#aids pandemic

[azuremist]

“Unfinished Painting” — Keith Haring

This painting was left intentionally incomplete. Haring began it when he was dying due to complications from AIDS, and knew he didn’t have much time left. The piece represents the incomplete lives of him and many others, lost to AIDS during the crisis.

“AIDS Memorial Quilt” — Multiple

This quilt is over 50 tons heavy, and one of, if not the, largest pieces of community folk art. Many people who died of AIDS did not receive funerals, due to social stigma and many funeral homes refusing to handle the deceased’s remains, so this was one of the only ways their lives could be celebrated. Each panel was created in recognition of someone who died due to AIDS, typically by that person’s loved ones.

“Untitled” (Portrait of Ross in L.A.) — Felix Gonzalez-Torres

This pile of candy weighs the same amount as Gonzalez-Torres’ partner, Ross Laycock, did. Ross Laycock had died due to AIDS-related complications earlier that same year. Visitors who see this piece are encouraged to take some of the candy. As they do so, the pile of candy weighs less and less, like how AIDS had deteriorated the body of Ross Laycock.

The SF Gay Men's Chorus

This photo was taken in 1993. The men in white are the surviving original members. Every man in black is standing in for an original member who lost their lives to AIDS.

“Electric Fan (Feel it Motherfuckers); Only Unclaimed Item from the Stephen Earabino Estate, 1997” — John Boskovich

After the death of his lover, Stephen Earabino, from AIDS, Boskovich discovered that his family had completely cleared his room, including Boskovich’s own possessions, save for this fan. An entire person, existence and relationship had been erased, just like so many lives during the AIDS crisis. Boskovich encased the fan in Plexiglass, but added cutouts so that its air may be felt by the viewer, almost like an exhalation. In a sense, restoring Earabino’s breath.

“Blue” — Derek Jarman

This was Jarman’s final feature film, released four months before his death from AIDS-related complications. These complications had left him visually impaired, able to only see in shades of blue. This film consists of a single shot of a saturated blue color, as the soundtrack to the film described Jarman’s life through narration, intercut with the adventures of Blue, a humanization of the color blue. The film's final moments consist of a set of repeated names: “John. Daniel. Howard. Graham. Terry. Paul". These are the names of former lovers and friends of Jarman who had died due to AIDS.

“Untitled” (Perfect Lovers) — Felix Gonzalez-Torres

Created by the same man who created the previous untitled piece, this piece was also inspired by his lover’s deterioration and death due to AIDS. This piece consists of two perfectly alike clocks. Over the course of time, one of the clocks will fall out of sync with the other.

In a letter written to his lover about the piece, before his lover’s passing, Gonzalez-Tourres wrote, “Don't be afraid of the clocks, they are our time, the time has been so generous to us. We imprinted time with the sweet taste of victory. We conquered fate by meeting at a certain time in a certain space. We are a product of the time, therefore we give back credit were it is due: time. We are synchronized, now forever. I love you.”

Please feel free to reblog with more additions

#aids #aids pandemic #aids crisis #lgbt #lgbtqia #queer history #lgbt history #art tag #azure does a thing #(i cried while putting this post together.) #(something about art about those lost to aids makes me want to fall to my knees.) #(happy pride month) #long post #death tw

[lgbtq-archives]

Dear Joe, thanks a lot for sharing your life story with the LGBTQ community.

#lgbtq #older gay men #gay community #mature gay men #gay over 60 #older gay couple #longterm relationship #gay realtor #lgbtq community #aids pandemic #religious upbringing #catholic church #social norms #Youtube

[insteviewetrust]

How to watch your brother die by Michael Lassell

#I've been crying for hours over this #I've read it over and over again #every word a new wound cut open in my heart in my brain in my flesh #i feel sick #i dont think I'll ever recover completely from this piece #poetry #how to watch your brother die by michael lassel #poem #aids pandemic #aids crisis #aids

[rikaklassen]

Yesterday was Long COVID Awareness Day. Glad to see ACT UP NY (Instagram outlink) being in solidarity with Long COVID survivors.

Way too many queer folks forgot (links to a zine) about the HIV/AIDS denialism in the '80s and '90s.

If you're interested in agitprop posters designed based on old HIV/AIDS awareness campaigns (Wikimedia outlink), Anna, aka X/@_copy_of_a_copy, has a series of "ACT UP/MASK UP" posters (Google Drive outlink) along with a long list of resources. mx. papaya (Carrd outlink) created a series of "Where is your RAGE?" posters and "CDC Kills" (Google Drive outlinks). Cohost/@edania has also produced a few posters here and here.

#COVID-19 #SARS-CoV-2 #long COVID #long COVID Awareness Day #long haulers #COVID long haulers #COVID-19 long haulers #AIDS Coalition to Unleash Power #ACT UP #COVID pandemic #AIDS pandemic #AIDS crisis #HIV activism #AIDS activism #disability rights #COVID resources #SARS-CoV-2 resources #COVID-19 resources #agitprop #queer solidarity

[monstrousgourmandizingcats]

I. Okay. I get the "logic", but, mild anachronism aside (we're in 1980 here and the first public discussions of AIDS were in 1981), I'm pretty sure this kind of fun little conspiracy theory was always-already an obvious prioritization of ideological hobbyhorses about sex over gay men's lives. These are not serious people.

The pivot from this to talking about Alfonso is such a perfect Ferrante blow-to-the-head choice of juxtapositions, too.

#l'amica geniale #my brilliant friend #elena ferrante #monstrousgourmandizingcats reads l'amica geniale #history #aids pandemic

[pandemic-info]

Lister's carbolic steam spray apparatus, Hunterian Museum, Glasgow

John Snow's Water Pump - a cholera epidemic broke out in SOHO in 1854 and killed 500 people in a few months. John Snow identified a water pump on Broadwick Street as being the cause of the outbreak. The pump's handle was removed and disabled. And, after that, the cholera declined. - by Betsy Weber on Flickr

—

Joseph Lister

In 1867, Joseph Lister, a forty-year-old doctor, published an article in The Lancet that fundamentally changed medicine. “An Address on the Antiseptic System of Treatment in Surgery” was a description of a new way of doing operations that he first presented in Glasgow, Scotland, where he practiced medicine. At that time, the "germ theory" of disease was just a theory. Lister's innovation was simply to try to kill the germs. Lister used a spray made of carbolic acid, on wounds, dressings and surgical tools. He also washed his hands. The acid killed the germs before they had a chance to cause infection, and the hand-washing kept new germs from being introduced. ... Although British and American surgeons were irked by the “Scottish upstart,” according to Harvard University, “by 1875, sterilization of instruments and the scrubbing of hands were widely practiced.” Carbolic spray was exchanged for other antiseptics by 1885. - Smithsonian Magazine

Surgery was extremely dangerous prior, with high death rates.

Note that it took nearly a decade to widely adopt the practice and another to improve upon it. There were complaints and hostility for a while:

Lister published a paper about his system in the Lancet, but because Pasteur’s germ theory was still untested many surgeons were sceptical. Without the belief that germs were real and dangerous, many surgeons found the antiseptic system unnecessarily complicated and excessive. Some surgeons were opposed because they thought that Lister was proposing carbolic acid as a treatment for infection rather than as one possible chemical barrier or antiseptic for preventing infection entering the body. They objected that carbolic acid was too toxic for wound dressings because, in strong solutions it irritated and burned the wound and surrounding skin, and an overdose could cause excessive vomiting. - Science Museum UK

But ultimately his work led to the sterilization we now take for granted.

Fun fact: the mouthwash, Listerine, is named after Lister.

—

John Snow

English physician and a leader in the development of anaesthesia and medical hygiene. He is considered one of the founders of modern epidemiology, in part because of his work in tracing the source of a cholera outbreak in Soho, London, in 1854, which he curtailed by removing the handle of a water pump. Snow's findings inspired the adoption of anaesthesia as well as fundamental changes in the water and waste systems of London, which led to similar changes in other cities, and a significant improvement in general public health around the world. - Wikipedia

Again, this didn't come easily:

Political controversy After the cholera epidemic had subsided, government officials replaced the Broad Street pump handle. They had responded only to the urgent threat posed to the population, and afterward they rejected Snow's theory. To accept his proposal would have meant indirectly accepting the fecal-oral route of disease transmission, which was too unpleasant for most of the public to contemplate. ... Public health officials recognise the political struggles in which reformers have often become entangled. During the Annual Pumphandle Lecture in England, members of the John Snow Society remove and replace a pump handle to symbolise the continuing challenges for advances in public health.

We're seeing parallels now:

Places with high transmission rates and where vulnerable people gather — like hospitals, pharmacies, nursing homes, and schools — refusing to upgrade ventilation, portable HEPA filtered air purifiers either refused or removed, refusing to implement or maintain masking policies. Agencies that should be maintaining public health practices instead relaxing their messaging and businesses using that "guidance" as an excuse.

We have an opportunity to learn from history and expedite positive progress instead of slowing it down for decades, again, at the cost of millions of lives (lost not only to death but illness, poverty, and overall well-being).

#john snow #not the GOT one #Joseph Lister #Listerine #historical #cholera #sterilization #epidemiology #public health #covid #ventilation #filtration #HEPA filters #corsi rosenthal box #young and healthy is a myth #children are vulnerable to covid #aids pandemic #aids crisis

[gwydionmisha]

#Fire Island #AIDS Pandemic #Queer History

[carolynmappleton]

You can help!

#PEPFAR #hiv #aids #aids pandemic #hiv aids #Congress #reauthorization

[liberty1776]

https://www.washingtonpost.com/history/2023/06/04/aids-epidemic-reagan-everett-koop/

#Aids Pandemic #Ronald Reagan

[ano07]

#randy shilts #hiv #aids #aids pandemic #book review #books #am reading #open book #black and white photography #the journalist of castro street #randy shilts biography

[wild-neko]

disabled people: we are still dying, can you please just wear a mask to the grocery store and doctor’s offices so we can live

conservatives: no, die or stay inside all day, no one cares

leftists: no 🏳️‍🌈✨💖

#wear a mask #covid #sars cov 2 #disability rights #eugenics #disability pride month #lgbt #it really is like this :') #queer #pandemic #ableism #disabled queer #auspol #me not ever being able to share the same air with anyone ever really does something to your mental health #trying not to die in the ongoing pandemic #wear a fucking mask #we would actually like to access third spaces too #we just lost 100 years of disease prevention bc govt propaganda worked a little too well and gave every single medical person brain rot #they went from 'do no harm' to 'actually i think you should quit complaining and allow me to kill you with airborn aids' #which is happening EVERYWHERE BTW and it made it to the media that an aust hospital COVERED IT UP like this is what we're dealing with #this is what modern day eugenics looks like and no one gives a shit #Ableism #HAPPY NEW YEAR #pride #LGBTQIA #activism #acab

[lgbtq-archives]

𝐆𝐚𝐲 𝐌𝐞𝐧 𝐍𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐉𝐮𝐝𝐠𝐞𝐝 𝐦𝐞! | 𝐈'𝐦 𝐚𝐧 𝐋𝐆𝐁𝐓𝐐+ 𝐀𝐥𝐥𝐲

#lgbtq history #lgbt pride #pride month #pride 2023 #older gay men #gay friends #gay friendship #lgbtq friends #aids pandemic #gay ally #straight friends #falling for straight men #lgbtq #gay community #Youtube

[sarcastic-salem]

So like.…….The plot to Eternals was basically about activism during the 1980s-90s AIDs/HIV pandemic. The Celestial Arashim — AKA the Eternals’ alien overlord — represented Raegan and the church. Tiamut, the Celestial that was supposed to be born and destroy the earth, represents a hypothetical generation of society that assholes thought would prosper if all of the queers died.

And the Eternals decided to step in because it wasn’t just queer people who were being hurt but at the same time there was this huge debate because the Eternals were also — metaphorically speaking — Christians. So they had to decide whether or not they wanted to rebel against the church. Ickaris was the staunch, rightwing republican asshole, Sersi wanted to rebel, and Kingo was the centrist who was like, “I agree that what the government is doing is wrong but my religion doesn’t like queer people.”

But, again, they rebelled against Arashim because queer people were not the only ones being hurt by HIV/AIDs — BIPOC and disabled people were being hurt, too.

Then there’s the whole harem subplot where everyone is in love with Discount Bucky — I mean, Ickaris.

#marvel #marvel comics #marvel mcu #marvel cinematic universe #marvel movies #the eternals #mcu fandom #fan theory #nerd thoughts #queer nerds #lgbt #bipoc superheroes #bipoc lgbt #religion #random thoughts #tv and movies #movie analysis #christianity #hiv aids #aids pandemic #1980s #ronald reagan

[razzek]

One thing that's starting to really get to me with the James Somerton stuff is a real strong undercurrent of disdain toward his fans. And yeah, I was one of them. A good scam artist isn't as easy to spot as y'all seem to think. You forget that you have all the information right now. Two days ago most of you had never heard of him and it would have kept going. Anyone can fall for a scam, nobody is immune. I would love to have had whatever resources you guys think we all should magically know about so I could have kept my sad $5 a month I really needed but thought was going to something worthwhile. Some of us can only devote so much energy into things and when you have no idea whatsoever that something is amiss of course you're not going to go digging for sources, why would you when everything is fine as far as you know? I really wish I could have seen the dissenting opinions on him but for many, many reasons that aren't just that the dissenting voices weren't widely circulating at the time all I had was the thought every now and again that "huh that doesn't seem right" and then go on with my day. And I think that happened to a lot of us. So yeah. Say what you gotta say about Somerton, he has more than earned it with the damage he's caused, but maybe don't shit so hard on his former fans because that is going to be you someday with something, it happens to everyone sooner or later.

#james somerton #hbomberguy #todd in the shadows #I really am greatful for Harris and Todd's hard work in exposing all of this #and I am glad I get to see the real voices I did like that james was stealing #I'm just tired of all these people jumping on the drama train taking a dump on folks who are also victims of these crimes #razz rambles #this whole situation is upsetting me in the weirdest ways #I'm distraught but I'm not at the same time #and yet it's 6am and I can't stop reading through the tags and seeing the takes I missed #vaspider's essay and remarks from an AIDS pandemic survivor are especially good #I lived through that shit too but had no idea I was living through it #cuz that's what being blind and impoverished in rural community was like #queer wasn't even something I knew I could be until like 2010 #so it's nice to see my own history #it's not just the young queers who have little to no knowledge of our history

[feminist-space]

"We are fundraising to purchase 288,000 3M 9501+ KN95 masks from government surplus!

Our goal is $9,000 to win the auction and pay for transportation of the masks from VA to mask blocs across the country.

These include mask blocs in DC, Northern Southern and Central Virginia, New Orleans, St. Louis, and Champaign Urbana, New York City, Kansas City, Tulsa, Knoxville, Long Island and more.

Currently, a pallet of 12,000 KN95 masks is 200 dollars each. We are aiming to buy as many pallets as possible and deliver them to whoever wants them! If you want to support but can't contribute, consider sharing this to your socials.

#MaskBloc #MaskDistribution ⁠fundraising #COVIDIsntOver #MutualAid"

"We’ve made contact with the seller, and they’ve agreed to sell them directly at $200/palette!

By buying directly instead of through the auction, we will definitely be getting these masks. The only question is how many.

The more money we raise, the more palettes we can buy, and the more transportation we can pay for to get these masks to communities across the country!

ALMOST HALFWAY THERE!!! LETS GOOO!!!! Thank you all for your support, sharing and contributions. Speaking on behalf of all of the organizers, we are so stoked that this campaign is going well and about how many masks we are going to be able to get. Thank you!!!

Alt text: Flyer with periwinkle and orange color scheme. Text at the top says “Mask Fundraiser. Joint mask bloc effort (14+ blocs). Bulk discount on high-quality KN95s at surplus sale. Every dollar makes a dent. Asterisks. $4=240 masks. $200=12,000 masks. Goal: 280,000 masks.”

Underneath is an image of a large metal shipping container with 10 big visible cardboard boxes. Next to that is an illustration of a hand holding a white respirator with ear-loop straps that shows the text “kn95 gb2626-2019.”

Text at the bottom of the flyer says “donate: tinyurl.com/bulk-kn95s. Going to mask blocs in: DC, Northern/Southern/Central Virginia, New Orleans, St. Louis, Champaign Urbana, Chicago, New York City, Kansas City, Tulsa, Knoxville, Long Island, Cincinnati, San Jose & more. To be distributed for free to all of our communities.” Asterisks mentioned at top of flyer are resolved here, with an asterisk next to text that says “Portion of money also going toward transport and associated costs.""

#mutual aid #mask bloc #masks #wear a mask #covid is still a thing #the pandemic is not over #what's over are all the protections #wear a mask to protect yourself and others from illness #plus there are measles tuberculosis and other respiratory illness outbreaks

[covidsafehotties]

#mask up #covid #covid 19 #covid isn't over #pandemic #covid conscious #long covid #covid is airborne #wear a mask #coronavirus #HIV #AIDS