Grateful to be alive, longtime gay and AIDS survivor Cleve Jones is planning an "epic" party for his 70th birthday this fall. The event also marks the debut of the Cleve Jones Community Fund, which will help support the San Francisco AIDS Foundation and the AIDS Memorial Quilt, both of which he co-founded decades ago.
Horizons Foundation, the Bay Area's 43-year-old LGBTQ community foundation, will administer the community fund, a news release stated.
Jones' birthday party will take place Friday, October 11, which is his actual birthday as well as National Coming Out Day, at the Hibernia in San Francisco. The celebration will raise funds for the AIDS foundation and the National AIDS Memorial Grove, which oversees the quilt.
"I remember turning 40 and I was so sick," Jones said in a phone interview this week with the Bay Area Reporter. "I told a friend I went to bed and was 39 and woke up and was 82.
"I'm very grateful to be alive — and surprised," he added.
Jones wants to help the AIDS foundation and the quilt because he sees what he called "concerning" developments in the area of funding for HIV/AIDS. He read a quote from a letter issued last year from the Levi Strauss Foundation in which it stated it was "winding down" its donations to HIV programs after 40 years and over $85 million in investments. The foundation announced the news on its website last September.
Further, the San Francisco Standard recently reported that the number of participants was down this year for the AIDS/LifeCycle, a 545-mile bicycle fundraiser for SFAF and the Los Angeles LGBT Center. That means less money raised for the two organizations.
"We have every reason to be proud," he said of the city's continued lower cases of HIV, "but that doesn't mean it's over."
Figures from the San Francisco Department of Public Health for its 2023 semi-annual HIV surveillance report show there were 132 new HIV diagnoses in 2023, down from 167 in 2022. The health department stated these numbers are preliminary and may increase due to reporting delays. It will release its annual HIV surveillance report for 2023 later this year.
"I joined gay liberation in 1972 and moved to San Francisco in 1973," Jones stated in the release. "I was fortunate to meet and work with some of the great pioneers of our community." Jones was mentored by the late gay supervisor Harvey Milk and straight ally Art Agnos, a former San Francisco mayor.
Jones moved to the Russian River area of Sonoma County a couple of years ago, after a dispute with his San Francisco landlord, as the B.A.R. noted.
He said that at the time of the fight with his landlord, his health was suffering. "I was getting some bad lab numbers," he said. "And I got a cancer diagnosis. I've now been cancer-free for 18 months.
"When you get to this age, we lose our friends. For gay men in particular, so few survived," Jones added.
The party
Jones was able to line up performers by contacting them via Instagram, he said, adding that lesbian promoter Audrey Joseph is producing the event.
The party will feature live performances by Our Lady J, Chris Housman, Anthony Wayne, the San Francisco Gay Men's Chorus, and DJ Phil B.
Jones said Our Lady J, the first out trans woman to perform at Carnegie Hall and known for her work on "Pose," is expected to sing her song, "The Future of Us," with the gay men's chorus. (She had performed it with the New York City Gay Men's Chorus, and Jones saw a YouTube video, leading him to contact her.)
Wayne channels the late gay disco star Sylvester, whom Jones met at a diner on his first night in San Francisco 50 years ago, he recalled.
Housman, a gay country singer, is expected to perform "Drag Queens," a song that resonates with Jones because of all the recent attacks on drag artists.
"I've been calling these queens for decades," Jones said, adding that they've always showed up at fundraisers or other events to help him raise awareness.
Drag queens Sister Roma of the drag nun group Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence, and Juanita MORE! are co-hosts for the evening.
Roma stated in an email to the B.A.R. that the party "is going to be THE event of the year!"
"Cleve Jones is a national treasure," Roma wrote. "As the visionary who created the AIDS Memorial Quilt, he is responsible for the literal fabric of our community. It blows my mind when I look at Cleve's contributions to civil rights, not only here in San Francisco but around the globe. I hope everyone turns out for his birthday celebration to show respect and appreciation for his decades of service and activism."
MORE! stated that she wanted to "publicly acknowledge his 70 remarkable years by spanking him for each year of his life."
"I'm honored to be a part of Cleve's 70th birthday celebration," MORE! wrote in an email. "For as long as I can remember, Cleve has been an outstanding community figure, leading and motivating everyone. I am proud to be associated with him in any way, and hearing his impassioned speeches has always inspired me.
"I didn't know him in 1987, but I traveled to Washington, D.C., to see the AIDS Memorial Quilt displayed for the first time on the National Mall. It was a powerful and emotionally overwhelming day," she added.
Jones even enlisted former B.A.R. leather columnist and longtime leather community leader Race Bannon. His job was putting Jones in touch with the flag dancers from Golden Gate Park, who will perform.
"There are few men for whom I would rally birthday party attendees with the enthusiasm I am for Cleve Jones," Bannon wrote in an email. "Yes, we're friends, but I also respect him and his community and civil rights work so much that I would be remiss if I did not get others to help celebrate Cleve's 70th. That the event is also a fundraiser for such worthy nonprofits makes me even more excited to encourage people from all walks of the LGBTQ community to attend."
Jones said that queer muralist and artist Serge Gay Jr. has created a series of original art pieces based on facets of Jones' life and that party attendees will be able to purchase posters.
In addition to performing with Our Lady J, the gay men's chorus will be singing a song written by member Joseph Shapiro, with music by Holly Near, based on a speech Jones gave at Sonoma State University.
Long ties to nonprofits
Jones co-founded SFAF in 1982 and conceived the AIDS quilt in 1985. His award-winning memoir, "When We Rise: My Life in the Gay Rights Movement," was published in 2016 and was the basis for an ABC miniseries the following year.
Tyler TerMeer, Ph.D., a gay Black man living with HIV who is CEO of the AIDS foundation, thanked Jones for his efforts.
"We will forever be indebted to Cleve Jones for co-founding San Francisco AIDS Foundation, which has cared for and advocated on behalf of communities most impacted by HIV for more than 40 years," TerMeer stated. "Cleve's new community fund will help ensure that his life's work will continue to inspire hope and strive to realize a world where HIV is eliminated, and health justice is achieved for all."
John Cunningham, a gay man living with HIV who's CEO of the AIDS grove, noted Jones' work with the quilt. The grove took over stewardship of the quilt in 2019 after reaching an agreement that was brokered in part by Congressmember Nancy Pelosi (D-San Francisco), then serving as House speaker; Congressmember Barbara Lee (D-Oakland); and the late congressmember John Lewis (D-Georgia).
"Cleve's vision of the AIDS Memorial Quilt helped change the world's response to the pandemic and stands as one of the greatest of his many achievements over a long and storied career," Cunningham stated. "We are honored to serve as stewards to this living memorial to those lost to AIDS and which serves as an ongoing tool for HIV prevention. The fund will help preserve this national treasure for future generations."
Gilead Sciences Inc. is a sponsor of the upcoming birthday bash. The company, which produces HIV/AIDS medications such as those for PrEP, has also contributed to the preservation of the quilt.
"Cleve Jones' vision of the quilt sparked a powerful movement to advance health and social justice," stated Carmen Villar, vice president, environmental social governance and corporate citizenship at Gilead. "Its purpose remains just as important today as it plays a role in helping to end the HIV epidemic by opening hearts and minds."
Roger Doughty, a gay man who is president of Horizons, noted that LGBTQ history "cannot be forgotten."
"Few have done as much as Cleve Jones, not only to create these priceless legacies, but also to build an LGBTQ future of freedom, dignity, and equality," he stated.
The October 11 party at the Hibernia, 1 Jones Street (at Market), begins at 8 p.m.
Tickets start at $50 (early bird pricing), and $250 for the "Cleve Jones Experience," which includes premium benefits throughout the evening. Some ticket packages are sold out. For more information and to purchase tickets, go to horizonsfoundation.ejoinme.org/cleve-70-info.
Never miss a story! Keep up to date on the latest news, arts, politics, entertainment, and nightlife.
Sign up for the Bay Area Reporter's free weekday email newsletter. You'll receive our newsletters and special offers from our community partners.
Support California's largest LGBTQ newsroom. Your one-time, monthly, or annual contribution advocates for LGBTQ communities. Amplify a trusted voice providing news, information, and cultural coverage to all members of our community, regardless of their ability to pay -- Donate today!