Temple University - Templar Yearbook (Philadelphia, PA)

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AIDS Touches Us All by Tracey I. Johnson In just a short amount of time. Ac- quired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) introduced itself with a ter- rifying impact on our lives. Conta- gious, incurable and devastating, over 152,000 Americans have already died of AIDS, and another one million are estimated to carry the Human Immu- nodeficiency Virus (HIV). AIDS touches us all, indeed. The NAMES Project AIDS Memo- rial Quilt illustrates the magnitude of the AIDS epidemic. At Temple, AIDS Touches US All was the theme of a four-day community awareness project sponsored by Tem- ple ' s Division of Student Affairs, which focused on a display of some of the panels from the Quilt. The AIDS Quilt is an international memorial dedicated to the people who have died of AIDS and their caregivers. The entire Quilt has more than 23,000 panels, representing 14 percent of all U.S. AIDS deaths and 2 percent of AIDS deaths worldwide. The Quilt originated with six panels after Cleve Jones founded it in 1986. By the time it was first displayed in October, 1987, it had grown to the size of two football fields. Today, the AIDS Quilt has been displayed in over 500 cities worldwide and would cover 14 football fields in its entirety. It rep- resents the largest community arts project in the world. Over two million people have seen the Quilt, and more than $1 million has been raised to 28 LIFE Events AIDS Quilt

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nHall, :hfoot- 4 Was ■ Ham- In ad- e tunes (above) The winning team, representing John- son ' s tenth floor, stops cheering long enough to pose, (photo by Sheeder) (left) Despite the efforts of Hardwick ' s ninth floor representatives, this match ended in de- feat, (photo by Sheeder) Oktoberfest Events LIFE 27

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combat AIDS. Temple ' s display took place April 18-21 in the Great Court of Mitten Hall, featuring 248 handmade, multi- colored 3-by-6-foot rectangles. Events during the week included quilting bees, safe sex educational programs and speakers, including AIDS educa- tors and persons with AIDS. An estimated 3,600 people viewed the panels. Speakers read names of people who had died of AIDS while visitors milled through the sunlit rooms in silence to view the panels that covered much of the Great Court. Some took advantage of the boxes of tissues placed on the comers of panels diplayed on the floor to wipe their eyes. Others seemed oblivious to the tears streaming down their face. Timothy J. Johnson, assistant direc- tor of Housing and co-chairman of the Quilt Host Committee was credited vdth bringing the Quilt to Temple. He initiated the idea after participating in a University of Georgia workshop that focused on the Quilt ' s effects on stu- dents and members on Georgia ' s cam- pus. According to Johnson, Temple went through a lenghthy application pro- cess with the NAMES Project ' s San Francisco headquarters to be ap- proved to host a portion of the Quilt. To achieve approval, Johnson said two primary goals must be met: the Quilt must be available to a large number of people, and it must present RANR S£PT.2U955-m 2b.l9n ' AIDS Quilt Events LIFE 29