Film Spotlights AIDS Activism
One of the many vehicles that gathered in Washington, D.C. to fight for the rebirth of AIDS activism
photo credit: Robin Milim
When the Campaign to End AIDS launched in 2005, hundreds of people with HIV/AIDS drove in caravans and walked to Washington, D.C. from throughout the country to remind the world that AIDS was not over. Filmmakers from Filmworks Brooklyn documented the effort of one of those caravans.
The result is Closer to God, a compelling documentary about a dozen people living with HIV and AIDS.
Closer to God focuses on the journey of a caravan that started in San Diego and headed through the South—and on the personalities and tensions within the diverse group of caravan riders who come on board with their own struggles.
The story focuses primarily on the caravaners’ dynamics, particularly the two caravan leaders Miss Judith, a grandmother from Ft. Worth, Texas, and Robin Webb, a gay PhD from Jackson, Mississippi.
“We had a lot of tensions in the group and issues they brought to the table. It was very painful. But at the end of the day it was a good thing,” said Webb, one of the participants on the caravan, who is a long-term survivor living with AIDS. Webb,who lives in Jackson, Mississippi, joined the caravan shortly after his partner died. The caravan was postponed at one point because of Hurricane Katrina.
“There were several amazing dynamics going on,” Webb said. “It felt like there was a slump in AIDS advocacy, and we got involved to stir up urgency around the epidemic.”
Housing Works is a founding member of Campaign to End AIDS. Read more about Closer to God, and about Housing Works’ activism.
Make a gift to Housing Works and support our advocacy efforts and services for people living with HIV and AIDS.
Posted on September 21, 2009 at 5:38 pm
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