Update: The City of West Hollywood is broadcasting the AIDSWatch digital memorial scroll on WeHoTV on Sunday, December 1, 2024 on Spectrum Cable Channel 10 within West Hollywood and on the City’s website at www.weho.org/wehotv (click Watch Live). Visit the AIDSwatch website at www.aidswatch.org.

Each year, the City of West Hollywood recognizes World AIDS Day. World AIDS Day originated at the 1988 United Nations World Summit of Ministers of Health on Programs for AIDS Prevention and recognition takes place each year on December 1.

World AIDS Day is an opportunity for people worldwide to unite in the fight against HIV/AIDS, to show support for people living with HIV, and to commemorate people who have passed away due to HIV/AIDS. Annually, UNAIDS agencies, governments, nonprofit organizations, community groups, and others around the globe join to campaign around specific themes related to AIDS. This year, communities will commemorate #WorldAIDSDay under the theme “Take the rights path: My health, my right!” and the World Health Organization (WHO) is calling on leaders and citizens to champion the right to health by addressing the inequalities that hinder progress in ending AIDS.

The City of West Hollywood will recognize World AIDS Day 2024 with events and programming, as follows:

A panel of the AIDS Memorial Quilt will be on display in the City of West Hollywood’s Council Chambers/Public Meeting Room, located at 625 N. San Vicente Boulevard from Monday, November 25 through Friday, December 20, 2024 courtesy of the National AIDS Memorial (photo available). Considered the largest community arts project in history, the AIDS Memorial Quilt helps the global community remember the unique lives and stories of those we’ve lost to HIV/AIDS. The Quilt was conceived in November 1985 by long-time human rights activist, author, and lecturer Cleve Jones with the goal of creating a memorial for those who had died of AIDS, and to thereby help people understand the devastating impact of the disease. The first meeting of devoted friends and lovers of some of the nearly 1,000 San Franciscans who had been lost to AIDS by the mid-1980s served as the foundation of the NAMES Project AIDS Memorial Quilt. Today, there are roughly 50,000 panels dedicated to more than 110,000 individuals in this epic 54-ton tapestry.

The Alliance for Housing & Healing, a program of APLA Health (formerly AIDS Project Los Angeles), will lay flowers on the bronze plaques embedded in the sidewalk along the West Hollywood AIDS Memorial Walk on Santa Monica Boulevard from Crescent Heights Boulevard to N. Robertson Boulevard. The City of West Hollywood was one of the first government entities to provide social services grants to local AIDS and HIV organizations and, throughout its history, the City has directed millions of dollars to fund HIV/AIDS direct services, education, and public awareness efforts. The West Hollywood Memorial Walk was created in 1993 to honor people who were lost to the AIDS pandemic, with new plaques being added regularly.

The City of West Hollywood will join STORIES: The AIDS Monument and APLA Health in a World AIDS Day event on Sunday, December 1, 2024. The event will begin at 2 p.m. with a reception at the West Hollywood Park Aquatic and Recreation Center (ARC) Respite Deck, located at 8750 El Tovar Place, adjacent to West Hollywood Library. RSVP is requested via Eventbrite: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/world-aids-day-in-west-hollywood-tickets.

Following this, the Lavender Effect will host the Young City at War Exhibit Launch and Reception on Sunday, December 1, 2024 at 3:30 p.m. The exhibit will be featured under the Grand Staircase at West Hollywood Park. Young City at War: Stories from West Hollywood During the AIDS Epidemic will feature the dramatic and poignant story of a diverse community’s response to the early days of the HIV/AIDS epidemic. This public installation honors the warriors of the past and present, as well as showcases the power of community. It celebrates the leadership, strength, and endurance of the people and City of West Hollywood. It also provides awareness, inspiration, and wisdom for new generations. This project is co-sponsored by the City of West Hollywood.

Events are free to attend and open to the public. Limited parking will be available at the West Hollywood Park 5-Story structure.

The 24th Annual Paul Andrew Starke Warrior Awards will take place on Wednesday, December 4, 2024 at 6:30 p.m. at the City of West Hollywood’s Council Chambers/Public Meeting Room, located at 625 N. San Vicente Boulevard. The Warrior Awards event is free and open to the public and no RSVP is required.

The Warrior Awards recognize outstanding employees and volunteers from local agencies that provide HIV/AIDS and substance abuse prevention and care services. This year’s event will feature keynote speaker Jazzmun Crayton, Associate Director of APAIT, and will honor Dr. Robert Bolan of the Los Angeles LGBT Center with a Lifetime Achievement Award.

In addition, this year’s Warrior Awards honorees are:

• Aure Bryant – Healthcare in Action;

• Carla Calmenson – The Life Group LA;

• Celeste Garcia – TransLatin@ Coalition

• Heather Hampton – APLA Health;

• Lana Johnson – Being Alive;

• Joseph Leahy – Gilead/Janssen;

• Lindsay Macias – Friends Research Institute;

• Stevie Peck – C.I.T.Y. x1 Youth Group; and

• Dr. Raja Sannidhi – Capitol Drugs.

The onset of the HIV/AIDS epidemic had a significant impact in West Hollywood. The disease’s elevated infection rate among gay men caused a devastatingly high number of deaths in the City. The City of West Hollywood was one of the first government entities to provide social services grants to local HIV/AIDS organizations. The City of West Hollywood sponsored one of the first AIDS awareness campaigns in the country in October 1985 and the City’s response to the AIDS crisis has been recognized as a model for other cities, nationally and globally.

The City of West Hollywood actively participates in the development of programs that can bring awareness about the HIV/AIDS epidemic and services to people living with HIV/AIDS. In January 2015, the City announced its vision to become an ‘HIV Zero’ city. The City is currently implementing its HIV Zero Strategic Initiative. 

For more information, please contact the City of West Hollywood’s Human Services Division at wehocares@weho.org or at (323) 848-6510. For people who are Deaf or hard of hearing dial 711 or 1-800-735-2929 (TTY) or 1-800-735-2922 (voice) for California Relay Service (CRS) assistance.

For up-to-date information about City of West Hollywood news and events, follow @wehocity on social media, sign-up for news updates at www.weho.org/email, and visit the City’s calendar of meetings and events at www.weho.org/calendar. Receive text updates by texting “WeHo” to (323) 848-5000. West Hollywood City Hall is open for walk-in services at public counters or by appointment by visiting www.weho.org/appointments. City Hall services are accessible by phone at (323) 848-6400 and via website at www.weho.org.

For reporters and members of the media seeking additional information about the City of West Hollywood, please contact the City of West Hollywood’s Public Information Officer, Sheri A. Lunn, at (323) 848-6391 or slunn@weho.org.