CHICAGO (WBBM NEWSRADIO) - A joyous day of remembrance and hope as the ribbon was cut at Chicago's first public park dedicated to those who've lost loved ones to AIDS and HIV.
"Today we honor the men, the women, and the gender non-binary humans who have laid down their lives at the feet of a disease to this day, still ravages worst amongst black and Latin X youth," said Osiris Khepera, Poet, Activist. "We herald the ones who came to play here, the ones who found love here, the ones who worked the night here, the ones who laid out coming down from last night's debauchery at sunrise here, the ones who wished and schemed and plotted and fretted for a different live here, the ones who forgave unforgiving parents here."
Khepera, along with the Chicago Gay Men’s Chorus, kicked off the celebration at Belmont Harbor, a two-and-a-half acre park on the site of the former Belmont Rocks, a beloved space where the local gay community gathered between the 1960s and 1990s. It's a place State Representative Greg Harris remembers with mixed emotions.
"I was diagnosed with HIV in 1988, then full blown AIDS in 1990. I'd love to be here today consecrating this ground looking out at a sea of my friends, my associates and my colleagues, the people that used to hang out here with me but they are all dead." he paused. "Most of them are dead. I just see a handful of people, gay men of my age, who survived this epidemic," he said, choking back tears. "This is a memorial to those guys and the thousands of folks I never knew who died of AIDS."
Harris reminds the crowd that LGBTQ rights are sacred but delicate.
"Remember back then, there were no treatment for AIDS, there was no research for AIDS, there was no cure for AIDS, it was a death sentence. You got your HIV diagnosis, my doctor told me when I got mine, plan on living about six more months. That was the reality of the situation." he recalled. "Things could change in an instant."
The project has been years in the making. The Garden’s first phase was completed in late 2019 with the installation of its anchor piece, a 30-foot green sculpture. The garden also includes decorated rocks with the names of the lives lost to AIDS and recorded stories of the day of the epidemic, accessed through QR codes throughout the space.
"This project which seeks to honor, respect, remember, educate and celebrate is destined to be a true Chicago landmark," said Yoni Pizer, Board Chairman, AIDS Garden Chicago. "This garden will forever remind us of those who we've lost, never forget the forces of hate and indifference which decimated our community, never forget those who cared for our friends and family when they were abandoned by their families and their government and never forget those brave individuals who acted up."
The park began with the vision of Alderman Tom Tunney.
"To me it's a symbol of resilience. This is what this garden is about, education, resilience and making sure this type of epidemic or crisis never happens again with government indifference for the first ten years." he said. "This was a public gathering place for LGBT where there were very few places to be out and proud, and this was one of them." he said.
"People of all orientations, of all stripes understand what happened the last 40 years, what will not happen again if we do the right work and educate our youth and make sure there are safe spaces for everyone regardless of their orientation." said Tunney.
Mayor Lori Lightfoot, Governor J.B. Pritzker and Lt. Governor Julianna Stratton were also on hand for the official ribbon cutting.
"We are so proud to join advocates and community leaders as we dedicate this space to the memory of Chicagoans who lost their lives to the HIV and AIDS epidemic. We will never stop fighting for the LGBTQ community and the rights they deserve. We will keep doing the necessary work to getting to zero and ending HIV," said Stratton.
"Together we will make Illinois a state that recognizes the dignity of every person's existence. May the AIDS Chicago Garden serve as a daily reminder of how far we've come and how much father we need to go to uplifting the vibrant legacies of all of who we've lost." she said.
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