National AIDS Memorial Inc

Change the Pattern - The National AIDS Memorial launched the Change the Pattern program to meet the increase number of cases of HIV/AIDS within the Southern United States. The program featured the AIDS Memorial Quilt as the central part around which programing, and community activations were created. The program brought community members together through 1) panel making workshops 2) community meetings and town halls 3) Quilt exhibitions and in so doing opened conversations around what is driving the increasing cases. The program also provided grants to community-based organizations delivering services to the community. In addition, the program focused efforts toward youth on HBCU campuses and provided scholarships for the work being done by these young people across the south. This initiative visited 15+ communities experiencing high rates of infection as well as challenges accessing critical care. The project focused on increasing the representation of persons of color in the Quilt and as a result nearly 300 new panels have been completed. Working to "change the pattern" of infections in the Southern U.S. will be critical to ending the AIDS pandemic.