13 - Activism

Dy Devin, Parinaz, and Gustavo

Part 1: How to Survive a Plague  

   David France is a well known American author, reporter and filmmaker. In 2012 he released ''How to Survive a Plague'', a documentary about the early years of the AIDS epidemic. David received The John Schlesinger Award from the Provincetown International Film Festival for this documentary. This documentary follows the struggle of two coalitions, ACT-UP and TAG (Treatment Action Group). In order to develop effective HIV/AIDS medication, these two AIDS activist groups challenge the United States government and its medical establishment.

    

   In 1987, the gay activist organization ACT-UP was formed in New York. Shortly after, they forced the government and drug companies to develop new treatments and speed up their release into the market, as the AIDS epidemic was spreading amongst the gay population. The activist organization TAG ( Treatment Action Group) originated from ACT UP. In 1992, members of the Treatment and Data Committee of ACT UP left the group. They created TAG which was a non-profit organization that focused on accelerating the treatment research. TAG members collaborated with drug company researchers and U.S. Food and Drug Administration officials to speed up the development of new HIV therapies. AZT was the first drug approved for people with H.I.V. It appeared almost six years after the apparition of the illness that was killing gay people. A demonstration staged on Wall Street by ACT-UP protested the high cost of the drug. It cost roughly $10,000 a year, per patient. This demonstration eventually forced the company that manufactured it to lower the cost. It was one of the many victories that Act Up was going to accomplish.

  From the very beginning, these organizations used the media in order to get their message across. ACT-UP used very artistic and meaningful visuals to raise awareness of their cause. For example, their logo was the words “Silence = Death” printed below a pink triangle on a black background. This is a historical reference to Nazi Germany, where the pink triangle was used to single out the gays, who were killed in concentration camps.

  Furthermore, they protested at the National Institutes of Health, at the Food and Drug Administration, and at the St. Patrick’s Cathedral. The groups produced an influential report on the government's investment in the AIDS epidemic, which increased funding for the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and furthered the national AIDS research effort. After the approval of several effective drugs, TAG pressed the government and the industries to conduct research to understand the long-term effects of the new drugs. In 1996, it was the arrival of protease inhibitors, a class of  antiviral drugs. It's effect is explained in the documentary by an animated segment. This allowed the death rate to slowly decrease. Increasing pharmaceutical drugs have since made AIDS a chronic yet manageable disease, for those who can afford the protocol. According to the film, seven companies manufacture the drugs today and they have helped save six million lives.

  

  This documentary is mostly made up of footage shot by regular people (31 videographers are credited) and told in their voices. Many of whom were the group’s leaders, H.I.V. positive men who faced imminent death. They taught us that global activism must be something that concerns us all. In many cases, it plays an important role in our lives, even though we do not participate in it. In class, we learnt that we must stand up for our beliefs and one way to do it is by taking control. We need to be well informed about what we are fighting for and understand the systems affecting the issue. We must fight for it, without weapons, because a shocking slogan can cause more damage than a weapon. The pink triangle is a good example of this. Also, courage is the key. We should never take ''no'' for an answer and not be afraid of fighting back, just like Peter Staley.  We also must stick together. We live in a society, therefore we need to create a community despite our individual beliefs and our different cultural backgrounds. Gays and heterosexuals stuck together to fight against the Aids. The success of Act Up can serve as an example for other movements.

Part 2: We Were Here

   

   The supplementary film for our group was "We Were Here", by David Weissman. The movie documents different aspects of the AIDS pandemic from the perspective of five people who lived in San Francisco during that time. The movie focuses on the social impact of AIDS, it's affect on the people and more specifically, how it affected five different individuals: Guy, Ed, Eileen, Daniel and Paul. They talk about the gay community and how there were a lot of free spirited gays. Additionally, they talk about how AIDS came very quickly and infected 50% of San Francisco's gay population, by 1976. Then followed the mass deaths, the homophobia, and the fear. As a solution, the government decided to shut down the "Tubs", known as places where gay men went to have sex. Targeting the centre of the gay community on Castro street, where most of these tubs were located.

   

  The pandemic had caused the lives of the interviewees to drastically change. Ed had joined the "Shanti" program, which taught him how to care for AIDS patients without family. Eileen was a nurse who had to start treating a lot of AIDS patients, who were otherwise constantly mistreated by medical professionals. Guy owned a flower shop in San Francisco. Many of his friends had died and when interviewed, he spoke about how he stopped asking who was still around, out of fear of finding out that they had AIDS and were going to die. Out of generosity and respect, he would give free flowers to people who wanted to bury their friends. Daniel is an artist, who had stopped working at the time because he was infected with AIDS. Him and his partner Steve got into one of the first experimental trials for AIDS drugs. However, he could not put up with the side effects and backed out. Everyone else in the trial died, including his partner. Paul had started a small AIDS group called mobilization of AIDS.

  

  The San Francisco gay community was very strong and they had a considerable impact on the AIDS pandemic. Their response to the AIDS pandemic was called "The San Francisco Model", because of how well they dealt with their precarious situation. Their care giving attitude changed people's outlook on the gay community. This movie is closely related to "How to survive a plague", which focused on the group ACTUP and their actions against AIDS. Activism is a strong theme in both these documentaries, but they also focus on what the people experienced and how they dealt with this pandemic. In general, there was very little violence in their actions and a lot more of people helping each other. In other words, the community was coming together to support one other. They created the steps for concrete activism: learn, fight,  and love. The gay community learned about the pandemic, the different ways it could potentially be treated, what caused it, and how to handle it. They fought against the closing of the tubs, they held meetings, and protested the lack of care that was given to them by the government. Most importantly, they loved each other, worked together, and took care of each other in those desperate times.

For anyone interested in this very informational and personal documentary, here it is:

Part 3: Personal Reflection

  

  Learn.Fight.Love. The simplicity of this slogan is contrasting to the true reality of the issues these movies portrayed. Despite the gravity of their situation, the gay communities of San Francisco and New York put their heart into making a change. Their courage, thoughtfulness and resourcefulness allowed them to succeed at what seemed like an impossible task. By doing so, they have set an example for years to come for all our communities. Any sort of global activism can use their work as a model of conduct.

   

   In general, our societies have lost their sense of communal togetherness. We tend to fear others and forget that we should promote working together as a group in order to achieve our goals as a society. Both these films portrayed how communities in vast cities such as New York and San Francisco managed to organize protests that allowed saving the lives of millions of people. It was interesting to see how far people will go in order to survive, when they were left to die. What was an even more relevant discovery was how people will do absolutely anything in their power just to help their community, even if they themselves have no chance of survival. When interviewed, most individuals in both movies claimed that they would die before a cure is found. However, their efforts did not falter because they hoped to save others. This is why their actions were selfless, extremely touching and also very surprising. In other words, when facing a common goal, people become apt to give, share and love one another. Although some people may be skeptical after having watched this movie, the major change they have made in the world is proof enough of the effectiveness of their methods.

   

   Another incredibly eye-opening idea to consider is the fact that even though the gay community was so discriminated against and completely shunned out of society, they still found innovative ways to get their message across in a peaceful manner. They used art and science to further their cause. With art they managed to spread awareness and with science they managed to give factual evidence, which helped convince those who were skeptical. Most people believe that violence is the only way to make their voice heard, but these AIDS activists managed to prove otherwise. They changed the general perspective from a stereotypical gay man to a dignified human being just like any other. It would've been interesting to see the same use of art in the Montreal student protests. The students could've been taken more seriously if they had taken more time in order to organize their movement. The following is a video that shows some of ACTUP's interesting modes of demonstration.

  

   

   Finally, we can not only take away their effective techniques of activism, but also the fact that a small group of individuals can still make a concrete difference in the world. This is often the case in many high schools and colleges in Montreal. For example, in College Beaubois, there is a program run by a few dedicated individuals and students that raises money for a school in Senegal.  Despite the odds, when there are at least a few people that are willing to do whatever it takes, change is bound to happen. We must not forget that nothing can possibly happen with inaction. More precisely, nothing gained, nothing ventured. As mentioned in the films, there is something liberating and fulfilling in helping others and making a positive change in the world.  Even a small a change as when volunteering at the hospital, has proven to me how this is indeed very true. Nowadays, we live in a primarily ethnocentric and egotistical society. This is why it has become very difficult for change to be made. Additionally, this also explains how the government is more empowered, when everyone is so dispersed.