AIDS Memorial Quilt

06/05/2026

Today marks 45 years since the first reported cases of what became known as AIDS.

co-founder wrote a piece for POZ Magazine about Seven Days in June: Health is Primary, a project he is heavily involved with to shine a light on the impacts of health cuts throughout the week around this anniversary.

"Seven Days in June is about refusing to be quiet. It is about adding our voices to the long line of ordinary people who looked at an injustice and decided not to accept it," Cleve wrote. "Public health is not a partisan issue. It touches every person, every family, every community."

Read the full piece here:

“Seven Days in June: Health Is Primary” is a nationwide call to action to elevate health as a governing priority.

06/03/2026

David Hicks mesmerized audiences with more than 35 works for the New York City Opera.

The opera director and singer inspired generations as a teacher and artist. He inspired future generations as well through his work as a teacher at the Juilliard School from 1978 until 1981. Hicks's life was taken by when he was just 48. We remember Hicks on what would have been his birthday.

"We grew up together. This is a great loss. There is an inner circle of family at the City Opera and the family is depleted by one today,'' said Beverly Sills, general director of the New York City Opera

🗣️ Say David Hicks's name!

06/01/2026

🏳️‍🌈 On this first day of Pride, we proudly stand with our + brothers and sisters.

We are proud of the progress we've made, but are also prepared to fiercely defend the hard-fought rights we deserve. Our rights are at risk and we must stand together beside our allies. The will continue to inspire new generations of activists in the fight against stigma, denial, and hate for a just future.

+ ***r

05/28/2026

From his 1943 birth in a Japanese-American internment camp to his death in 2000 due to AIDS, the life of Kiyoshi Kuromiya is a profound testament not only to how health and social injustices pervade throughout our society, but also to how individuals like him dedicate their lives to fighting back against them.

Kiyoshi Kuromiya was a titan of activism whose work spanned generations and movements. Whether he was marching with Dr. King in Selma, caring for the King children after Dr. King’s assassination, or advocating for LGBTQ+ rights in Philadelphia in 1965, Kiyoshi lived a life of action.

When the HIV/AIDS crisis emerged, he turned his focus to the empowerment of the community. He was the lead plaintiff in Kuromiya v. The United States, a class-action lawsuit to legalize medical ma*****na for HIV/AIDS patients, and he fought all the way to the Supreme Court to protect freedom of speech on the internet so that medical information could remain accessible to all.

Thank you, Kiyoshi, for your courage and for paving the way toward a more just future.

🗣️ Say Kiyoshi Kuromiya's name!

05/27/2026

🎥 Arthur J. Bressan Jr. was a pioneer in indie q***r cinema.

A self-taught filmmaker from Manhattan, Bressan's documentaries and films delved into + topics that few others were approaching at the time. Buddies, a 1985 feature film that Bressan wrote and directed, was the first American film to tackle the subject of the crisis. Bressan's life was taken by when he was 44. Today would have been Bressan's birthday.

🗣️ Say Arthur J. Bressan Jr.'s name.

05/22/2026

Registrations for the 2026 AIDS Walk San Francisco are open!

Join the team in person or as a virtual walker to strive for a future free from the AIDS crisis. Sign up for the Saturday, July 19th event today:

Dear Walkers and friends, Thank you for visiting our AIDS Walk San Francisco (AWSF26) team page! The National AIDS Memorial Grove in Golden Gate Park - a place of hope, healing, and remembrance and the AIDS Memorial Quilt, the largest community folk arts project in the world, composed of 50,000 hand...

05/21/2026

How is our team bringing the AIDS Memorial Quilt back into focus?

Our friends at KQED shared how our new project to digitize the is immortalizing panels, ensuring the lives they honor will be remembered. https://www.kqed.org/arts/13989048/aids-memorial-quilt-photography-redigitization-san-leandro

Learn more about how you can volunteer to support this essential project: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSemDi4I0pS4mVBFM-M_LvI7zKgZARvEd1gG-h701y3S0wIvGw/viewform

Photos from (Beth LaBerge/KQED)

05/21/2026

Congratulations to Sarah Madland on her appointment as General Manager of the San Francisco Recreation and Park Department.

Sarah has helped shape policy and partnership at Rec and Park for many years, and the National AIDS Memorial has been fortunate to work alongside her in caring for and strengthening one of San Francisco’s most meaningful public spaces.

National AIDS Memorial Executive Director John Cunningham shared:

"Through our model public-private partnership, the San Francisco Recreation and Parks Department has been instrumental in the National AIDS Memorial's work. Having had the opportunity to work closely with Sarah over many years, we both congratulate her on her well-deserved promotion and look forward to continuing our collaboration with the department under Sarah Madland's leadership. Sarah brings decades of experience and a clear commitment to expanding access to our parks and to building powerful partnerships to ensure every San Franciscan has access to the power of parks."

05/20/2026

The National AIDS Memorial mourns the passing of former Congressman Barney Frank. He was a groundbreaking public servant whose courage and unapologetic honesty helped change what was possible for LGBTQ+ people in public life.

At a time when being openly gay in elected office could end a career, Barney Frank chose visibility. He understood that representation was not symbolic; it was personal and life-changing for countless people watching from the margins.

His voice was fearless, and often very funny. But beneath it was something deeply human: a belief that people deserved fairness, and the freedom to live openly as themselves.

For organizations like the National AIDS Memorial and for generations of LGBTQ+ Americans, his legacy is not only what he achieved in Congress but what his presence made possible.

We extend our condolences to his husband Jim Ready, his loved ones, colleagues, and all those whose lives were changed by his example.