The first significant public space dedicated to the AIDS epidemic in New York City is now open to visitors. Not only does it commemorate those we have lost, the memorial is to St Vincent's Hospital where many of the first AIDS patients were treated and one of the few places allowing AIDS patience to be admitted.
Birth of America's Largest AIDS Memorial
In the 35th year of the worst pandemic in modern history, Sawyer's question is being answered with a resounding "Yes." In the shadow of where St. Vincent's once stood, the largest AIDS memorial in the U.S. will soon be unveiled.
The idea for the New York City AIDS Memorial was first born in early 2010 while Christopher Tepper was reading "And The Band Played On," one of the definitive histories of AIDS in America, for the first time. A midwesterner by birth, Tepper was shocked by how much he didn't know about the early years of the AIDS crisis, even though he had never lived in a world without HIV.
As the space was closing [St. Vincent's hospital went bankrupt], the pair learned that there was a new city park planned across the street as part of the redevelopment. The site was perfect — and not just because of its proximity to St. VIncent's. The LGBTQ center sat less than a block away, which was where ACT UP was born. Blocks away was Kramer's personal home, where GMHC, the first HIV/AIDS service organization in the world, first met in his living room. – nbcnews.com
There's a new place in NYC to honor and mourn those that have gone before us. It'll be on my list next time I visit that great city.
h/t: nbcnews.com