Rally Against HIV/AIDS Cuts in Los Angeles FRI JUN 5

The Southern California HIV Advocacy Coalition is sending out this action alert about a rally in Hollywood on Friday June 5th:

As you may have heard, the Governor has proposed to eliminate funding of state general funds to the State Office of AIDS. I do not need to tell you how detrimental that would be to our clients and our community. The Los Angeles Community is organizing a rally to protest the proposed cuts to the Office of AIDS.

We really hope to have representation from the communities who will be most impacted by these cuts. I’m thinking about how devastating this is going to be to transwomen, who have virtually no other social service funding aside from HIV funding. I’m thinking of non-transwomen in already underserved communities. I’m thinking about my boys, and all of those ACT UP folks who died, fighting in the streets to create the safety net which is now being eviscerated. Who are you thinking about? WE NEED TO ALL SHOW UP TO SUPPORT ONE ANOTHER.

The rally is scheduled for
Friday, June 5th
from 4pm-6pm
at the Hollywood Forever Cemetery
6000 Santa Monica Blvd.,
Los Angeles, 90038

Please forward this information to all of your clients, friends, and colleagues. We need a huge turnout in order to make a statement that cutting funding for HIV/AIDS programs will have a devastating impact on our community and our state.
Please review the attached document, which highlights what would happen to our prevention and CARE programs should the governor’s proposal pass.

Also, please inform folks who plan on attending that this rally is to protest the cuts for HIV/AIDS programs ONLY. I know marriage equality is still a hot button issue, but we do not want to confuse people by having Prop 8 or marriage equality signs at the rally. Please make signs that highlight the negative impact that these cuts would have on our community.

More information about the rally can be found here as well as details about the impact of the budget cuts on people with HIV/AIDS (pdf).

Madprofessah is currently out of town (for a board meeting), but I hope that y'all check out the rally and make your voice heard in opposition to the Governor's budget cuts.