| MAP
Advocate |
Vol.10 No. 5
February 2, 2004
Take Action! Check out your new Public Policy Home Page at mnaidsproject.org
We've made a lot of changes to help you keep track of HIV policy developments in Saint Paul and Washington, D.C. Also, be sure to update your MAP Advocates Network account [if you receive this in a e-mail, then you've got an account]. It won't take long to set your password and get your home address entered into your account. Visit the Be An Advocate page on our Web site for details. Also, we will be updating the Web site frequently during the coming week as bills get introduced. Be sure to visit the Bill Tracker often to find up-to-date information about the issues that are of interest to you.
A Year of Talking About Priorities
Last year, the talk at the Minnesota Legislature was "no new taxes." Legislators slashed health care, social services and raided the public health treasury. Legislators were told we all had to sacrifice. This year, the big talk is going to be spend, spend, spend -- on stadiums, prisons and roads. Are these your priorities? The same goes for the federal budget. The Bush Administration's budget will be released this week. So far, we know about a push for making the tax cuts that created our gargantuan deficits permanent, we know the projections used to pass a bad Medicare reform bill last fall no longer add up, once again, less is being proposed for fighting the global AIDS epidemic than promised last year to steal headlines, and we are going to pour a lot more money into strategies that have been proven not to work - abstinence-until-marriage/marriage promotion programs. Are those your priorities?
Register now for AIDS Action Day. You can do so through our Web site Click here and register today. While we invite people from all over the state to join us on February 18, it is particularly important for those of you in Minneapolis, Saint Paul and the surrounding suburbs to show up. A lot of you stay home because you know that your State Representative or Senator "always votes right." Some of you feel you're in the opposite situation -- they are "hopeless." Well, the ones who vote right need to feel your support this year. This is difficult work and it's important they get the energy and support you have to offer to keep them going. As for the "hopeless" crowd. Well, you may not change their vote, but it's important to make them think twice and take some of the wind out of their political sails. They need to know that not everyone in their district stands in line with the thinking of groups such as the Minnesota Family Council. If you've already registered for AIDS Action Day -- thanks and hold tight. Legislators are just now starting to schedule meetings this week, so it will be a few days before when can tell you exactly when your meetings will take place. If you haven't registered, well, put in that request for some vacation time and get moving. Action Day registration will start at 9 a.m. with a program from 9:30 to 10:30. Then it's meetings with the legislators who represent you between 10:30 and 2:30.
[Please note, the date for AIDS Action Day has been changed from February 12 to February 18.]
And the Oscar Goes to . . . MAP Public Policy!
MAP public policy depends 100% on private contributions. Events such as the MAP Hollywood Oscar Night Party make it possible for us to do our work. Please consider buying a ticket and joining in on all of the Oscar Night fun on February 29. If you can't come to the State Theater in Downtown Minneapolis then, think about buying a ticket and donating it so a person living with HIV can attend the event. You can order on-line, right now, at hollywoodevent.org
MAP Advocate is published by the Minnesota AIDS Project every two weeks while the Minnesota Legislature is in session, and monthly during the rest of the year. It is available through the MAP web site mnaidsproject.org and through email list service. If you wish to order the MAP Advocate, visit our Join the Action Network page, or contact MAP Public Policy by phone or email.
MAP Public Policy
Minnesota AIDS Project
1400 Park Avenue
Minneapolis, MN 55404
612-341-2060
800-373-2437
publicpolicy@mnaidsproject.org
Mission & Values | Executive Director | Board of Directors | Annual Report | Publications | Calendar of Events | Employment | Contact Us
Last Updated:
Friday, March 30, 2007
[an error occurred while processing this directive]