Campaign to End AIDS turns five

Can you hear the music? See the people? Smell the food cooking upon an open grill? Then you must have been in Anacostia Park on Tuesday for the five-year anniversary celebration for Campaign to End AIDS. ‘Positively Uplifting’ was the theme for the rally and barbecue held east of the river. Campaign to End AIDS is a dynamic, energetic, diverse national coalition of AIDS activists, friends, and leaders who ensure that several issues surrounding HIV/AIDS are addressed. The coalition, which began in 2005, was also the foundation for DC Fights Back. Campaign to End AIDS is endorsed by more than 400 local, national, and international organizations including DC Care Consortium, Sexual Minority Youth Assistance League, and Housing Works.

No stigma today
The rally was a chance for people living with HIV and friends to mingle and share their stories and hopes for the future of HIV. Many people expressed frustration with the apathy from city and congressional leaders. Others sought to encourage the crowd to hold on and try harder to make a better way of life. “We need money to fight this weapon of mass destruction. AIDS is that weapon of mass destruction,” stated Dr. Joyce Turner Keller, an HIV positive woman and founder of Aspirations. Some expressed their emotions in afflatus songs while other recited jarring poetry to display the affect HIV has had on their lives. “I really wanted to utilize my voice and share my talents to spread awareness about HIV which is pretty much destroying communities. To be here in DC is an honor,” said Antron-Reshaud, a member of Campaign to End AIDS Atlanta. All speakers and performers at the rally conveyed the message of compliance regarding HIV in the community. One anonymous supporter simply stated, “We need things like this sometimes just to feel normal. No stigma today.” The barbecue was supported by local organizations such as Us Helping Us, Blair Underwood AIDS Healthcare, Prevention Works, Grassroots, Positive Places, and City Year.

Demands
Campaign to End AIDS has five core demands:
1. Fully fund quality treatment and support services for all people living with HIV everywhere;
2. Ramp up HIV prevention at home and abroad, guided by science rather than ideology;
3. Increase research to find a cure, more effective treatments and better prevention tools;
4. Fight AIDS stigma and protect the civil rights of all people with HIV and AIDS everywhere;
5. Understand the vital role housing plays in prevention and treatment and incorporate housing as a structural intervention for both.
During the press conference at Inner Light Ministries in Southeast, Matt Kavanaugh from Health GAP and DC Fights Back, reinforced the need for such a detailed charge. “We’ve got a mayor who’s sitting over there and doing nothing. We’ve got a congress sitting over there and ding nothing. And we’ve got a president sitting over there and doing nothing. And we’re sick of hearing ‘sorry, there’s a budget deficit. We can’t house you.”

The road ahead
Campaign to End AIDS (C2EA) is also appealing for an emergency plan to end HIV in DC, which has the highest HIV infection rate in the country. DC also has a rising rate of syphilis among men who have sex with men. Syphilis can lead to blindness, insanity, and ultimately death if left untreated. Larry Bryant, of Housing Works and co-chair of DC Fights Back, articulated some of the same concerns in his statement at the press conference. “We’re not out to make a bunch of noise just cause its fashionable. Our goal is saving lives. Period. It’s about developing a plan to do what’s necessary to save millions of lives that are lost not just to AIDS but to homelessness, hunger, poverty, and violence.” This five-year anniversary celebration brings a time of reflection and projection for the future of C2EA. Bryant asserts, “We’re gonna keep showing up at those rallies. We’re gonna keep showing up and getting arrested. We’re gonna keep doing whatever we need to do to make sure our voices are heard. And not just heard but acted upon.” The music is off now. The people have dispersed. And the grill is closed. But the struggle continues here in DC and abroad. Congratulations Campaign to End AIDS on five years of formation and success.

For more information on Campign to End AIDS, click here.

Get tested. Get care. Get involved.

Slideshow photos provided by Rodney Choice/Choice Photography www.choicephotography.com

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