MAP Advocate Vol. 9 No. 1

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MAP Advocate

AIDS Advocacy Update
Vol. 9 No. 2
January 24, 2003

Take Action! Know your legislators
Family Council Targets MAP for Elimination of Funding
"Just Say No" and "I Do" this Monday Night, January 27
Budget Fix Showdown
Can We Expect Cuts to HIV Case Management? Prevention?
The Real Story in Uganda; Comp Sex Ed Works
President Backs-off on Appointment of Advisor
Desktop Advocacy Just Got Better @ www.mnaidsproject.org
Get Involved; AIDS Action Day [February 24] and Lead Links

Take Action! Know Your Legislators

The most important thing you can do as an advocate is to know who represents you and how to reach them. Remember, districts have changed and there are also a lot of new faces at the Capitol this year and one of them may be representing you. Take just a few minutes to check out your legislators -- before things really get busy.

There are a couple of ways to do this.

Email MAP at community.affairs@mnaidsproject.org with your home address and zip code. We will do the rest for you.

Go right to the source at http://maps.commissions.leg.state.mn.us/website/districts/

Once you find out, add the info to your address book and make it all the easier to be involved.

Family Council Targets MAP for Elimination of Funding

The Minnesota Family Council has released their legislative agenda for this session and at the top of their list is "defunding organizations promoting radical social agendas". Prominent on that list is the Minnesota AIDS Project for "promoting acceptance of homosexuality and safer sex". According to MFC, organizations such as MAP should not receive any public dollars, despite the fact that the HIV prevention activities that target gay/bi men and that stem from the gay/BI community have contributed significantly to the decline of HIV in Minnesota in the last 10 years. Not only do such programs save lives, they save public dollars as well - it costs $24K a year to treat a person with HIV in Minnesota and society saves $12 for every $1 spent detecting and treating STDs. Count on MAP to oppose any efforts to limit public support of HIV prevention or to limit services for gay/BI men or any community affected by HIV. Of course, we will be looking to advocates like you for support.

Wanna see what the Family Council has to say? Check out the Star Trib article.

"Just Say No' and 'I Do?" this Monday Night, January 27

Make no mistake about it. The Minnesota Family Council is expecting its supporters in the legislature to mandate abstinence-until-marriage curriculum for HIV and STD prevention education in schools. They want all funding for the Minnesota AIDS Project eliminated. And, they want to start whittling away at the stays "gay rights" act. It's time to fight back. Join us for a MAP community forum this coming Monday night, January 27. James Wagoner, executive director of Advocates for Youth will be on hand to talk about the problems with abstinence-until-marriage curriculum and all these other attacks aimed at providing health services for GLBT communities and for young people. The forum is called "Just Say 'No' and 'I Do?" It's free. Registration starts at 6:30 with the program getting underway at 7. See you then at Intermedia Arts. 2822 Lyndale Avenue South in Minneapolis.

Budget Fix Showdown

The Senate has approved its plan to fix the budget problem for this year. The House is expected to pass a bill on January 27th or 28th. They're very different plans. The Senate is taking the attitude that we should just solve the problem without making a bunch of decisions that will have a long-term impact now so they can get on with having more thorough discussions about the big budget woes that lie ahead. The House starts making permanent cuts and they are in things like health care and food stamps for non-citizen immigrants or health care for kids whose parent's don't have and can't afford insurance. The Gov wants this short-term budget thing settled fast. If lawmakers can come to an agreement by around February 1st, Pawlenty says he'll start making cuts on his own.

Can We Expect Cuts to HIV Case Management? Prevention?

We know Medical Assistance [MA] is a big piece of the State's budget. To fill the 4.5 billion dollar budget gap projected for 2004-2005, it will take cutting the services provided through these big-ticket items. Buried in that MA is half of the $2 million available for HIV case management services. These funds would seem to be very vulnerable to the budget axe. We also know an effort will be made to redirect HIV prevention dollars to an abstinence-until-marriage focus and eliminate dollars for gay/BI prevention. The Governor will be issuing his proposed budget soon. You watch the papers for the news. We'll be looking out for the details to keep you posted. For now, it's time to spread the word that core HIV care and prevention funding may very well be in jeopardy.

The Real Story in Uganda; Comp Sex Ed Works

The media story from the Bush administration, the lesson to be learned from Uganda's success in fighting HIV is that abstinence works. Unfortunately, their story misses the real story that HIV advocates have known all along - that comprehensive sex ed works. Uganda, the only nation in Africa to have seen life expectancy increase since the AIDS pandemic hit, used a comprehensive approach to fighting HIV called ABC - Abstinence, Be Faithful and Use Condoms. It is true that postponing sexual activity was a key part of the message. But Ugandan officials acknowledged that abstinence-only is not enough, made condoms readily available and instructed young people on how to use them. The president of Uganda and his wife showed real leadership and spoke out about the need to show compassion for those affected by HIV. HIV advocates would welcome the Bush administration adopting the Uganda model for fighting HIV, but only if they adopt the whole model, not just the parts that fit their conservative social agenda.

President Backs-off on Appointment of Advisor

Thank goodness for advocates who make their voices heard. President Bush was moving to appoint Jerry Thacker to PACHA, the President's lead advisory group on AIDS and then backed off. Thacker, a former Bob Jones University employee who says he contracted the virus after his wife was infected through a blood transfusion, has referred to AIDS as the "gay plague" and homosexuality as a "deathstyle". He was set to join PACHA foes of effective HIV prevention, the group's co-chair former US representative Tom Coburn and executive Patricia Ware. Once the White House realized it had gone to far in trying to sneak through the Thacker appointment, they backed off and Thacker withdrew his nomination. Again, thanks to advocates who called foul.

Desktop Advocacy Just Got Better @ www.mnaidsproject.org

MAP is unveiling a new website this week, with a new and improved Public Policy Center. On the site you will find the current MAP Advocate, information on MAP's legislative agenda, along with fact sheets on the issues. Tools that you need to be an effective "desktop advocate" are also there - how to contact your legislator, where your legislator stands and ways you can take action. The site will be updated at least every other week, and more frequently during session when news is breaking fast. Bookmark www.mnaidsproject.org and visit often.

Get Involved; AIDS Action Day and Lead Links

AIDS Action Day is February 24. This is your chance to let your legislator know that you expect them to support policies that prevent the spread of HIV and compassionate care for those affected. To register, send us an email at community.affairs@mnaidsproject.org. Be sure to include your home address so we can hook you up with the right lawmaker. Can't make it to St. Paul? Drop us a note anyway to find out how to participate from home...We are still looking for Lead Links in many legislative districts. A Lead Link is Map's key advocate in each district and our connection with the legislator and other advocates in your area. To get involved or for more information, send us an email to the above address.

The MAP Advocate is published by MAP community affairs. No public funds are used. MAP community affairs relies upon private contributions from readers like you. Contact us at: MAP Community Affairs, 1400 Park Avenue South. Minneapolis, MN 55404, 612-341-2060, 800-243-7321 [statewide] or communityaffairs@mnaidsproject.org.

To change your contact information or to unsubscribe from this list, please send an e-mail to communityaffairs@mnaidsproject.org.

Last Updated: Friday, March 30, 2007
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