Permanent memorial in Birmingham for people affected by HIV and AIDS
A fundraiser's happening to raise money to make the memorial happen
Last updated 10th Feb 2021
An online fundraising event's happening later this month to raise money for a permanent memorial in Birmingham.
It's in honour of everyone affected by HIV and AIDS.
It's going to be somewhere in Birmingham's Southside District but there aren't any details yet, exactly where it'll be, or what it'll look like.
So, we've been speaking to two of the people who are trying to make it happen.
Garry Jones is a Birmingham artist:
"It all happened after watching It's A Sin on Channel 4, I just posted on a Facebook page whether anyone would be interested in getting together, during this pandemic, to remember the forgotten pandemic in the 1980's and I got an amazing response.
"We're doing so much work already and it's unbelievable the response we've had.
"I was 21 in 1981, this horrible disease came along, just as you were finding out who you were, this awful disease hit the scene.
"You just saw people disappear, you didn't know where they were, whether they'd died or gone home.
"I'd like the memorial to be a legacy, a suitable memorial for all those forgotten people.
"Like I say, I was 21 in 1981, if nothing happens now with the memorial, another 40 years, I'll be gone and virtually everyone will be gone from that time so it's very important.
"I think it will be a symbol of hope for the future too.
"I don't want them to be forgotten, it will mean the world to me".
Phil Oldershaw is the Co-Founder of Birmingham Pride:
"It's about time Birmingham had a place for people to acknowledge those lost, acknowledge those suffering.
"The community has now got together to come onboard and help get this project and turn it from a thought and vision and make it a reality.
"For obvious reasons many people would like to see it on the top of Hurst Street, near where the new Hippodrome Square will be, which is a central point to the gay community and Hippodrome Theatre because a lot of people in the 80s and 90s lost their lives that worked in the threatre industry.
"However, we've got to work with officials in the city to find a suitable spot, which is convenient for all, that is the right place for a landmark to go".
An online fundraiser's being hosted by The Nightingale Club on February 19.
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