As the U.S. spends tens of billions of dollars on a pre-emptive war
in the Persian Gulf, we demand that this money be spent on the real
global priority - the HIV/AIDS crisis.
AIDS is the greatest global threat to human security that exists
today. It is more deadly than terrorism or the alleged existence of
weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. AIDS has already cost 25
million lives worldwide. In Africa, ground zero of the global
HIV/AIDS pandemic, whole communities are being wiped out and the
future of the entire continent is at risk. Around the world, HIV
infection rates continue to rise at alarming rates. In the U.S.,
the toll from AIDS is mounting, particularly among AIDS is a clear
and present danger to all of humanity. That it is not the top
priority of the U.S. government highlights just how misguided U.S.
priorities are. This year, while the U.S. focuses on potential
threats in Iraq and possible terrorist attacks at home, it is
certain that AIDS will kill more than 3 million people globally,
most of these in Africa.
AIDS is an urgent wake-up call to a deeper crisis in the state of
the world. The huge global inequalities that fuel this pandemic are
de-stabilizing and they are deadly. Only racism has allowed the
loss of so many lives to AIDS. Fighting a war against AIDS is the
most important positive step toward building a stable future for
everyone.
The U.S. is the most powerful country on earth, and it has a clear
choice to make. It can choose to provide leadership for a global
effort to defeat the AIDS pandemic and save millions of lives. This
would earn it great appreciation and respect from the whole world.
Or it can choose to act arrogantly and unilaterally, dictating
regime changes and re-drawing maps to serve its own narrowly
defined interests. This can only escalate resentment and fuel
violent reaction against this country and its people. A war on AIDS
can be won. This must be the real priority. This is why we demand:
MONEY FOR AIDS, NOT FOR WAR!
Please register your organizational endorsement on our website at
http://php.africaaction.org/action/moneyaids.php and please
circulate this statement to other organizations and networks.
You can also send your endorsement by e-mail to
africaaction@igc.org or by fax to 202-546-1545.
