AIDS Candlelight Vigil
Lincoln Memorial, Washington D.C.
October 8, 1988

"In a weekend marked by anger, frustration and more than a few arrests, the return of the AIDS memorial quilt to the nation's capital was highlighted by an awe-inspiring and peaceful candlelight march which drew thousands of participants, all banding together to light the darkness around the Ellipse." Rex Wockner, Bay Windows, October 20-26, 1988

"I was standing on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial looking back at this huge mass of people bathed in candlelight. I had run ahead of the march. My heart raced at 100 mph and I thought, 'This is one of the most beautiful sights I'll ever see.' The times were so oppressive, and the sight of all of those people walking silently with their candles seemed such a great statement of strength. In 1988, AIDS was still considered an enormous stigma for those afflicted, but between that October 7 and 11, thousands of ordinary people and hundreds of celebrities protested an unresponsive, negligent, and discriminatory Reagan Administration. We all felt energized and hopeful."