ACT-UP, Fight Back, Fight AIDS

I went along to FACT tonight for a screening of Jim Hubbard's 2012 documentary, 'United in Anger: A History of ACT-UP'. You can see the trailer here http://www.unitedinanger.com/?page_id=158

ACT-UP, (the AIDS Coalition to Unleash Power) was formed 30 years ago in New York and inspired affiliated groups across the USA, and the world, in the late '80s and '90s. It was an extraordinarily passionate, radical, creative, political force of nature in response to the US government's criminal lack of action in the face of the HIV/AIDS pandemic, the greed of the pharmaceutical companies, the exclusion of the gay community, people of colour, women, drug users, homeless people, the poor and marginalised from drug trials and public health policy development, and state complicity in the deaths of hundreds of thousands of people.

As one activist in the film put it, "This was our World War 2".

It was also one of the first movements for social justice which was widely recorded on film by its participants, and the documentary which Jim Hubbard has put together from thousands of hours of archival material, is both moving and inspiring.

After the film there was a Skype Q&A session with Jim Hubbard himself, which was an added bonus. He's a lovely man.

I was 21 years old when ACT-UP formed, and I was getting involved in political activism myself, against Clause 28 of the Local Government Act. The infamous Clause which banned the 'promotion of homosexuality' in schools and sought to outlaw 'the acceptability of homosexuality as a pretended family relationship'. We, in the Liverpool Stop The Clause Group were very aware of ACT-UP and inspired and motivated by what they were doing. This was also the time of the Thatcher government's 'AIDS: Don't Die of Ignorance' campaign, of course.

At around the same time, Merseyside AIDS Support Group and Mersey Body Positive were established and later became collectively known by the name of their joint premises, Sahir House.

Someone who's been involved in HIV/AIDS activism in Liverpool, nationally and internationally for these past 30 years, as an HIV+ woman (and as a staff member at Sahir House) is today's Blip subject, Kath Charters. Someone who truly deserves to be celebrated.

(On a personal note, I'm pleased to say that for the past 3 or 4 months, Kath has also been my yoga teacher!)

We had a quick chat after the film about the need for activism around public health (and so many other things...) being as great as ever, particularly given that local health strategy claims to prioritise the importance of prevention but then cuts funding for preventative services (in relation to HIV and sexual health as well as in my own field, mental health), thereby increasing the cost of treatment for people when they become unwell. It's a ridiculous false economy which means that the rates of late diagnosis of HIV in Liverpool are double the national rate. It really is shameful.

Things could change markedly in England if we hurry up and follow Scotland's recent example and make the preventative drug PrEP available to people at risk of contracting HIV www.theguardian.com/society/2017/apr/10/people-risk-hiv-scotland-prep-drug-nhs-aids Here's hoping!

Thanks for letting me take your picture and write about you, Kath!


A song that fits my mood absolutely perfectly at the moment is 'The Great Correction' by Eliza Gilkyson. (Fantastic video too, photography fans!) Check it out at www.youtube.com/watch?v=qYopmvMQEuI