Co-organizer Ronnie de Leon. Photo by Joan Vu.

Next Saturday, the community is invited to join Long Beach City College students in walking laps at the Veterans Memorial Stadium in solidarity with those affected by AIDS.

This event is the start of a new cross-cultural initiative at LBCC led by students Ronnie de Leon, Ravanna Cantrall and David Saenz. De Leon, cofounder of Long Beach-based clothing brand Four Figures and local festival producer The Prognosis, said he saw an opportunity to utilize school funding for an annual event that not only unites the student body over a larger issue but also cross-pollinates the college with the local community.  

“Our mission is to bring a lot of people together to give them knowledge about issues that are stigmatized,” said de Leon, who is active in the college’s history club and the cultural affairs group. “I thought we should do an event where clubs not only all the collaborate but we collaborate to address a big problem. You can throw a party which is one thing, but you can also come together to fight against a large societal issue.”  

When Cantrall, a Long Beach Pride Parade martial and founder of the new campus group Queer Space, suggested an AIDS Walk for the inaugural event at the stadium, de Leon said it hit home—a close friend of his growing up had been HIV-positive.

“I remember watching him go through everything he went through,” he said. “Taking him to doctor’s appointments, him reacting to different medicine. […] I said, All right, we’re gonna go full force for this. There are times when you have to be part of a bigger picture.”  

At the AIDS Walk this Saturday, nearly a dozen community organizations offering resources on AIDS and other health-related issues will be present, including Love Hope Strength, Be the Match, LB AIDS Food Store, LA Fitness, Mental Health America and Staff Pro. 

In solidarity, a dozen LBCC organizations will be on the grounds, including the Associated Student Body, Development of African American Professionals, Career and Transfer Center, International Order of Tong and Men of Aztlan.

Furcast. Photo by 360nm.

For live music, the organizers have enlisted three local bands to perform in the stadium — experimental R&B-jazz group Furcast, psych-jazz-pop trio Brainstory and psychedelic-groove band King Kang. DJs Mike Becerra of DONT TRIP and London Guzman of The Buttertones will be spinning tunes.

The first 100 attendees will receive a free T-shirt and a commemorative sticker of the AIDS Walk logo. 

Brainstory. Photo by Gloria Plaza.

“I want people to walk away with knowledge,” de Leon said. “I definitely want to destigmatize the stigmatized. And I want the streets to mesh with the school — I always think it’s good to learn from each other.” 

LBCC’s 1st Annual AIDS Walk takes place Saturday, May 28 from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Veterans Memorial Stadium. A minimum of a $7 donation is suggested for adults, $5 for currently enrolled students. Children are free. Proceeds will benefit a local AIDS-related organization.

King Kang. Photo by Jess Giles.

Disclaimer: The writer of this column is a member of the band King Kang.