THE VOICE OF CHICAGO'S GAY, LESBIAN, BI, TRANS AND QUEER COMMUNITY SINCE 1985

Delaney was born and raised in Chicago, where he studied for the seminary. He moved to San Francisco in 1978.

During the 1980s, Delaney became upset at the lack of accessible medication for patients with HIV. Upset after failing to get a pharmaceutical company to sponsor a trial of the drug Rivavirin, Delaney co-founded Project Inform in 1985 with Joseph Brewer, a psychotherapist.

Within a decade, the nonprofit Project Inform had an annual budget of $1 million.

Dr. Anthony S. Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases ( NIAID ) , told the Chronicle that Delaney "was highly influential in opening a pipeline of drugs that have played a major role in saving countless lives." According to a company press release, NIAID recently presented Delaney "with its Director's Special Recognition Award for his many contributions to the fight against HIV/AIDS."

"Martin Delaney was one of the pioneers of AIDS activism," Human Rights Campaign Joe Solmonese said in a statement. "While not HIV-positive himself, Delaney dedicated much of his life to shaping our nation's public policy on HIV/AIDS legislation and worked on the local level to promote education and a greater understanding of HIV/AIDS issues."

Chicagoans also reflected on Delaney's passing. Eric Nelson, president of Better Existence with HIV ( BEHIV ) e-mailed Windy City Times that "It was very sad news to hear of Martin Delaney's passing. He was an inspirational leader for helping AIDS patients gain access to drugs that were not yet approved in the U.S. and, through Project Inform, provided support to thousands of thousands of people. Delaney was an example of the good that can come from dark times."

David Munar of AIDS Foundation of Chicago ( AFC ) added, "All I can add is that Marty was an incredibly knowledgable and effective AIDS advocate, and I'm grateful to have known him. He pushed the envelope on treatment access and development and leaves a lasting legacy in Project Inform, a national organization committed to nurturing the involvement of people with HIV/AIDS in treatment access issues."

AFC's executive director, Mark Ishaug, said that "Martin was a visionary who actually made things happen. He's been an inspiration to me for over 2 decades. The best way to honor him is though our advocacy and activism."

AFC board member Dr. Daniel Berger—who first met Delaney 22 years ago—wrote in a tribute column that he "was a pioneer and leader, and a key figure within the AIDS movement stretching from beginning of the HIV epidemic to the present. The important role he played translated to the saving of many lives from HIV and AIDS. Besides his numerous and important accomplishments, he touched the hearts of almost any HIV-positive person he ever came in contact with." ( The entire column is at www.AIDSconnect.net . )

Lastly, Howard Brown Health Center Chief Officer of Elder and LBTI Women's Services Amber Hollibaugh e-mailed Windy City Times that "Martin Delaney was a friend, a hero, an AIDS activist, a brilliant researcher and an outside-the-box thinker who altered forever the way that AIDS and HIV research and, specifically, our governments federally controlled experimental drug trials, were managed and made accessible to those who most urgently needed them in order to stay alive. In the beginning of the AIDS epidemic, he was a guerilla who found and gave away scarce and critically needed AIDS medications and from that early experience, he formed Project Inform, which is still one of the key organizations in the fight against AIDS. I will miss his friendship and his leadership. His death is a profound loss for our community and in the global fight against AIDS."

Delaney is survived by four siblings: three brothers ( William, Michael and Don Delaney, all of Illinois ) and a sister ( Lois Delaney-Ogorek of Seminole, Fla. ) .

Donations may be made to Project Inform, 1375 Mission, San Francisco, CA 94103. E-mails can be sent to support@projectinform.org .

We mourn our great loss:

Paying homage

to Martin Delaney

by Daniel S. Berger, MD

We mourn our loss. A great hero in the fight of HIV disease and a great friend to many, Martin Delaney died this morning, Jan. 23, 2009.

Martin Delaney was well known to many people. He was a pioneer and leader, and a key figure within the AIDS movement stretching from beginning of the HIV epidemic to the present. The important role he played translated to the saving of many lives from HIV and AIDS. Besides his numerous and important accomplishments, he touched the hearts of almost any HIV-positive person he ever came in contact with.

It is exceedingly rare for someone not HIV-positive to completely and deeply understand what it is to be infected. Marty was one of the few people who understood how HIV sufferers felt and what they had to deal with, without ever having the disease himself. It is also rare that for someone HIV negative to become an AIDS activist let alone have the passion that Marty exhibited, combined with the tenacity and determination to accomplish as much as he did.

I first met Marty 22 years ago and soon thereafter, I had the good fortune of spending 3-4 days and evenings with him and Jim Corti in Ft Lauderdale, talking non-stop about AIDS politics and treatment philosophy. Looking back, those few days with Marty became one of the most important experiences of my life; its' effect lasts to this day. Marty impressed me with his seemingly endless energy and efforts to get access of medications to people and his steadfast resolve to continue fighting, considering different approaches.

During many times, we talked about absolutely everything including the important players in government and industry, which treatments were promising and not, how to lead the community and organize and how to be objective while being activist minded. Marty himself was the architect of various research agendas and was one of the key individuals who were responsible for helping create the "expanded access programs" for HIV drugs which became official policy. Marty was one of my greatest influences on my approach to building a research and treatment clinic. He gave me the courage to run contrary to the daily currents and bureaucracy, for which he himself was well-known. Thus, I have conducted every expanded access program ever available and more than 150 clinical trials. Marty's influence was clear. His picture has always been on the wall behind my desk.

During the early dismal years when PWAs ( persons with AIDS, as they once were referred ) were so very sick, Marty was making runs across the Mexican border to bring ribavirin into the US for his HIV-infected friends and doing whatever was needed to help people survive. While Marty himself was not infected with HIV he was constantly involved in trying to save those lives that were. Quickly becoming a public figure, he worked behind the scenes with officials and consistently urged that change be made with rapid speed; many infected individuals would not die needlessly. He was involved in smuggling medicines into the US and worked with Dr. Larry Waites in bringing national attention to Compound Q, a Chinese antineoplastic drug that had anti-HIV activity. This story was featured on a nationally televised special with Charlie Rose. He was often quoted in the New York Times and featured on many news and television interviews. He worked tirelessly with buyers clubs on obtaining treatments that were not yet approved in the US. Later, he challenged drug companies on pricing of HIV-related medications and constantly worked on government to change policy so that more people would have access to treatment.

Marty held regular educational meetings in San Francisco and tirelessly spoke at educational seminars and meetings around the country, counseling countless people. In 1992, I arranged to hold a large community forum with Marty and myself, after attending a recent World AIDS conference. In a prior professional life, Marty had taught public speaking and I learned a great deal from his easy going, simple, straightforward style. Doing our first forum together, held in the ballroom of the Belmont Hotel ( Belmont and Sheridan ) it was a milestone for Chicago HIV-positive community. It was attended by more than 400 people and was immediately apparent that all participants gained new hope and courage. Much important information and education was provided on new antiviral research and how to deal with AIDS complications. That evening and later, he would encourage patients to learn what was available and to take the initiative in discussing this openly with their doctor. Marty would say that if their physician was not amenable to being aggressive, then it was time to look for someone else for treatment. It was the first of 14 yearly updates that he and I conducted together here. These became famous and it was not infrequent that a patient would inquire about when the "next one" would be scheduled.

Marty's yearly visit to Chicago was always a highlight for me because we'd spend some extra time together. But whenever we'd go out to eat, it was often to a restaurant in the community, where we could "boy watch" while we discussed AIDS politics, treatment, research and also gossip.

Marty was outspoken and not afraid to speak his mind and did so without hesitation. To me, whenever Marty was outspoken and critical, which was not rare, he was never wrong. I marveled at his audacity. He often criticized the "system" and sometimes criticized pharmaceutical companies for their marketing approaches and pricing. I learned to maintain this sense of urgency from him and when I was challenged for being outspoken or a particular treatment approach, Marty would come to my aid. He was always insightful about evaluating results of HIV research, which may have conflicted with pharmaceutical company conclusions. I can still hear him say things like "these pharmaceutical companies always say that … " Although Marty did not hold a degree in medicine, he could converse with the most respected researchers on a very high level and often interpret results of technical research without difficulty.

On a Friday in 1996, Marty and I were both going to Washington to different FDA Drug Advisory Committee meetings. Marty was present for the meetings discussing approval of Norvir and Crixivan and I was going to the FDA's Endocrinologic and Metabolic Drugs Advisory Committee to testify in support of Serono's human growth hormone for AIDS wasting. We made up to talk after both meetings. While Marty recounted on the unanimous vote for the approval of these protease inhibitors, my committee voted 7-6 against approval of growth hormone treatment, which we felt was saving countless lives of people affected with wasting. During those early days, AIDS activism was made Marty Delaney style. He immediately knew how to mount pressure on the FDA. Behind the scenes, there became a focused drive that compelled the FDA into granting accelerated approval despite the committee's vote against; little did many know about the efforts of Marty as well as other activists including Bill Thorne and Jeff Getty of ACT UP Golden Gate as well as TAG and AIDS Project Los Angeles.

Despite our geographical distance, we made a point of talking by phone on a regular basis, I had visited him many times in San Francisco and we always made it a point of doing dinner during many of the major conferences. During one conference in Amsterdam we both coincidently bumped into each other at the same boy strip bar, and we laughed so hard that night.

Marty was one of the few AIDS activists that rubbed shoulders with the likes of Robert Gallo ( the co-discoverer of HIV ) and Tony Fauci ( director of the NIAID ) on a regular basis. He understood government politics and knew how to maneuver among policy makers. He knew everyone in industry and was well respected throughout. As founding director of Project Inform ( 1985 ) he was instrumental in leading national HIV treatment, policy and advocacy, until 2008, but continued being involved and working on other AIDS-related projects till his death. He was a member of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases National Advisory Council from 1995-98 as well as numerous other committees and boards. He was recently honored with the NIAID Director's Special Recognition Award for his many contributions in the fight against HIV/AIDS. Without Marty, many individuals would have long died.

Over the years, it always impressed me how Marty had the knack of making any HIV-positive individual feel hopeful. During many community meetings, individuals would come to him for advice with many kinds of HIV-related problems, sometimes dismal, but come away feeling better with more optimism. He always made time for everyone. I do not exaggerate when I describe Martin Delaney as being something of an angel on earth. He had the biggest of hearts. If there ever was a true saint, Marty is one. He was a true hero and I am blessed to have known him and for him to be my friend. I and countless others, will miss him dearly.