National AIDS Memorial in San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park honors lives lost, calls for continued action [Video]

SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) — The National AIDS Memorial CEO John Cunningham gave ABC7 News a tour of the only federally designated memorial to HIV and AIDS in the United States. The memorial, which was established 34 years ago during the height of the AIDS crisis, continues to serve as a community sanctuary, particularly for the LGBTQ+ community, Cunningham said.

Standing in the “Circle of Friends,” where nearly 5,000 names are engraved, Cunningham reflected on the devastating impact of the AIDS epidemic, particularly in its early years. “It was the gay community, the LGBT community, that had to seek and find solutions when the government wasn’t coming. Stigma ruled, and so the community rose up to address the tragedy,” Cunningham said.

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The names etched into the memorial are more than just letters, Cunningham emphasized, describing them as symbols of the many lives …