About AIDS
By Sandy Bartlett, Fri., Oct. 11, 2002
October 19th Rally to Protest Prevention Debacle
In September, the Texas Department of Health issued its funding decisions for HIV/AIDS prevention for the next five years. In short, the situation is a disaster. Texas has always been stingy with HIV prevention money, so TDH didn't have the resources available that are actually needed. However, many of the choices made were truly bizarre.
The programs that were funded do not begin to address the HIV transmission problems of this state, Central Texas included. Their narrow niche focus often ignores the reality of populations which are at high risk but which may be politically unpalatable. Getting especially short shrift are Latinos/as and gay men. Compounding the omissions, prevention programming for whole communities may be extinguished.
TDH's rationale was that they are relying on hard data to employ "evidence-based interventions" which truly work. Neither this writer nor ASA are opposed to that notion. We practically worship data and program efficiency. However, much of the information used is flawed, and some TDH decisions fly in the face of common sense.
A Rally For Our Lives will be held on Saturday, October 19th, from 4:00 to 7:00 at the Capitol's south steps to protest TDH's decisions and advocate for HIV prevention. Join community members from across the state, and make your voice heard! If you can't attend, write your legislators and let them know that this situation is unacceptable!
For more information, call Jennifer Herrera at ASA (406-6165) or Lorenzo Herrera y Lozano at ALLGO/Informe-SIDA (472-2001).
