Madonna is taking aim at the Trump administration over World AIDS Day.On Monday, Dec. 1, the pop icon fired off a scathing post after a leaked State Department memo told employees and grantees not to mark the day publicly. With this, Madonna took to her Instagram to honor it despite the POTUS' directive, writing:"Today is World AIDS Day. For four decades, this day has been internationally recognized around the world by people from all walks of life, because millions of people's lives have been touched by the HIV crisis. People have lost lovers and husbands and wives and girlfriends and boyfriends and mothers and daughters and children to this deadly disease, of which there is still no cure." View this post on Instagram Instagram PostMadonna has long been an advocate for the AIDS/HIV crisis. One of her early activism efforts was in 1987, when she donated all proceeds, $400,000, from her Who's That Girl world tour to the American Foundation for AIDS Research (amfAR). She is also known for her contributions to the AIDS Project Los Angeles (APLA), and has received recognition for her charitable efforts.In 1989, she became the first-ever artist to include a pamphlet in her physical CD (Like a Prayer) that contained information about AIDS, spreading awareness.Madonna vows to keep honoring World AIDS Day despite Trump directiveIn her Dec. 1 social media post, Madonna continued to express her disappointment with the administration's effort to silence the public in observing such an important day."Donald Trump has announced that World AIDS Day should no longer be acknowledged. It's one thing to order federal agents to refrain from commemorating this day, but to ask the general public to pretend it never happened is ridiculous, it’s absurd, it’s unthinkable. I bet he's never watched his best friend die of AIDS, held their hand, and watched the blood drain from their face as they took their last breath at the age of 23."Madonna "The Celebration Tour" - Rio - Source: GettySince 1988, World AIDS Day has been marked annually to raise awareness of the AIDS pandemic caused by the spread of HIV infection, as well as to mourn loved ones who have passed away due to the disease.However, for the first time since its inauguration by the World Health Organization (WHO), the State Department announced that it won't commemorate the awareness day this year. The POTUS instructed that the government funds could not be utilized to boost awareness of the day in any way, and told employees to:"refrain from publicly promoting World AIDS Day through any communication channels, including social media, media engagements, speeches or other public-facing messaging."Madonna At The Golden Globes - Source: GettyHowever, the Live To Tell songstress declared she will continue honoring it, despite the Trump administration's notice."The list of people that I have known and loved and lost to AIDS is pretty long. I’m sure many of you out there can relate. Let me say it one more time — there still isn’t a cure for AIDS and people still die from it. I refuse to acknowledge that these people have died in vain. And I will continue to honor World AIDS Day, and I hope you will honor it with me."