Remembering David Stuart, A Visionary at Dean Street

AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF) commemorates the life of David Stuart, a renowned public health professional, LGBTQ+ activist, and human rights champion who worked at London’s largest sexual health clinic, known as 56 Dean Street. David passed away suddenly this week.

Over the years, David has worked closely with AHF UK on a number of projects, including Impulse London, a sexual and mental health organization for gay men, and on access to rapid HIV testing among high-risk groups. At Dean Street, David pioneered interventions helping people who engage in risky sex while using drugs, a practice known as chemsex. His work has brought global attention to the issue of chemsex, spurring efforts to better understand and address it in the context of prevention of HIV and other sexually transmitted infections.

“With hearts full of sadness and at the same time full of gratitude, we bid farewell and honor the work of David Stuart,” said AHF Europe Bureau Chief Zoya Shabarova. “He dedicated his efforts to the well-being of gay, bisexual, and queer communities by creating spaces for mentoring, support and trust, where countless could benefit. David provided a lot of support with establishment of AHF programs in the UK and we will always remember our Amsterdam Prides together.”

“David was one of the main reasons we started Impulse London and started talking about meth and queer culture,” said Impulse Group founder Jose Ramos. “He was the reason I started to look at drug use and addiction with more empathy and compassion. I have met so many so-called gay activists in the last 15 years of doing this work. What I know for sure is that David was one of the most selfless, compassionate, and honest gay activists I’ve ever met. He truly did it not for the applause as many do but for the love and compassion he had for gay men.”

“David was a charming, handsome gentleman whose passion for what he did was electrifying,” said Terri Ford, AHF Chief of Global Advocacy and Policy. “He took the controversial issue of chemsex and made it understandable and de-stigmatized it. This is a major loss and he will be deeply missed.”

AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF), the largest global AIDS organization, currently provides medical care and/or services to over 1.6 million clients in 45 countries worldwide in the US, Africa, Latin America/Caribbean, the Asia/Pacific Region and Europe. To learn more about AHF, please visit our website: www.aidshealth.org, find us on Facebook: www.facebook.com/aidshealth and follow us on Twitter: @aidshealthcare and Instagram: @aidshealthcare

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