Our 40th AIDS Walk New York was a huge success! Over 10,000 people joined together in Central Park on May 18 to raise $1,913,275 for GMHC & other HIV and AIDS services organizations in the tri-state area.
“During these tumultuous times, it was so beautiful, helpful, and healing to come together for AIDS Walk, both to honor those we have lost and renew our energies to keep doing the work. Folks really wanted to be there with us this year, in both grieving and hopefulness,” said Krishna Stone, GMHC’s Director of Community Relations.
“We Won’t Stop!” was the timely theme for the 40th annual AIDS Walk New York. ”And we won’t,” said GMHC’s new CEO, Jon Mallow. “We walked to remember those we’ve lost and those still impacted. We walked to fight the corrosive effects of ongoing stigma – and we walked for a better future where who you are, where you live, or how much money you make doesn’t determine how healthy you can be.”
The opening ceremony at the Naumburg Bandshell featured touching performances of three songs that captured the heart of the event. Broadway star Javier Munoz gave us “Love Don’t Need a Reason,” by Peter Allen and Michael Callen, who both died of AIDS-related complications in the early 1990s. The NYC Gay Men’s Chorus followed with Janet Jackson’s “Together Again,” honoring all whom we have lost.
Then Ally Bonino, Hannah Cruz, Hawley Gould, and Monica Ramirez from the Broadway musical Suffs fired up the crowd for the four-mile walk through Central Park with their showstopper “Keep Marching.” As the uplifting opening stanza says: “You won’t live to see the future that you fight for. / Maybe no one gets to reach that perfect day. / If the work is never over / Then how do you keep marching anyway?”
During the Paradise Garage Dance Party after the Walk, DJ Trevor Fox played Disco Classic anthems from Sylvester, Dan Hartman and other icons of the 1970s and 1980s, whom we also lost to the epidemic. There was also free HIV testing and a vogue performance by the iconic House of Miyake Mugler.
We thank Jessi Mitchell, the news anchor for media sponsor CBS New York, for emceeing the event with the trailblazing actor and LGBTQ+ advocate Wilson Cruz, as well as the incredible group of elected officials who attended: NYC Council Members Erick Bottcher, Gale Brewer, and Tiffany Cabán; NYC Comptroller Brad Lander, Congressman Jerry Nadler, NY State Senator Brad Hoylman-Sigal, NY State Assembly Member Tony Simone, and Public Advocate Jumaane Williams.
We also want to thank our generous sponsors, whose support made AIDS Walk New York such a success! The event’s Presenting Sponsor was ViiV Healthcare. Grand Sponsors were Captivate, Gilead, and Mesmerize. Principal Sponsors were Bloomberg Philanthropies, Druckenmiller Foundation, The Keith Haring Foundation, PepsiCo, and TD Bank.
Check out the AIDS Walk New York 2025 photo gallery!
There’s still time to donate through June 30!
Stay in the Know
Sign up to receive our monthly newsletter, updates about events, and other helpful information.
