AIDS Quilt

Aids Quilt displays, sponsored by the NAMES Project, have appeared across the nation since 1987 as a memorial to individuals who have died of AIDS-related causes. First created by the homosexual activist Cleve Jones, each panel of the quilt measures three by six feet, decorated with mementos or special items put together by loved ones of the deceased to commemorate his or her life. By 2000, the quilt contained more than 44,000 panels and was displayed for the sixth time in full on the Capitol Mall in Washington, D.C. Displays of portions of the quilt throughout the country help to convey the personal as well as the quantitative impact of the disease.

Bibliography

Jones, Cleve, and Jeff Dawson. Stitching a Revolution: The Making of an Activist. New York: Harper Collins, 2000.

Ruskin, Cindy. The Quilt: Stories from the NAMES Project. New York: Pocket Books, 1998.

—Kristen L. Rouse