The Public War on AIDS Bracelet

In 1987, The Public War on AIDS (PWA) program began creating AIDS memorial bracelets modeled after POW bracelets worn during the Vietnam War to raise money for AIDS care. Some of the proceeds from the bracelets benefitted the Mothers of AIDS Patients (MAP), a non-profit support organization that Greg Connell's mother Mary Jane Edwards helped found in Los Angeles. Relatives of those who had died from the disease gave permission to the PWA program to print the names, ages, and dates of death of their kin on the bracelets. For a $10.00 donation, one could get a gold- or silver-plated bracelet with the engraved name, age, and date of death a person who died from the disease. The bracelets were a way for people to donate, raise awareness, and identify with AIDS victims and their families. The names and addresses of each donor were recorded so when a cure for AIDS is found they can call in all the bracelets, melt them, and build a monument from them. Mary Jane had Greg's information printed on the bracelets and gave them to politicians and celebrities; including Ted Kennedy and Surgeon General C. Everett Koop. This bracelet belonged to Peter. It includes Greg's name, date of death (9-11-1984), and age at death (34).

Item: 14.9/2024.BMLW; G.11/2024.DF

Peter wearing the bracelet on "The National AIDS Awareness Test" TV Special from 1987.