The city’s annual partnership main event for World Aids Day (WAD) on Tuesday, December 1, the vigil and reading of the names, will be online, although New Steine Gardens will be open.
In a normal year, people would gather at Brighton & Hove Aids Memorial to mark the day and hear the reading of names of those who have lost their lives to the disease.
This year, Lunch Positive vaunters will be around in the the gardens from 11am to offer support if needed; if you wish to go into New Stine for some private moments of reflection during the day please ensure social distancing is adhered to and face coverings are worn. The vigil will be broadcast through Facebook at 6pm. That is the only way to join in and hear the names this year.
The focus for 2020 is on frontline staff in the HIV sector and how they have responded over the past six months and adapted a lot of services to online.
Throughout the day there will be regular uploads of 90-second videos of people, including Sussex Beacon nurses, local MPs, volunteers and others, talking about how their HIV work and personal lives have been affected by the pandemic. At 6pm there will be a live reading of the names, which will remain online for a couple of hours. Join in online on the day by CLICKING HERE
Brighton & Hove World AIDS Day Community Partnership has announced the following events to mark WAD on or around Tuesday, December 1.
– Brighton AIDS Memorial Candlelight Vigil: Tuesday, December 1 @ 6pm, CLICK HERE to view.
Due to the current situation and restrictions with Covid 19, this year the WAD names reading and vigil will be held online and not as a physical event at the memorial.
The online event will be hosted on the Partnership’s Facebook page World AIDS Day – Brighton & Hove on Tuesday, December 1. Short speeches by frontline workers, volunteers and local HIV organisations will be available to view throughout the day. The names reading and vigil will take place as a Facebook Live event at the usual time of 6pm.
New Steine Gardens will still be open throughout the day on Tuesday, December 1 so members of the community can visit the Brighton & Hove Aids Memorial and pay their respects to loved ones. Stewards will be present to ensure adherence to Covid-19 guidelines and to signpost people to emotional support if required. For more info, contact Phillip Wragg at THT South on 07552 755161.
– Positive Space at Dorset Gardens Methodist Church (ground floor), Brighton, BN2 1RL on Sunday, November 29, pop in between 12.30 – 3pm.
The Sussex HIV Chaplaincy invites you to drop in and reflect on what WAD means to you. An opportunity to light a candle of remembrance, to spend some time in personal prayer or reflection, or to talk with the HIV chaplain in a welcoming and supportive atmosphere, for those with some faith or none, ALL are welcome.
For more info, contact Revd Heather Leake Date: 07867 773360 or susshivchap@gmail.com.
– Lunch Club members, friends and supporters of people with HIV are invited to a community WAD Sunday Lunch with Lunch Positive @ Dorset Gardens Methodist Church (1st & 2nd floors), Dorset Gardens, Brighton, BN2 1RL on Sunday, November 29 from 1pm with lunch served from 1.30pm.
Invitations will be sent out in advance or people can enquire about a place by contacting friends@lunchpositive.org or call 07846 464384.
– Tuesday, December 1: WAD Lunch & Community Drop-In with Lunch Positive @ Dorset Gardens Methodist Church (1st floor), Dorset Gardens, Brighton BN2 1RL. Open to anyone, Lunch Positive will open 12 – 3pm for light snacks and refreshments in a café-style setting. There’s no charge, but donations welcome. This is an open event, though numbers may be limited as part of a Covid-secure setting. For info: friends@lunchpositive.org or call 07846 464384.
– More to me than HIV – online by CLICKING HERE. An online exhibition of self portraits, celebrating the diversity of people living with HIV, championing the fact that HIV does not define us, and that we can live as normal a life as anybody else.
The Brighton & Hove World Aids Day Partnership comprises: Avert, BHCC Partnership Community Safety Team, Frontline AIDS, the HIV and SHAC (Sexual Health and Contraception) teams, the LGBT Safety Forum, Lunch Positive, More to Me Than HIV, Peer Action, The Rainbow Hub, The Sussex Beacon, Sussex Ecumenical HIV Chaplaincy and THT South.
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