Item HT 23147 Badge - 'Fairfield Hospital United Beyond 2000'

Summary

Circular yellow badge black inscription 'Fairfield Hospital United Beyond 2000'. Part of a campaign to save Fairfield Hospital, which specialised in infectious diseases such as AIDS. A day centre was established there for AIDS sufferers.

Collected during the 2005-2006 Lesbian, Bisexual, Gay Transgender Collections Survey, a joint project between Museum Victoria, State Library of Victoria and the Australian Lesbian and Gay Archives.

Fairfield Hospital opened in 1904 as the Queen's Memorial Infectious Diseases Hospital, the first purpose-built isolation hospital for infectious diseases in Victoria. Its 22-acre site was located on a bank of the Yarra River. It was renamed Fairfield Hospital in 1948. In its later years, the hospital was a centre for AIDS treatment in Victoria, and a passionate campaign fought against its planned closure in the 1990s.
It finally closed in June 1996. One section of the site was gazetted as a Public Park and Memorial Garden (containing an AIDS Garden) (Heritage Council citation no. H1878, former Fairfield Hospital).

Physical Description

Circular yellow badge black inscription. Silver metal, plastic-coated, with safety pin fastener adhered to back.

Significance

Collected during the Lesbian, Bisexual, Gay Transgender Collections Survey, a joint project between Museum Victoria, State Library of Victoria and the Australian Lesbian and Gay Archives in 2005-2006. The project aimed for 'improved knowledge, representation and interpretation of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender material in public collections. It aimed to promote the development of strategies for encouraging discussion and awareness of homosexuality in the mainstream community. It also aimed to begin to provide lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender Victorians with a sense of inclusion in the broader story of our heritage. The survey has provided an opportunity for the celebration of political and social achievements, and recognition of the tenets of equal opportunity and human rights for all Victorians.' (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Material Survey Project Report, Kate Davison, 2006).
These documents provide an important record of community activity within and beyond the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer communities in Victoria in the period 2005-2006. They show a breadth of activities, including tours, exhibitions, research projects and political movements, across organisations ranging from the AIDS Care Association to the Midsumma Festival.