The Fight of Our Lives: List 3

by David Levithan, Gabriel Duckels
This blend of history, memoir, and poetry tells the story of AIDS in the United States, from before its formal discovery to the present day.

This list covers vocabulary from "How to ACT UP When SILENCE=DEATH"–"Addressing the Need: Needle Exchange and HIV/AIDS."

Here are links to our lists for the book: List 1, List 2, List 3, List 4, List 5, List 6
15 words 6 learners

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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. divisive
    causing or characterized by disagreement or disunity
    Kramer was a divisive figure with a famously dogged temper.
  2. squander
    spend thoughtlessly; throw away
    People were infuriated that access to this drug was hindered by bureaucracy, which meant lives were being squandered.
  3. extortionate
    greatly exceeding bounds of reason or moderation
    By calling for faster access to new drugs and condemning the extortionate pricing of the only approved one, ACT UP was demanding that pharmaceutical companies act with the urgency that the crisis required.
  4. ramification
    a consequence, especially one that causes complications
    I was in my own privileged little world, but staring at Darlene in the coffin, I really began to understand the ramifications of HIV and transphobia.
  5. inextricably
    in a manner incapable of being disentangled or untied
    The joy and the death, the hurt and the pain are inextricably linked.
  6. furor
    a sudden outburst, as of protest
    The furor around the Sansome Seven drew greater attention to the punitive treatment of HIV+ travelers.
  7. tantamount
    being essentially equal to something
    Protestors argue that his condemnation of condoms is tantamount to complicity in the deaths of people for whom transmission could have been prevented.
  8. provocative
    serving or tending to excite or stimulate
    Navarro’s performance is deliberately provocative and iconoclastic—a subversive attempt to challenge ideas about what the real Jesus would do if he was around in the 1980s as people living with HIV/AIDS fought for health care, freedom, and measures to prevent the further spread of HIV among American youth.
  9. iconoclastic
    characterized by attack on established beliefs
    Navarro’s performance is deliberately provocative and iconoclastic—a subversive attempt to challenge ideas about what the real Jesus would do if he was around in the 1980s as people living with HIV/AIDS fought for health care, freedom, and measures to prevent the further spread of HIV among American youth.
  10. mired
    entangled or hindered
    The protest became mired in controversy and turned into a mainstream talking point—how could these crazy protestors have the audacity to be so disrespectful?
  11. audacity
    aggressive or outright boldness
    The protest became mired in controversy and turned into a mainstream talking point—how could these crazy protestors have the audacity to be so disrespectful?
  12. laudable
    worthy of high praise
    While some in ACT UP saw the protest inside the cathedral as laudable, many others were disgusted by the intrusion into a religious service, especially during Communion.
  13. desecration
    blasphemous behavior
    To many parishioners, the recent invasion…was an act of desecration.
  14. vitriol
    abusive or venomous language to express blame or censure
    It would have been all too easy for Fauci to dismiss Kramer’s concerns because of the volume and vitriol of the name-calling.
  15. consummate
    perfect and complete in every respect
    In 2018, after Kramer called him “the consummate manipulative bureaucrat who speaks out of too many sides of his mouth,” Fauci replied, “Although Larry can be confrontative and combative, I consider him a friend and a hero of the AIDS activist movement.”
Created on Fri Oct 09 05:37:59 EDT 2026 (updated Mon Oct 19 19:21:35 EDT 2026)

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