I was in the gay resort of Provincetown, Massachusetts the day of Diana's funeral. It's no exaggeration to report that P-Town's usually thronged, festive streets took on a mournful air.

Diana was beloved in the gay world, mostly I guess, because of her highly visible work in HIV/AIDS education. She cared and acted during an era when so many would not. She presented a stark contrast to political leaders in the US and the UK who had to be dragged into acknowledging care and concern, and had to be sharply prodded to take HIV seriously as a public health problem.

Of course, Diana was also well known for her friendships with gay men. This was much more radical then than it would be seen as now.

Was Diana queer? I don't think the question is all that important to me. She was, above all, a woman with a compassionate heart who extended that compassion to queer people whom much of the rest of the establishment world carefully distanced themselves from.

She was ahead of her time, and the world lost a pioneer of love when she passed.