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Madonna is considered a gay icon and the gay community has embraced her as a pop culture icon. ...

Madonna is considered a gay icon and the gay community has embraced her as a pop culture icon. Madonna was introduced to the gay community while still a teenager. It was her ballet teacher, Christopher Flynn, a gay man, who first told Madonna that she was beautiful. He also introduced her to the local gay community of Detroit, Michigan, often taking her to local gay bars. Flynn also encouraged Madonna to walk away from her full scholarship to the University of Michigan and move to Manhattan to pursue a career as a professional dancer. Upon her arrival, some of the first people she befriended were drag queens and gay rentboys. After the launch of her music career and her entry into public consciousness, Madonna began to solidify her reputation as a gay icon. In the 1980s, Madonna was one of the first major celebrities to lend her support to AIDS causes. Many of her friends and inspirations, such as her ballet teacher Christopher Flynn, choreographer Alvin Ailey, artist Keith Haring, and photographer Herb Ritts -- as well as her brother Christopher -- are gay males, and some of them have died of AIDS. The song "In This Life" from her fifth studio album, Erotica, is about the loss of