今日吃瓜

Veteran LGBTQIA+ rights and HIV activist and David 鈥淧olly鈥� Polson AM聽has had a plaque installed in his memory in Kings Cross in Sydney.

The plauqe was installed by the City Of Sydney in memory of Polson and his dog Rosie who frequented the park together.

Polson passed away earlier this year after celebrating his 70th birthday in 2024.

A touching tribute for David Polson

At seventy years old, in 2024 David Polson was a living part of Australian LGBTQIA+ history.

As one of the first 400 men diagnosed with HIV/AIDS 40 years earlier Polson had never expected to live past his thirties.

However despite all odds David Polson went on to live a long and celebrated life becoming a driving force in HIV/AIDS activism in Australia.

Being one of 30 still alive out of those 400 men diagnosed was something that spurred his advocacy in his final years of life.

In his most recent years Polson went on to found Qtopia, the historic LGBTQIA+ museum in Sydney to preserve and share the history of queer struggles and triumphs.

In honour of this and his many contributions to Sydney and the LGBTQIA+ community the City Of Sydney have placed a plaque for Polson in Fitzroy Gardens in Kings Cross, where he and his dog frequented regularly.

In a post on social media Qtopia acknowledged David and Rosie as “neighbourhood favourites” in the area.

“We are so thrilled that he will be forever remembered for his significant contribution to the community and for the amazing person that he was” they wrote online.

A group of close friends and family of Polson’s gathered for the unveiling of the plaque this week with The Lord Mayor, Clover Moore in attendance on behalf of The City Of Sydney.

The plaque is situated “under the big tree in the middle” of the park and reads “When the curtain rises, the only thing that speaks is courage” a quote by Maria Callas.