Wednesday, May 3, 2006"People who work together will win, whether it be against complex football defenses, or the problems of modern society." Vince LombardiThis Sunday, May 7th, is the Aids Response Seacoast Walk. We hope you will come out for this important event. Paige will be involved in the walk - I will be at a table spreading awareness of Extreme Poverty in the world and collecting signatures for the UN Millennium & ONE Campaigns. If you are unable to walk or attend, please consider making a donation. You can sponser Paige at the link in the right hand column under "Up Coming Events." Although the goal is to raise a lot of money, if funds are tight for you, please feel free to contribute $5 or $10 - every bit helps.
Paige and I discussed our posting for this week and agreed that we should "republish" a commentary that I wrote for The Sanford News on December 1, 2005, which was World AIDS Day.
Education the Cure on World AIDS Day by Bonnie N. Davis
The Sanford News December first is World AIDS Day. Many thoughts fill my mind – especially about the children both infected and affected by HIV/AIDS. On November 21st, the United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) and the World Health Organization (WHO) released the latest findings in their annual report -
AIDS Epidemic Update 2005. Although BBC America reported this as a major news story, network and cable news shows also broadcasted the results.
In 2005, the number of people living with HIV increased to 40.3 million. More than 3 million people died from AIDS this year - of those, more than 500,000 were innocent children. Statistics in Kenya, Zimbabwe, several areas of the Caribbean, among the youth in Uganda and intravenous drug users in Spain and Brazil appear to indicate a slight decline. However, there has been an increase in Eastern Europe as well as Central and East Asia. Although HIV/AIDS exists in nearly every region of the globe, those living in extreme poverty were most affected. In Sub-Saharan Africa, 3.2 million more people were infected with HIV - 2.4 million died from AIDS related causes this year. Globally, 64% of all those with HIV/AIDS live in this region. Children are caring for dying parents and are often raising other children when one or both parents die. The report indicates that while the increase in access to medications has helped in other areas, as of a few months ago, only one out of every ten Africans (and seven out of every Asian) with HIV/AIDS had access to anti-retroviral drugs. I wonder if I am the only one who finds these numbers shocking and unacceptable – especially the number of dead children.
Education has helped in many regions – including our own country. However, HIV/AIDS from heterosexual intercourse has increased. I feel that we must look beyond social and religious judgments and promote intensive education. Teaching third world citizens about this disease (including how it is spread, prevented and treated) is mandatory.
This past year, Oprah exposed one horrifying way that the lack of education effects children in South Africa. Her show revealed that men, told by community leaders that having sex with a virgin would cure AIDS, were raping children. I cried throughout the entire show. One 5-month old baby was gang raped by several desperate men. Since she was too small to ‘service’ them, they cut her with jagged glass. Somehow, she survived this horror. She was found, barely alive, and rushed to a hospital. The doctors cried while performing surgery, doubtful they could save her life. Again, she survived. A Black American woman, living in South Africa, adopted her after a long hospital recovery. For months, this infant would scream in terror when touched. Finally, the love of her new mother reached her and started to heal her soul. She now laughs and plays. What happened to her happens to some extent every day. I cannot tolerate such injustice, especially when education and medication would make a difference.
Since the G8 Summit in July, the world’s wealthiest nations, including ours, have promised to donate and support AIDS initiatives. However, only half of the money needed is available. Anton Kerr, of Christian Aid, said, “Millions of people are relying on the promises made by the most powerful and richest countries in the world. However, the scandal of their failure to fully fund the Global Fund shows that they are not acting quickly enough to save the lives they have committed to saving. Empty promises mean death sentences.”
On World AIDS Day, please remember that we have the power and resources to help others. Senators Collins and Snowe both voted in favor of the Global Fund to fight HIV/AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis in July. I phoned both of their offices prior to the vote. These days, I often feel overwhelmed with the horrors in the world. I find comfort knowing that we can stay informed and encourage our elected officials to make the right decisions. I know that saving the children of the world is not a realistic personal goal, but perhaps together we can make a difference.
Thank you and we hope to see you in Portsmouth on Sunday!
Bonnie
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NEIDEEP at 10:20 AM