In New York, Mississippi, and New England massive AIDS advocacy effort to demand national AIDS strategy underway

Hundreds march across the Brooklyn Bridge to Manhatten

"Obama or McCain, will you stand against AIDS?" More than 500 people walked across the Brooklyn Bridge yesterday, one stop on the itinerary of the Northeastern caravan of the Stand Against AIDS. The Northeastern caravan is one of nine caravans converging in Oxford, Mississippi on Sept. 26 at the first presidential debate between Sens. Obama and McCain. Their aim? Obtain commitments to from both presidential hopefuls to take meaningful steps toward the creation of a National AIDS Strategy in the first 100 days of occupying the Oval Office.

Activists from up North weren't the only ones making a ruckus: Last Saturday, a “walking” caravan of folks marching 172 miles from Jackson, Mississippi to Oxford kicked off, with a little help from civil rights hero James Meredith. Check out our reports on both the Northeast caravan and the walking march below, and for all the juicy insider info on the progress of the caravans visit to http://standagainstaids.wordpress.com.

Kristen Goodwin from Gay Men's Health Crisis in New York City talks about deadly budget cuts

Staff and clients from Harlem United, GMHC, Housing Works, NYCAHN, Bailey House and CitiWide Harm Reduction all gathered at a park near the foot of the Brooklyn Bridge on an exceptionally beautiful morning. They carried banners and signs, and wore T-shirts demanding not only action on AIDS from the next president but from New York City officials as well. Once the 400-strong crowd hit the westbound lane pedestrian lane of the famous bridge, tourists, bikers and New Yorkers headed east cheered and gave them the thumbs up.

The marchers poured into City Hall Park for an upbeat but no-nonsense rally. "As we stand outside City Hall we have to remember we have some serious battles in our own backyard," said GMHC's Kristin Goodwin. Some of those battles, which many speakers highlighted, include overturning the $6 million cuts to AIDS funding in this year’s City budget and implementing HASA for All, which would provide HIV-positive asymptomatic people with housing and other benefits already provided to people diagnosed with AIDS.

"There's a whole community of people who have HIV but aren't able to access services before they get sick. That ain't right," said Shirlene Cooper, NYCAHN co-executive director and participant on the Northeastern caravan.

"Why is it the Department of Health always takes from us first?" asked Derrick Starr of VOCAL. "Is it because they think we're the weakest link? Well, I've survived 23 years with this virus because I'm strong."

For Carmen Rodridgez, a peer educator with CitiWide Harm Reduction, the latest cuts hit close to home. She was diagnosed with HIV in 1996. She buried her 5-year-old daughter 11 years ago and her husband four years ago. "That's why I'm a peer educator and why I'm still fighting. It's gotten better because of medication, but we're still losing a lot of children and a lot of people."

The East New York Choir from Housing Works lights up Lower Mahatten

Before hitting the Big Apple, the Northeastern caravan had successful events along the way, including its launch in Portland, Maine. Seventy people turned out for a rally outside City Hall, among them nine political candidates. State Representatives Anne Haskell and John Hinck attended, as was the Portland DOH and every media outlet in town. Andrew Bossie of Maine AIDS Alliance and Jeannemarie Celentano of the Frannie Peabody Center were the brains behind the launch. "This was a great opportunity to get HIV and AIDS talked about in the public arena," Bossie said. "This epidemic is the modern most-deadly epidemic of our time. It's 100 percent preventable. To not have a strategy for all of the U.S., rural and urban, is unacceptable. It's time for a plan not just sitting on a shelf, but one the government can implement to end this epidemic."

The caravan also made whirlwind visits to Boston and Albany. For a list of press coverage so far go to http://standagainstaids.wordpress.com/2008/09/17/stand-against-aids-press-coverage/.