HIV/AIDS LONG-TERM SURVIVOR * YOUTH EDUCATION * ADVOCACY * ACTIVISM * RESOURCES
Houston, Texas - United States
the aids memorial quilt
AIDS memorial quilt on display in Washington DC
On October 11, 1987, the Quilt was displayed for the first time on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., during the National March on Washington for Lesbian and Gay Rights. It covered a space larger than a football field and included 1,920 panels.
Cleve jones
The idea for the NAMES Project Memorial Quilt was conceived on November 27, 1985, by AIDS activist Cleve Jones during the annual candlelight march, in remembrance of the 1978 assassinations of San Francisco Supervisor Harvey Milk and Mayor George Moscone.
What is the aids memorial quilt?
Considered the largest community arts project in history, the AIDS Memorial Quilt helps us remember the unique lives and stories of those we’ve lost to HIV/AIDS.
NEVER EVER FORGET!
Ensuring the Quilt’s Legacy
In November 2019, the National AIDS Memorial became the permanent caretaker and steward of the Quilt, returning it to San Francisco, where its story began during the height of the AIDS epidemic. At that time, the Quilt’s archival collection of 200,000 objects, documents, cards and letters that chronicle the lives remembered in it were transferred to the prestigious American Folklife Center at the Library of Congress, making this collection available through the world’s largest public library. This announcement, made at the Library of Congress in Washington, DC, featured special guests House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, and Representatives John Lewis and Barbara Lee, who recognized the Quilt as a national treasure that must be preserved for its ability to teach for generations to come.
XIX International AIDS Conference, 2012
AIDS 2012
IDS 2012, the XIX International AIDS Conference, was held in Washington DC, USA, from 22 to 27 July 2012. It convened more than 23,000 participants, including almost 2,000 journalists, from 183 countries. The IAS organized the conference in collaboration with its international and local partners.
HIV AIDS long term survivor Bob Bowers reading names from the AIDS Quilt at IAC 2012 Washington D.C
A few of our winning HIV/AIDS awareness posters
I would still believe
“What If It Were You” asks a simple and direct question.
This worthy campaign, spearheaded by the compassionate advocates at HIVictorious and generously supported by many local businesses, asks an honest question to every individual. What would you do if you found out you were living with HIV? What will you do when confronted with the risk of contracting HIV through unprotected sex or drug use? HIV/AIDS affects everyone. Reminding all of Wisconsin that they may be at risk for this horrible virus, especially youth, tackles the ignorance and apathy that is much too pervasive within Wisconsin and its younger residents. The poster campaign involves young people, inspiring them to foster awareness and fight the indifference and stigma that cripples our fight against AIDS. “What if it Were You?” takes the battle to our schools, where prevention education and the struggle against ignorance should be more prevalent. AIDS Network is excited about this thoughtful and important awareness campaign. As more and more people throughout Wisconsin test positive for HIV every year, “What If It Were You?” asks the candid and critical question.
~Dan Guinn
I would be down, but not out
I would fight to make the world blind to prejudice
I would fight to make the world blind to prejudice
What if it Were You? is a poster contest designed to inspire youth to cultivate and communicate a more truthful, and inclusive perception of HIV/AIDS, promote prevention and compassion and aid the eradication of youth misconceptions and apathy.
What if it Were You? aims to compel youth to recognize and renounce stereotypes and stigma, and dispel misguided beliefs about not being at risk.
The contest is intended to empower youth to discover and define their own interpretation of the significance of HIV/AIDS and design a poster using words &/or images to portray their point of view and deliver an HIV prevention message that will be effectively received by their peers.
Allowing youth a voice and a means to convey their message will undoubtedly result in communication methods most likely to command the attention of and have the utmost influence on their peers..
I would live this day with courage
I would teach the world to understand
I would fight to make the world blind to prejudice
I would teach the world to understand
I would teach the world to understand
I would teach the world to understand
Power Surge
by Bob Ickes
Collin Burke, a high school senior from Madison, Wisconsin, says he took art class “by accident.” The teacher soon had Burke and his classmates entering the “What If It Were You?” AIDS-poster contest. “We had to demonstrate ‘What would you do if you found you had AIDS,’ ” says Burke, 18. “My poster expresses that I would try to make the world understand the facts. You know, like a lightbulb going on.” He took first place out of 100 competitors; the poster (left) will decorate buses, hair salons and diners throughout Madison. Says AIDS activist Bob Bowers, who sponsors the program through HIVictorious.org, “We picked Collin’s poster and thought we knew everything about him—until he was interviewed by the media and we found out that his uncle died of AIDS before he was born.” Says Burke: “I wish I had known him.”
I wouldn't let it drag me down
I would teach the world to understand
I would teach the world to understand
I would let others know
I would smile through the tears
I would let others know
I would STILL BE ME
I would smile through the tears
I would let others know
I would smile through the tears
I would smile through the tears
I would smile through the tears
Knowledge is power!
Some helpful HIV/AIDS resources
NO SHAME! NO SURRENDER!
Bob's life story
Photos of Bob Bowers
Photos of Bob Bowers
"I lived this shit. For decades, I’ve spoken to youth, to crowds, to anyone who would listen—not because I wanted recognition, but because I had to. Because HIV/AIDS wasn’t just some distant crisis to me; it was my life. My reality. My battle."
~ Bob Bowers
Photos of Bob Bowers
Photos of Bob Bowers
Photos of Bob Bowers
Dear Bob Bowers,
Thank you for coming to my school. I thought that you were an excellent speaker with a lot to say. Something that surprised me about you was your carefree attitude about life and your philosophy about living life to its fullest! I thought it was great and would appreciate it if you would come back to speak with us.
~ Chris W.
Bob Bowers' Tattoos
Photos of Bob Bowers
Bob Bowers' Tattoos
"But no tattoo carries more weight—physically or emotionally—than the red ribbon on my stomach with the words Never Forget above it. Done for the 25th anniversary of HIV/AIDS, it honors the countless friends I’ve lost to the disease. The pain of that tattoo was unlike anything I’d experienced, but in many ways, it felt fitting..."
