AIDS Walk New York is the world’s largest & most visible HIV/AIDS fundraising event. It was born in 1986 out of the anguish of gay men in neighborhoods from Greenwich Village to Harlem who were first besieged by the deadly new disease. It was nurtured by the passions of New York’s diverse communities of art, culture, and commerce so ravaged by the early HIV epidemic. It was steeled for the long haul by activists who knew that ending HIV/AIDS would require more than fighting the virus. It would also require confronting the social ills that fuel it—racism, sexism, homophobia, and poverty.
That is exactly what AIDS Walk York has been doing for decades. The durability of this event, like that of GMHC (Gay Mens Health Crisis) itself, is remarkable. Together, we withstood national leaders in the 1980s who ignored the health crisis, or worse. We weathered a severe spring rainstorm in 1992 that chilled and soaked our 20,000 participants to the bone—yet we still walked.
Following the tragedy of September 11, 2001, GMHC supporters gathered that next May ‘New York Strong,’ producing a record crowd and sum raised. They survived the Great Recession of 2008 and its severe effects on their many supporters who work on Wall Street; and they maintained focus and fulfilled our mission during recent years of national turbulence on healthcare policy.
In 2022, they joyfully returned to Central Park on May 15, after a two year hiatus due to COVID The park radiated with energy and excitement as people and teams reconnected for the first live AIDS Walk New York since 2019.
GMHC is the primary beneficiary of AIDS Walk New York. The event also supports other tri-state AIDS service, social justice, and/or public health organizations through the Community Partnership Program (CPP). These groups are able to participate in AIDS Walk New York as fundraising teams, with proceeds directly benefiting their programs and services.
Thousands of people will converge on the Naumburg Bandshell (72nd St New York, NY 10021) on Sunday, May 21, united by the common cause of sustaining GMHC’s vital programs to serve New Yorkers living with or affected by HIV & AIDS.
IF YOU CAN NOT WALK THEN PLEASE THINK ABOUT MAKING A DONATION HERE
PS In 1981, 809 men gathered together in the apartment of activist/author Larry Kramer, and that was where GMHC was born. When we started Queerguru some 7 years ago the very first interview we got to film was with Larry. Sheer joy and honor and we’d like to share it with you
