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The Elizabeth Taylor AIDS Foundation (ETAF)
hosted
The Elizabeth Taylor Night of Compassion fundraising gala
at the Beverly Hills Hotel
honoring actor, activist and fashion
icon Billy Porter.
Porter was presented with The Elizabeth
Taylor Legacy Award in recognition of
his ongoing support for people living
with HIV and being an advocate for the
LGBTQ+ community. Vanity Fair accepted
the The Elizabeth Taylor Commitment to
End AIDS Award for being a longstanding
voice for the LGBTQ+ community and
people affected by
HIV and AIDS.
The memorable evening, generously
supported by Presenting Sponsor Gilead
Sciences, Inc., was hosted by CNN’s
Laura Coates and featured a show
stopping performance by Grammy and
Tony-nominated singer and actress
Deborah Cox. Guests also enjoyed a
reception and culinary experience, along
with an exclusive look at items from
The Elizabeth Taylor Archive.
Event Highlights:
On-stage while accepting The Elizabeth
Taylor Legacy Award,
Billy Porter said, “I know that
everybody knows the impact of Liz’s
commitment and advocacy. That’s why we
still gather in her name,
all these decades later, and are
committed to finding a cure and
eradicating this disease from the Earth
forever. She had the courage to use her
platform to show and teach the world
what unconditional love looks like.”
On behalf of Vanity Fair, Global
Editorial Director Mark Guiducci
accepted The Elizabeth Taylor Commitment
to End AIDS Award via a video message,
saying, “Elizabeth Taylor was a perfect
Vanity Fair subject. She very candidly
parlayed the press’s interest in her own
life into an opportunity for the
disenfranchised by speaking candidly
about HIV and AIDS. That quality really
epitomized who she was – it was both
selfless and incredibly bold and very
smart.
Barbara Berkowitz, Officer, The
Elizabeth Taylor AIDS Foundation,
shared, “Elizabeth’s enduring value of
compassion has never been more
important, and ETAF remains steadfast in
advancing provision while supporting
those who are too often pushed to the
margin.”
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ABOUT ETAF
In the 1980s, Elizabeth Taylor worked
tirelessly on the AIDS crisis and
founded The Elizabeth Taylor AIDS
Foundation (ETAF) in 1991 to further her
vision of an AIDS-free world. ETAF
provides support for direct care and
advocates on behalf of those affected by
HIV and AIDS with a concentration on
hard-to-reach communities. Its advocacy
initiatives include HIV Is Not A Crime,
which seeks to overturn outdated laws
that criminalize people for their HIV
status. Additionally, ETAF promotes HIV
prevention, education, and treatment
access, with its latest program,
LIFEBEAT, mobilizing the music industry
to support at-risk youth in managing
their sexual health.
ABOUT GILEAD SCIENCES
Gilead Sciences, Inc. is a
biopharmaceutical company that has
pursued and achieved breakthroughs in
medicine for more than three decades,
with the goal of creating a healthier
world for all people. The company is
committed to advancing innovative
medicines to prevent and treat
life-threatening diseases, including
HIV, viral hepatitis, COVID-19, cancer
and inflammation. In 2025, Gilead
announced a planned $32 billion
investment to further strengthen its
U.S. footprint to power the next era of
discovery, job creation and public
health preparedness – while continuing
to invest globally to ensure patients
everywhere benefit from its scientific
innovation. Gilead operates in more than
35 countries worldwide, with
headquarters in Foster City, Calif. |