Just Oui • 19 • November. 1^87
Whoopi Goldberg, Harvey Fierstein, Robert
Blake and others joined hundreds of volunteers
on the Capitol Mall on Sunday, October 11,
1987 to unfurl the giant NAMES Project quilt, a
national memorial to the tens of thousands of
Americans lost to AIDS.
The quilt — roughly the size of two football
fields — was composed of thousands of indi­
vidual 3’ x 6’ fabric panels, each bearing the
name of a single person lost to AIDS.
The panels were designed and constructed in
homes across America by the families and
friends of those who have died.
Inspired by the American folk art traditions
of quilting and sew ing bees, the NAMES Pro­
ject is a positive expression of personal loss as
well as a dramatic illustration of the impact of
AIDS on American society.
NAMES Project organizers plan to tour
American cities with the quilt next spring.
Funds raised from the national tour will stay in
the communities in which the quilt is displayed
to support local organizations providing direct
services to people with AIDS and others facing
the epidemic. Major corporations and founda­
tions are being approached to underwrite costs
of the tour.
For further information: The NAMES Pro­
ject. PO Box 14573, San Francisco, CA 94114.
415-626-5725.