Over 10,000 participants at the 39th annual AIDS Walk New York helped raise $1,872,909 for GMHC and other HIV service providers in the tristate area—and donations are still being collected! The 2024 theme was “Stride Past Stigma.”

You can watch the AIDS Walk New York opening ceremony on YouTube and below:

The Sunday, May 19, event in Manhattan’s Central Park included a four-mile walk, vogue performances by the House of Miyake Mugler, a Paradise Garage dance party, appearances by RuPaul’s Drag Race contestant Q, current Broadway belters Melody Betts (The Wiz) and Kecia Lewis (Hell’s Kitchen), the New York City Gay Men’s Chorus and GMHC cofounder Larry Mass, MD. CBS New York’s Jessi Mitchell and actor Wilson Cruz emceed the opening ceremony, according to a press statement by GMHC.

The 2024 AIDS Walk New York took place as the city faces budget cuts—including $75 million from the health department—at the direction of Mayor Eric Adams. This translates to about a $5.3 million reduction in HIV programs, reports Gothamist. According to GMHC, the cuts will result in the elimination of three of its pivotal, popular programs:

  • RISE: A workforce development program that in the past decade has linked over 645 people living with HIV and AIDS to employment.

  • The Undetectables: A medication adherence and education program for clients living with HIV and AIDS.

  • HIV Prevention and Literacy, Older Adults Program: An HIV Prevention and education program for New Yorkers over age 50, which includes the annual HIV & Aging conference.

In related news, drag queen Q recently spoke with POZ about how her HIV disclosure on RuPaul’s Drag Race became a meme: “Mama, kudos for saying that, for spilling.” Watch the Drag Race disclosure below and on YouTube:

She also spoke with GMHC before participating in the AIDS Walk and striding past stigma. “We live in a world where stigma shapes the environment of sexual health and ultimately someone’s experience being HIV+,” Q told GMHC. “If we can break down these barriers that stigma creates, we can get to a place where people are getting tested more, are more informed about PrEP [pre-exposure prophylaxis] and unafraid of those that are living with HIV.”

“Being open about my status with the world felt truly freeing--like a weight lifted off my shoulders.” We caught up...

Posted by GMHC on Thursday, May 16, 2024

GMHC is the world’s oldest HIV service provider. As POZ reported in March, Robert Guimento is now serving as the organization’s interim CEO.

Officially established in 1982 as Gay Men’s Health Crisis, GMHC is the world’s oldest HIV and AIDS service provider. According to its website, “GMHC serves New Yorkers throughout the five boroughs: 39% live in Manhattan; 25% in Brooklyn; 22% in the Bronx; 14% in Queens; and 1% in Staten Island. The communities we serve are disproportionately affected by both the HIV and COVID-19 pandemics: Over 70% live below the Federal Poverty Line; 36% are Black; and 32% are Latino. Nearly half of clients are over the age of 50, and 53% are LGBTQ+.”

The September 2015 cover of POZ

In September 2015, the Undetectables HIV program, which launched at Housing Works in 2014 before expanding to several other health agencies, was featured on the cover of POZ. Click “Suppression Superheroes” to learn more.