1983: New York State sues a West 12th Street co-op for trying to evict Dr. Joseph Sonnabend for treating AIDS patients. He later receives $10,000 and a new lease.

1985: A three-judge panel of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, in a 2—1 opinion written by Anthony Kennedy, affirms in the case of Adams v. Howerton that the Immigration and Naturalization Service did not abuse its authority when it refused to recognize the marriage of Australian Anthony Sullivan and Richard Adams, under a license issued by Boulder County, Colorado in 1975, for purposes of Sullivan’s immigration. The couple leave the United States but eventually return, with Sullivan living as an illegal alien.

1986: Early results show that the drug AZT can slow down progress of HIV.  Jubilation breaks out—prematurely. “After six years of having nothing to do for people but hold their hands and watch them die, I got my patients on it ASAP,” recalls Dr. Howard Grossman. “We didn’t know that AZT on its own is only good for six months before resistance sets in.”

2004: The proposed Federal Marriage Amendment fails to pass the United States House of Representatives, with a vote of 227–186 on House Joint Resolution 106.

2008: Ecuador legalizes same-sex civil unions with the passage of its new constitution.