Positive East seeks selfies from people living with HIV for U=U Community Quilt Project

Positive East, which is dedicated to improving the lives of people living with HIV in East London, is to create three quilt panels, comprised of thousands of selfies from the international community to help celebrate the powerful message of U=U (Undetectable = Untransmittable).

The individual selfies, provided from around the world, will be printed on fabrics then hand stitched together, celebrating each individual and their contribution to the U=U movement. Overlayed will be the three, but simple and powerful letters: U=U.

From far away these letters will be clearly visible, however as you approach the quilt panels, the letters will dissolve unfolding a diverse mosaic of individuals from the community.

Positive East said: “We are in an era of tangible progress in the history of HIV with significant medical and scientific advancements evolving rapidly. The shadow that HIV once cast across our communities is now starting to fall behind us. Notions of fear and grief are being replaced by notions of hope and prosperity.

“U=U is central to this, meaning that if you are adhering to your HIV medicine, and have an undetectable viral load it is biologically impossible to pass the virus on sexually. This crucial message helps us to break the cycle of HIV stigma, as well as being central to our ambition to eliminate new HIV transmissions by 2030.

“We will craft the U=U with the same love and care as the UK AIDS Memorial Quilt, to be an ongoing testament and powerful reminder for future generations. The U=U quilt in many ways will allow us to reimagine the AIDS quilt in the historic era of U=U. This project has been kindly supported by the BHIVA Laura Waters Community Award and the charity is honoured to work with the artist Chiara Ambrosio, who will lead on the project.”

To get involved, submit a photo (PNG, JPG or JPEG) HERE