Satiric, Somber Events Mark 5th AIDS Day

At UCLA, black shrouds covered the works in the campus’ renowned sculpture garden in a grim reminder of the toll AIDS has taken on the art world.

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At the federal building in Westwood, demonstrators castigated the government for issuing an “AIDS Awareness” postage stamp instead of pumping money into the quest for a cure.

At a poignant Hollywood ceremony, several people with AIDS were honored for their contributions to life in Los Angeles. Downtown, activists--many sporting full-length “body condom” costumes--marched through the Civic Center chanting, “Hey, hey, ho, ho, condom-phobia’s got to go.”

In dozens of commemorations--from the somber to the satirical--Angelenos on Wednesday observed the fifth annual World AIDS Day. “All of us have friends who are gone or who are dying,” theatrical director Peter Sellars told a UCLA rally of about 450 students. “AIDS is not someone else’s problem. . . . This is everyone’s problem.”

Some bookstores, art galleries and museums marked the day by covering their artworks in black, offering special video or other presentations, or simply by closing for a “day without art.”

Mayor Richard Riordan and Ferd Eggan, the city’s AIDS coordinator, presented Lifetime Achievement Awards to several people who have worked to raise public awareness.

Honored were novelist-poet Paul Monette; Phill Wilson and Dave Johnson, former city AIDS coordinators; Elizabeth Glaser, founder of the Pediatric AIDS Foundation; singer Michael Callen, founder of Gay Men’s Health Crisis; Linda Luschei, founder of Women at Risk, and Miguel Berestain, co-founder of a production company.

Also honored were Deborah Eli, who helped develop health care for women; advocate Scott McTaggart; activist W. Wayne Carr; Rick Lopez, an advocate for those with hemophilia and AIDS; activist Connie Norman, and Gilbert Cornilliet, editor of Being Alive.

Times correspondent Marina Dundjerski contributed to this report.