AIDS Issues Update: Features:
On the Day of His First Legal Visit to the U.S., a Canadian with HIV Remembers the Ban
Martin Rooney, in a photo that appeared in NOW Newspaper
It’s official: the United States HIV/AIDS immigration travel ban is officially dead and immigrants will no longer be banned from the United States because of their HIV-status. In the last 22 years, many have been hurt by the ban.Families have been separated. People have been denied refugee status.
Canadian Martin Rooney became actively involved with ending the HIV travel ban after he was denied entry at the Canadian/U.S. border in May 2007 during a routine shopping trip. Rooney will crossed border again Monday—legally. Because of the mark on his passport, he did get called into Homeland Security at the border. But Martin brought an email from the White House and Homeland Security with him, and was allowed in
“The border guards were obviously not aware of the changes as I was ‘marked,’ but after about 20 minutes they let me in,” Rooney said. Rooney, who lives right on the bornder of the United States, in Surrey, British Columbia, went to Blaine, Washington. He was met by two of my friends at a local mall.
“I went ahead and got my turkey that was denied to me two years ago,” Rooney said. (Rooney was originally stopped by border guards in 2007 when he entered the U.S. to get a turkey to celebrate American Thanksgiving).
In addition to Rooney, Clemens Ruland, an HIV-positive man from the Netherlands landed in John F. Kennedy airport yesterday, and was the first person to legally fly in since the ban was put in place.
Listen to Rooney on the radio and see Canadian Broadcasting Centre’s video from after Martin’s successful visit.
Rooney looked back on the ban, and shared his thoughts with the Update:
Looking back now over two years, I still remember the fear that was instilled in me when I was pulled over and refused entry to the U.S. for being HIV-positive. I was interrogated, treated like a terrorist (actually the definition of terrorist is “one who instills fear to terror in others”), photographed, fingerprinted and run through the FBI most wanted list, all because I was supposed to know that I had to carry a medical waiver as a person who was HIV-positiive to enter the U.S.— even if only for a shopping trip expected to last no longer than three hours.
This not only angered me, but the event caused a major change to my life and left me restricted as to where I could go and how I could continue my HIV work with my partners in the U.S. and Tijuana, Mexico.
I could not even take a flight that would have a scheduled stop over on U.S. soil. What would happen if, for some reason similar to 9/11 or this past Christmas Day, the flight was diverted to a U.S. airport?
So I rallied some support from the local media, provincial and federal politicians, the International Court System and Egale Canada and we had a rally on the steps of the Vancouver Art Gallery March 16, 2008 to support the then-U.S. Senate amendment to the Immigration and Nationality Act that would ultimately remove this archaic ban.
In July 2008 President Bush 43 signed the PEPFAR bill which included the amendment. Great, now all HIV-positive people would be free to once again travel and immigrate to the U.S.! No, not as simple as that.
We had to go through a Presidential election in the U.S. The candidate of Hope and Change was the winner. Great, now once again it was only a matter of time and this would be solved! NOT!
As time passed and social change was being resisted by the opposition, nothing was being done. Once again I rallied the troops with a goal to have another rally, this time at the Peace Arch border Crossing in the British Columbia/Washington State entry point.
I was told that this would be a waste of time and that it would achieve nothing. In July of 2009, 60 Canadians were refused entry to an HIV/AIDS Housing conference in Washington, D.C., and around the same time a UK HIV Specialist was denied entry to a medical conference in Seattle.
I guess the media outcry on these issues led the administration to order the CDC to post the new ruling for public comment in an attempt to revoke this ban. Ironically the original date chosen for the rally, August 16, 2009, was one day before the CDC public comment period was to end. Along with that and the two refusals of entry in July, quite the support built up, and another rally was organized on the Buffalo Niagara Border. I know for sure that the Surrey rally brought in some 1,500 signatures in support of the CDC ruling to remove the travel ban completely.
Great, now we could once again cross! NOT!
.
Finally at the end of November the State Department and the President announced the end of the travel ban at the signing of the extension of the Ryan White Act. Awesome, now we could cross over into the U.S. NOT!
Weeks later under pressure, the U.S. announced the date for the end of this travel and immigration ban: January 4, 2010. Within hours, the International AIDS Society announced that the World AIDS Conference would be held on U.S. soil for the first time ever in 2012. YESSSSSSSSSS!
Now less than 24 hours before I attempt to cross again, I have feelings of great trepidation, excitement and memories of that horrid experience November 2007. I am excited that the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation called and offered to cover the crossing with their cameras so this can be documented. At least I will not be alone, and if there are any issues they will be documented. But I am feeling cautiously optimistic that this will be a drama-free experience, and honestly. I have no idea how I am going to feel.
I would like to thank everyone who supported this campaign. I am full of love for those close to me who stood by me through the past two years and very proud that we got this ban revoked. Let us hope that the stigma of HIV will soon go away and that governments will finally realize that it is better to encourage testing and more cost effective to treat this disease at the earliest stage possible.
With the advances in science and medication, those infected with HIV can be productive members of society. We also, as HIV-positive people have to be responsible about our choices and we also need to educate by example so we can finally remove the stigma!
Your inside source for in-depth activism news is updated daily by Staff Writer, Julie Turkewitz
Comments (1)