AIDS Conference Protest, St. Paul, 1987

On November 7, 1987, roughly 400 people representing Minnesota’s gay community—including allies and activists—protested an AIDS conference in St. Paul sponsored by a conservative Christian political organization called the Berean League. With over 1,500 people in attendance, it was the largest gathering in the state to date addressing the HIV/AIDS crisis. It was also a show of force for fundamentalist Christians and other conservatives who opposed gay rights.

When Minnesota’s gay community* became aware of the conference, a coalition of groups (the Minnesota Alliance Against AIDS, the Lesbian and Gay Community Action Council, the Minnesota AIDS Project, and the Minnesota Gay/Lesbian Freedom PAC) came together to organize a protest rally. The Gay/Lesbian Freedom PAC criticized the event as a pretext for fundamentalist groups to show their strength to the state legislature and also to the Minnesota Supreme Court, which was deciding a sodomy case filed by the Minnesota Civil Liberties Union. Berean League Executive Director Wayne Olhoft noted in response that “homosexual political activists feel threatened by the conference” and that “the protest rally is designed to distract attention from the conference content and to limit political damage.”

The conference began on November 7 in St. Paul’s Civic Center with about 1500 people in attendance. Speakers included Dr. David Pence (a frequent Berean League spokesperson) arguing for closing bathhouses and adult bookstores. Minnesota State Representative Allen Quist advocated for all Minnesota students to receive HIV/AIDS education while decrying a “hidden moral curriculum” that promoted promiscuity and sodomy. In a forum with state epidemiologist Michael Osterholm, keynote speaker and divinity school graduate Gene Antonio accused media outlets of “covering up” HIV/AIDS because of their relationship with gay activists.

By evening, the protest rally had begun outside the Civic Center. Local lesbian comic Becky Kent served as the MC and Zoe Nicholie led the crowd in singing civil rights songs. Eight counter-demonstrators appeared wearing surgical masks and gloves, carrying signs noting, “AIDS: God’s Gift to Sodomites” and “Jesus throws sodomites into hell.” This group shouted taunts throughout the evening, but protest organizers maintained a peaceful, determined, and even joyful tone. Conference speaker David Pence observed quietly; Berean League representatives claimed they were not affiliated with the counter-demonstrators. Inside the Civic Center, meanwhile, the crowd had dwindled to fewer than 600 people.

Government officials, faith leaders, and activists spoke to encourage the crowd of protesters. Not all Christians, some noted, shared the Berean League’s values. Minnesota Commissioner of Human Rights Stephen Cooper, meanwhile, promised that his department would protect human rights. Dr. Frank Rhame of the University of Minnesota, claiming that most people have “tolerance as their morality,” called on the audience to reduce HIV transmission and support public health efforts. Activist Jim Chalgren related that Berean-caused hysteria had led to the defeat of a gay rights amendment to the Mankato Human Rights Ordinance in September.

Minneapolis city council member Brian Coyle also spoke, musing that the local government response to HIV/AIDS would have been different if the virus had primarily affected straight Americans of Norwegian descent instead of gay men. He lamented how groups like the Berean League responded to HIV/AIDS based not on the severity of the disease, but rather the perceived social acceptability of its victims. Coyle took counter-protesters’ jeers in stride, encouraging rally attendees to remain politically active following the event. Other speakers included activist Robert Halfhill; Ken Solberg, director of Minnesota Clergy and Laity Concerned; George Moore, an HIV+ representative of the Coalition of People of Color Against Aids; and Emma Hixson, executive director of the Minneapolis Department of Civil Rights.

In the middle of these speeches, six people dressed in prisoner-of-war garments evoking Nazi Germany (blue and white stripes with pink triangles) and white face paint prepared to enter the Civic Center to conduct a silent demonstration. Costumed activist Leo Treadway rallied the crowd, saying, “We’ve got better looking banners. We’ve got better looking men and women. Our songs are better. And at least our chants rhyme. We’re also not wandering around trying to pick fights.” As those in costume silently processed into the auditorium, those outside sang “We Are a Peaceful, Angry People” and lit candles. In the auditorium, a conference attendee chided demonstrators for spreading hate and discounting those with opposing views. Demonstrators remained silent, holding signs comparing the dangers of quarantine and extinction to threats faced by Jews in 1933 Nazi Germany. Tim Cole (of the Minneapolis Commission on Civil Rights) noted to the crowd afterward that there were many empty seats in the auditorium, and outside, “we outnumber them [Bereans].”

Throughout the night, the protest rally remained peaceful. No arrests were made. After the conference, Wayne Olhoft explained that the Berean League had agreed to the silent demonstration ahead of time to avoid the “possibility of a less controlled situation.”

*Editor’s note: This article refers to “the gay community” in 1987 rather than the more inclusive “LGBTQIA+ community” in order to match the language in use at the time. Although people who claimed identities other than the “G” were vital to this community throughout the 1980s, mainstream terms failed to recognize them individually.