More than 120 people turned out Mar. 2 to lobby Illinois legislators against budget cuts to HIV prevention funding. The day marked AIDS Foundation Chicago's (AFC) 11th annual "Lobby Days," a two-day event during which volunteers are trained in educating state leaders about HIV prevention.
This year, AFC lobbied on three proposed bills: a measure that would cut HIV prevention funding by 11 percent; one that would borrow $15 billion to pay off debts to organizations and service providers; and a bill that would require public schools to offer science-based sex education.
Pete Subkoviak, AFC policy director and organizer of Lobby Days, said that this year is crucial for HIV-service organizations that are struggling to survive. This year, state HIV funding was flat-funded, meaning that while need for services increased, money awarded to prevention efforts stayed the same. Subkoviak said that trend has devastated local organizations and that Gov. Pat Quinn's proposed 11-percent cut could be the last straw for many of them.
"We're getting to the point… people are losing their jobs, organizations are closing," Subkoviak said. "We're not just cutting serviceswe're cutting lives."
The second bill, which AFC lobbied for, also aims to break some of the strain on local service organizations. Quinn's "Debt Bond" bill proposes consolidating the state's debts and borrowing money to pay its debts to service organizations, many of which have been operating without promised state funds.
Subkoviak said the poor economy has led many to seek government assistance with HIV medication than ever before. He said that while most politicians are sympathetic, the state's financial situation is bleak. "To look like you're spending money is not a popular thing for a politician to do in this current economic climate," he said.
Still, Subkoviak called Lobby Days "really successful" and said that advocates expressed that they felt legislators had heard their concerns. Nearly all of the advocates who attended reported getting in to sit with their representatives and senators.
March 2 also marked the launch of AFC's Anti-Stigma Campaign. AFC volunteers lobbied in red T-shirts that read "HIV Positive," although many of them are not HIV-positive. AFC will sell the shirts during 2011 in an attempt to reduce shame around HIV and encourage people to get tested. Funds raised will go to local HIV service organizations.
More information on the proposed bills as well as AFC's Anti-Stigma Campaign can found at http://www.aidschicago.org/advocacy.