ACT UP announces 2027 calendar marking 40 years of HIV/AIDS activism
All profits will go towards ACT UP’s Fund Healthcare Not Warfare campaign, which is building towards an international day of action in 2027
By Callum Wells
A new 2027 calendar will mark four decades of HIV/AIDS activism by documenting the protests, people and campaigns of the AIDS Coalition to Unleash Power (ACT UP).
Titled ACT UP at 40: Celebrating Resistance and Demanding Healthcare for All, the calendar features photographs from the international movement and more than 250 dates highlighting significant protests, people and events.
Founded in 1987, the AIDS Coalition to Unleash Power (ACT UP) became known for its direct-action campaigns, including mass die-ins, occupations of pharmaceutical company headquarters, political funerals and demonstrations at the White House. Its activism challenged political inaction and demanded access to treatment for people living with HIV/AIDS.
All profits will go towards ACT UP’s Fund Healthcare Not Warfare campaign
The calendar documents the work of chapters around the world, including those in Pittsburgh, Buenos Aires and Berlin, and celebrates the movement’s impact on HIV/AIDS activism.
All profits will go towards ACT UP’s Fund Healthcare Not Warfare campaign, which is building towards an international day of action in 2027.
Dan Glass, an ACT UP London activist and editor of the calendar, said: “Ours is a global history of people who refused to die quietly. We need ACT UP’s strategic efficacy now more than ever.”
David Robinson, an early member of ACT UP/New York and ACT UP/Golden Gate, said the project could help inspire further campaigning.
“AIDS activism – and healthcare activism more broadly – is needed as much as ever” – David Robinson, an early member of ACT UP
“I find the ‘ACT UP at 40’ calendar deeply moving. AIDS activism – and healthcare activism more broadly – is needed as much as ever, and this calendar is a beautiful tool for inspiring more of it,” he said.
The calendar also documents the contributions of local groups, including ACT UP Argentina and New York’s ACT UP Latina/o Caucus. The latter brought HIV/AIDS education into Latino communities through translated information, grassroots outreach and public events, including the Puerto Rican Day Parade.
Writer and broadcaster Alix Fox said the anniversary came amid continuing challenges around access to treatment, including the price of lenacapavir and the relationship between pharmaceutical companies and patients.
“ACT UP’s 40th year is a birthday, with so very much to celebrate. Yet it’s also a Ruby Anniversary – and there remain so many issues we must see red about,” she said.
When will the London launch of ACT UP at 40 take place?
The London launch will take place on Friday (23 October), from 6.30pm to 8.30pm at The Advocacy Academy, 2 Beehive Place, London, SW9 7QR. Photographer Gordon Rainsford, Fox and veteran activists are scheduled to attend.
Further information is available at actup.london.