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Kelly Anderson was born on May 31, 1965 in Montreal, Canada. In 1991 she traveled to Cuba for the first time eager to learn more about life for gay men and women in a socialist country. Although she wanted to support the Cuban Revolution, Anderson had learned about the repression of queer Cubans through the documentary Conducta Impropia by Néstor Almendros, Orlando Jiménez-Leal. She set out to learn more about the reality of gay life in the island and produced a film, Looking for a Space, to document her findings. She interviewed over fifteen cisgender gay men and women in Havana between 1991-1993, unearthed footage depicting state-sanctioned manifestations of homophobia and transphobia, and documented live rehearsals and public performances by gay and lesbian poets and actors. For the past 30 years, Anderson has worked at Hunter College of the City University of New York. She is a Professor and Chair of the Department of Film and Media Studies, and faculty in the department’s Integrated Media Arts (IMA) MFA program.

Born in Guanabacoa, raised in Centro Habana, Came to U.S. at age 12?
A veteran of over 25 years in the publishing industry, Eduardo has created award-winning products for PreK–12 and higher education in English and Spanish. Eduardo earned a BS in Linguistics from Georgetown University and an M.B.A. from UT-Austin McCombs School of Business.

The Cuban Association of Homosexuals and Lesbians was an independent organization that fought for the unification and social recognition of LGBTI+ and HIV-positive people throughout the 90s in Cuba. Two of its known accomplishments were the publication of the clandestine newsletter “Huellas” (1993-c.1996) and the public reading of the organization's manifesto on July 1994.
The organization was based in Havana and was led by Andrix Gudin Williams. Another of its members, Jorge Flores, was interviewed by the gay U.S. magazine “The Advocate” and stated: “The government will never permit a gay organization in Cuba […] A small minority of the group wanted the project to go ahead, but the majority had an enormous fear-a fear that only gay Cubans can feel. I certainly don't want to be the leader, because they will cut my head off. You see, I don't mince words: They will cut my head off."
The Manifesto of the ACHL was published in English by gay Canadian historian Ian Lumsden in his book “Machos, maricones and gays: Cuba and homosexuality”. According to Lumsden’s transcription, the manifesto was publically read on July 28, 1994 at 5:00 P.M. at Almendares Park. It calls upon listeners to remember those who were discriminated for their gender expression and sexuality since the U.M.A.P. camps; it highlights the importance of making laws to fight homophobia and serophobia; and asserts that the state should not make moral judgements, only juridical ones.
The ACHL dissolved few years after and some of its members joined the Action Group for Free Expression of Sexual Choice or G.A.L.E.E.S. (original Spanish acronym).