"There's a theory that smoking truly is a part of gay identity, whether that be a prop for a drag queen or a cigar for a woman who's part of the Women's Motorcycle Contingent. Perhaps smoking signals 'queer,' that I'm different from the mainstream. What we found was that the images of smoking were just ubiquitous in the gay press. They appeared in illustrations with articles that had nothing to do with tobacco. Tobacco appeared in ads that had nothing to do with tobacco products. We also did some focus groups with LGBTs, and this just does not seem to be on the radar screen as a health issue in the community, which is kind of striking. Given the smoking rates, it's really a big health issue for the community, but the community does not see it as an issue."
-- Bob Gordon, director of the California LGBT Tobacco Education Partnership in San Francisco