Krishna Stone
Krishna Stone is the
director of community
relations in the
Communications
Department at Gay Men’s
Health Crisis (GMHC),
where she has been involved
for 34 years. Krishna
originally connected
with GMHC in
1986 when she walked
in the first annual
AIDS Walk New York.
She soon began volunteering.
In 1993, Krishna
joined GMHC as a staff
member. Her responsibilities
include coordinating
staff interviews with media
outlets and developing public
service campaigns and promotional
materials. She is also engaged
in an endless round of
organizing community events –
rallies, candlelight vigils, press
conferences, dance parties and
other fundraisers, and site visits
to GMHC for people from all over
the world.
Krishna was one of the heroes of
AIDS activism profiled in Victoria
Noe’s 2017 book “Fag Hags, Divas
and Moms: The Legacy of Straight
Women in the AIDS Community.”
In a guest post on Noe’s blog this
year, Krishna recalled the commitment
and grief that spurred
her work with GMHC.
“During the 1980s and 90s,
when I was volunteering and then
becoming an employee at Gay Men
Health Crisis, visiting with friends
who were living with AIDS and
then attending memorial services
for those who had died
of AIDS, dancing was a
substantial coping skill,”
she wrote.
She then memorably
set a scene that will resonate
with many.
“I would go to the clubs,
largely for gay men, and
dance to extraordinary
Disco Classics music,
played by immensely gifted
DJs,” Krishna continued.
“Before I would start on the dancefloor,
I would ask myself who
was I dancing for that had died
of AIDS. Then I would dance for
hours, while crying for my friends,
singing out loud and screaming
when the DJ would play a specific
song – ‘Oh my Goddess! That’s my
song!’ Pure rapture and joy mixed
with sorrow.”
Krishna’s ubiquitous presence
in the battle against the AIDS epidemic
has earned her widespread
recognition.
For the past 21 years she’s been
a volunteer announcer along the
route of Manhattan’s LGBTQ
Pride March. In 2017, Krishna
was among the event’s four grand
marshals, and Governor Andrew
Cuomo honored her for “dedicated
service and continuing contributions
to our great State.”
In 2014, the city’s health department
honored her on World AIDS
Day with an award in recognition
of “her outstanding dedication to
combatting the spread of HIV.”
An ordained non-denominational
minister, Krishna is the proud
mother of a 25-year-old daughter,
Parade.
Director
of Community
Relations,
Gay Men’s
Health Crisis
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