Secret Los Angeles coverage of Monument Grand Opening
West Hollywood’s Long-Awaited STORIES: The AIDS Monument Opens With A Powerful Night Of Memory, Community, And Hope
By Sarah Nash
Secret Los Angeles
As rain fell over West Hollywood, activists, artists, and leaders gathered to inaugurate STORIES: The AIDS Monument in a night of remembrance and resilient joy.
After more than a decade of planning, West Hollywood came together Sunday night for the long-awaited opening of STORIES: The AIDS Monument – a powerful tribute that felt less like a ceremony and more like a reunion of a community that has survived the unimaginable. The AIDS Monument is comprised of 147 bronze pillars called “Traces” which are 13-feet tall. The surface of the “Traces” are slightly different, and just like a person, each is unique.
The monument remembers those we lost, those who survived, the protests & vigils, and the caregivers. Despite a light rain, the event shifted into the Pacific Design Center’s Silver Screen Theatre, where the evening unfolded with a sense of history and shared purpose.