Gil Cuadros (photo courtesy of Robert Giard)

Much of the story of AIDS has been told from the perspective of white men. So, it was monumental that in fall 1994, Los Angeles writer and poet Gil Cuadros published his landmark collection of stories and poems, City of God, with City Lights Books. The groundbreaking collection is rooted in the lived experience of its Angeleno author and is acknowledged to be among the first literary works to document AIDS through the eyes of a poz queer Latinx writer and artist.

A consortium of organizations – the Estate of Gil Cuadros, City Lights Publishers, and Writers At Work, as well as the host venues –  has come together to keep alive Cuadros’ legacy and celebrate the 25th anniversary of City of God’s publication with City of God@25.

On Saturday, Oct. 19, at 8 p.m., a reading by writers including Luis Alfaro, Alex Espinosa, Eloise Klein Healy and Terry Wolverton will be held at the Los Angeles LGBT Center’s Renberg Theatre, 1118 N. McCadden Place, Los Angeles.

A panel discussion of Gil Cuadros and his work by Rafael Peres-Torres, Justin Torres, Amy Scholder, and Pablo Alvarez will take place on Saturday, Nov.2, at 2 p.m.  at the Vincent Price Art Museum at East Los Angeles Community College, 1301 Avenida Cesar Chavez, Monterey Park.

These events are free and open to the public. A reception will follow each event.

Gil Cuadros, 1962-1996, was a Los Angeles writer whose life was cut short by the AIDS epidemic. His work addresses the varied and multiple intersections of a life shaped by being a working-class Latino queer person with AIDS. During his adult life he published numerous works on these themes, and his collection of poetry and short fiction, “City of God,” was published in 1994. His work has gained attention in the years following his 1996 death and is frequently taught in queer and Latinx studies programs.

For reservations to either event, email wtrsatwork@aol.com. Please specify the date(s) of the event you wish to attend, the number of reservations you are making, your name and contact information.