Written by Geri Lennon   

As this is World AIDS day, December 1, I’ve just re-watched a truly incredible film derived from the book written by a journalist no longer with us. Randy Shilts died of AIDS but wrote a powerful piece as part of his own personal legacy. “And the Band Played On” first screened in the 90’s was a true story of the discovery, politics, and whistle blowing of an epidemic that continues to decimate millions worldwide.

On June 5, 2011 we passed an important anniversary and milestone: It was 30 years since the first discovery of five unusual cases of pneumonia in the gay population in LA. According to current statistics 35 million worldwide are now living with AIDS. Since its first discovery in the early eighties, 75 million have contracted AIDS and almost 36 million have died of HIV related causes Still, a new case occurs every 9.5 minutes. As they say, it ain’t over baby. It is time to get back into gear, march with candles in the streets and remember the ones who lost the fight. More importantly, it is time to gear up for the most important anniversary and that is when we can say it is controlled, if not eradicated, and a vaccine is in place.

Cocktails of drugs now make a deadly disease slow down in its fatality rate. They are expensive and not readily available to many in developing countries. The drones of many governments do things over and over and tie up brilliance in tiny boxes of boredom, while people continue to die in wards, in the dirt and in silence. Far from the maddening crowd, Africa is still losing and a continent is dying. So are many other parts of the world; but have we heard too much, or are we bored? You seldom hear of the pandemic anymore.. Did it go away? No. It just lost interest in the media.

Woody Allen can be quoted as saying: “There is a pervading complacency with a sense that it is all being taken care of which is affecting behavior in all sorts of ways. We have to acknowledge that HIV still exists, still needs to be discussed and still needs to be conquered.”

A few years back, I walked the path of AIDS in Kisumu, the epicenter of the highest percentage of AIDS in Kenya. The images of orphans and double orphans (both parents lost) cared for by aunties and grannies and small local women's organizations is still imbedded in my memory. At the end of every day, I’d jump in the back of the SUV returning to town and ask the same question: “Tell me again, ladies, what was Africa like before AIDS?” The two tribal women would sigh and repeat: “We told you, Geri, nothing has changed. We intermarried, practiced widow inheritance, had multiple partners, and it all…..except nobody died.” Clearly, education on ritual practices still needs to be addressed as an important adjunct to prevention.

This week, I decided I needed to see the Big Picture so I could write fairly about this disease. There is nothing fair about it. I've spent hours combing through articles and retrospectives. This pandemic called AIDS has multiple faces and multiple stories. It is a shocking testimonial of error, bigotry, denial and blatant discrimination. It is also, however, a story of courage, and breakthroughs and guarded successes.

It is time to keep telling the stories so the new generation that did not witness the early eighties and nineties and didn't lose lovers, friends, relatives, and famous folks will know that it is still here. It is, for now, still incurable. We need more funding for research for a vaccine and for a true cure. Until that time, people will need to be on antiretrovirals the rest of their lives. Do the math. It isn't over.

We need to remind one and all that it takes its toll across the board. It was originally and erroneously labeled the gay men's disease. That was wrong and led to so much sorrow and loss of time for us all to find the solutions. It affects men, women, hetero and homosexuals, drug users, newborns of infected mothers and those who were originally infected through dirty blood transfusions. It affects all races and all walks of life.

The good news is that community outreach is now available in many parts of the world. People are digging in to help one another and support those living with AIDS. NGO's have been created that do important fund raising for the vital research and education that must continue. The UN and multiple governments slow in uptake are now funding HIV/AIDS directives.

On December 1, an important documentary called The Battle of AmFAR which will be aired on HBO. I wish it could be on PBS and all channels. After all, we have broad coverage for the political conventions and Super Bowls. It relates the history of an unusual partnership: Dr. Mathilde Krim and Elizabeth Taylor co-chairing an international activist medical organization focusing on HIV/AIDS. I have heroes and heroines and both of these women fall into that category.

During the early history of AIDS, I love the quote of Taylor to the then sitting president: “Mr President, Mr. Quayle, Senator Helms, your politics are wrong, dead wrong and you know it.” “I'm not here in Washington to make people like me. I'm here to speak about a national scandal, a scandal of neglect, indifference and abandonment.” People like Krimm and Taylor and the other invisible heroes and heroines of this pandemic have guts and courage and the willingness to put their careers on the line to fight for solutions, not just talk about them. 2015 marks a target date for UNAIDS: Down to zero. It will take a lot more in the trenches work and dedication to accomplish this.

I think I'll close with another quote for my heroine,. “I will not be silenced and I will not give up and I will not be ignored.” Thank you, Dame Elizabeth Taylor.