Since 1993, The Wall Las Memorias Project has made great strides in addressing the issues of AIDS stigma and silence in communities of faith.

Growing up as a Catholic, I was taught that we must always be a service to helping those individuals in marginalized communities. It was our human duty to help the sick and poor.

Living in the AIDS pandemic era, it was my calling to fight the disease and address the social factors that led to the spread of HIV in county of Los Angeles. Working with churches has always been a challenge because of the teachings surrounding sexuality.  In order to increase community wellness, we had no choice but to confront those challenges in a loving manner that eventually open the church doors for awareness, education and action.  

Today, we face another challenge; there is a campaign by conservative bishops to challenge our movement for wellness and equality for members of our community.  There are using the pews of the Catholic Church to promote a political agenda. Church should not be used for politics nor should it be to prevent wellness in our community.

On Sunday, please wear a yellow ribbon or cloth on your shirt or blouse to support Catholics for Equality and Social Justice. This is not confronting the church but to remind our faith leaders that the doors of the faith community must be open to everyone in order to promote community wellness. Please encourage your family members and friends to wear the yellow ribbon in support of equality and social justice.  

Wear it proudly throughout the summer to show your solidarity support for members of the LGBT community.

I hope and pray that we return to a time when we Catholics return to the social justice and teachings of our faith. We also respect all faiths and those choose to celebrate life within their own spiritual journey.

Thank you for taking the time from your busy life to read this message. 

Best, 

Richard L. Zaldivar