Border HIV Kiss-In Confronts Stigma at Friendship Park Ahead of World AIDS Day

Overview

• MPact Global Action for Gay Men’s Health and Rights led the third annual International HIV Kiss-In at Friendship Park on the U.S.–Mexico border over the weekend.
• Participants said the public display sought to normalize affection for people living with HIV and to show solidarity with queer migrants facing hostile enforcement under President Donald Trump.
• Advocacy groups alleged that LGBTQ+ migrants in U.S. detention experience violence, stigma, and denial of lifesaving HIV medications.
• Context cited in coverage includes studies reporting roughly 0.6% to 2% HIV prevalence among migrants in transit, with an International Organization for Migration surveillance finding about 2% at Mexico’s southern border in 2022–2023.
• A Williams Institute estimate referenced in reports says about 640,000 non-U.S. citizens in the United States identify as LGBTQ+, including up to 288,000 undocumented people, underscoring the populations organizers sought to highlight.