World AIDS Day

The official theme for this world AIDS day is; "AIDS: A Time to Act." and it is. Perhaps it's time for you to act. We would all agree that it is past time for the government to act. It is time for Bill Clinton to act instead of giving lip service to the crisis. President Clinton does seem to say all the right things, yet there is no official plan for action or even a national plan to cure AIDS. Others agree that now, more than ever, it is time to ACT UP.

Being Alive will honor world AIDS Day by inviting all those in our community who have been impacted by AIDS/HIV to create a display of faces and images from the thousands of lives in our community who have been directly affected by the pandemic.

Last year we sent messages of hope and good will to the new President in the form of a huge greeting card. We have watched thousands wear red ribbons. Being Alive believes it is once again time to put a face with this disease, this time with photographs representing human lives, remembering our very real human losses.

Everyone we can reach will be invited during the weeks before December 1, to bring a photo to Being Alive to be placed on one of the large panels, together with a short statement about the picture. We envision pictures of anyone impacted by the epidemic.

After public ceremonies on World AIDS Day, the Family Album will be forwarded to President Clinton, to remind him of the diversity and devastation of this disease, to bring him face to face with pictures of those who have died and of those doing everything they can to be here for the cure.

Anyone interested in working to create the Family Album should call Being Alive and leave a message for Sean Kinney.

It's time to bring home to President Clinton that women are still the fastest growing population of people with AIDS. Put a woman's face on the pandemic. Bring a photograph of yourself or a loved one. Being Alive will take a polaroid shot of you for the panel if you don't have your own.