AIDS Activists to Protest Obama’s Broken Promises at Democratic Fundraiser
Posted by , May 03, 2010 at 11:57pm
see you at the St. Regis on Thursday!
Outraged at President Obama’s about-face on global AIDS, Housing Works and other AIDS groups will stage a protest on May 13 outside the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee’s $15,000-to-$50,000-a-ticket fundraiser where he will be appearing.
The protest will take place Thursday, May 13 at 5 pm, outside the St Regis Hotel, 55th St. at 5th Ave., New York City.
Activists will come from New York, New England, Philadelphia, Baltimore, and Washington, D.C to demand that Obama meet his promises to fight global AIDS and stop turning people who were promised life-saving medication away from AIDS clinics around the globe. Other organizations include ACT UP Philadelphia, ACT UP New York, Africa Action, African Services Committee, NYC AIDS Housing Network, VOCAL-NY Users Union, AMSA, and Philadelphia Global AIDS Watchdogs.
On the campaign trail, President Obama pledged “to provide at least $50 billion by 2013 for the global fight against HIV/AIDS, including our fair share of the Global Fund, in order to at least double the number of HIV-positive people on treatment and continue to provide treatments to one-third of all those who desperately need them.”
Since taking office, President Obama’s budgets have shifted funding away from AIDS programs, and his commitments to fighting AIDS have not even kept pace with inflation, let alone increased to the level he promised. As has been highlighted by recent stories in the Boston Globe and Newsweek, a flat-funded budget means that people who were tested under U.S-.sponsored programs and promised treatment when they got sick are now being turned away.
Clinics receiving money from the U.S. government are being instructed to enroll no new patients in life-saving treatment programs. Doctors are being instructed to ration drugs and face choices between giving their dwindling supplies to young mothers or children. People who are turned away often have nowhere else to go, and will die.
In addition, despite a blow to Haiti’s HIV/AIDS infrastructure since the earthquake, no additional funding for HIV/AIDS has been directed to the country. Advocates are asking Congress to add $100 million to the reconstruction bill, specifically to address AIDS, that would be funneled through PEPFAR.
“Obama’s broken promise is killing people with AIDS around the world. We cannot backtrack on our commitment to saving lives,” said ACT UP Philadelphia member Jose de Marco.
blog comments powered by DisqusShare
Donate Today
Join our healing community by becoming a member today
