of sexual identities and gender expressions within the larger urban context of Chicago to tell their stories. Guest presenters and panels have discussed how and why the physical body matters to LGBTQIA+ history, the history of ACT UP Chicago in bringing attention to the AIDS pandemic in the late 1980s and early ’90s, the evolution of the queer family, the political implications of queer social spaces, and the queer body politic—a movement full of promise and struggle. Learn more about the committee, their work, and plans for upcoming programming. Learn more.

LGBT History at the Crossroads

Explore the history of Chicago’s lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender communities in Out in Chicago: LGBT History at the Crossroads. This collection of essays covers the 1850s to the present, chronicling how the dynamic forces that made Chicago the great American city also fostered the development of its diverse LGBTQIA+ communities. Download now.