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PRINCETON UNIVERSITY
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Date: November 21, 1995
Contact: Mary Caffrey (609) 258-5748


World AIDS Day 1995 at Princeton:
''Day Without Art'' comes outdoors;
HIV policy updated

Princeton, N.J. - Princeton University will observe World AIDS Day on December 1 as the capstone of a week-long effort to raise awareness about AIDS, educate the community about the spread of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), and promote the ongoing need for a global response to the disease.

The events will give the Princeton community a chance to discuss the university's new policy on HIV infection (see attachment). ``The policy affirms Princeton's commitment to providing the latest information about HIV and identifying available resources,'' said Associate Provost Joann Mitchell. ``We want to ensure that members of the Princeton community are aware that AIDS is a disability and that people living with HIV are protected by federal and state equal opportunity laws.''

The ``Day Without Art'' component of Princeton's AIDS Day observance, which calls attention to way AIDS has devastated the arts community, will take place in the Art Museum and elsewhere on campus. A black cloth will cover Song of the Vowels, the Lipschitz sculpture in the center of Firestone Plaza. Another drape will conceal The World by Bertoia inside Robertson Hall at the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs.

The Lipschitz sculpture is part of the John B. Putnam, Jr., Memorial Collection, named for the World War II fighter pilot who left Princeton after his sophomore year. Putnam succeeded in 53 missions before he died in a crash in 1944 at age 23.

The decision to cover pieces outside the Art Museum meant more University offices had to help plan the day. That has brought more attention to the events - and that's the point, according to Karen Gordon, director of Health Education in Princeton University Health Services, the office with primary responsibility for educating the campus community about preventing the spread of HIV.

Besides the museum, the Wilson School and the Health Service, groups supporting the week of events include the student organization Princeton AIDS Awareness, the Lesbian/Gay/Bisexual Alliance, the Office of Religious Life, Princeton University Dining Services and Butler, Mathey, Rockefeller and Wilson Colleges.

In the days leading up to December 1, students will sponsor lectures, set up information stations in the residential college dining halls and the Chancellor Green Hyphen, and organize a ``coffee house'' featuring music and dance. On November 30, the dining halls will serve cakes decorated with the red AIDS ribbons, and real ribbons will be passed out the next morning on World AIDS Day. The Lipschitz sculpture will be covered. Julian Rad will speak Friday night in 101 McCormick Hall on caring for a partner with AIDS. A arch sing and candelight vigil will follow under East Pyne Arch.


Rising Death Toll

In 1988, the World Health Organization (WHO) first designated December 1 as a day of education and reflection about the pandemic. As of June 1995, WHO estimated that 20 million people worldwide had been infected with the human immunodeficiency virus, and 4.5 million had developed AIDS. As of December 1994, 441,528 people in the United States had been diagnosed with AIDS; of these, 270,870 had died.

Those involved in raising awareness about AIDS measure the disease's toll in terms that go beyond lives lost - they point to the unspent human potential, particularly that of deceased artists, actors and musicians. In 1989, the New York-based volunteer group, Visual AIDS, organized the first Day Without Art to coincide with World AIDS Day.

Princeton University students need to be aware that they are living in the state where AIDS is ``highly concentrated.'' said Pamela Bowen, Director of Health Services. New Jersey ranks fifth among states in numbers of people with AIDS. Through June 30, 1995, the state Health Department had recorded 26,606 cases, including 16,780 people who have already died. Together, Mercer, Middlesex and Somerset counties account for 10 percent of the current cases statewide, according to the Health Department.

Those facts make it especially important to raise awareness among college students, Gordon said. ``In a student population, you're not going to see too many cases of full-blown AIDS,'' she said. Instead, the more noticeable symptoms strike just after the undergraduate years.

Too many students believe AIDS affects ``other populations,'' said Student organizer Jen Sayles '96 of Princeton AIDS Awareness. ``AIDS,'' she points out, ``is everywhere.''

(A schedule of events and the Princeton University policy on HIV was attached.)

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