AIDS Memorial Quilt on exhibit at UTA Libraries
A portion of the AIDS Memorial Quilt will be displayed at the UTA Central Library as part of a special exhibit from Nov. 28 through Dec. 2 on the library's sixth floor. World AIDS Day is Dec. 1.
Human rights activist, author and lecturer Cleve Jones started the quilt in 1985. Today, the AIDS Memorial Quilt is a 54-ton display that includes 50,000 panels dedicated to more than 110,000 individuals.
The portions of the quilt on display at UTA commemorate local history related to AIDS and document the lives of eight people, said Kathryn Slover, a digital archivist in the library’s Special Collections Department.
“One of the reasons we selected this quilt section is that one of the smaller panels of the eight is for Ken Cyr, a local gay rights activist here in Fort Worth,” Slover said. “He started the first gay organization in Fort Worth—the Awareness, Unity and Research Association—and was one of the founders of the Texas Gay Conference.”
The exhibit is a partnership between UTA Libraries and the National AIDS Memorial. It features text panels related to the history of the quilt and its history on campus—parts of the quilt came to UTA in the 1990s, early 2000s, and 2022. The exhibit also will have historic photos of the quilt from The Shorthorn and The Fort Worth Star-Telegram photograph collections. These images can be viewed in the UTA Libraries Digital Gallery. Visitors can search for names of family members or friends through an online interactive display.
On Nov. 28, UTA Libraries will host a special event from noon to 2 p.m. Several University offices and local organizations will have tables set up to provide information about LBGTQ+ history and resources about HIV and AIDS. There will also be a crafting activity to commemorate the quilt where people can make small square panels.
The AIDS Memorial Quilt will be on display on the sixth floor of the UTA Central Library from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. from Nov. 28 to Dec. 2. Both the exhibit and special event are open to the UTA community and the public to attend.
-Written by Andrew Branca, UTA Libraries