Presentation: ACT-UP

ACT UP: AIDS Coalition to Unleash Power

"For meeting the challenge of the AIDS epidemic and its crisis of conscience with vigilant acts of political and cultural provocation – thereby giving voice to the essential creative will of our humanity."

ACT UP is a diverse, non-partisan group of individuals united in anger
and committed to direct action to end the AIDS crisis.

We advise and inform. We demonstrate.
WE ARE NOT SILENT

Act-UP is an organization dedicated to spreading awareness of the HIV-AIDS epidemic and the prevention failures of the U.S. government through protest and informational campaigns. It was formed in 1987 and for a time was very active. The organization is designed to operate spontaneously and without a central leader, instead utilizing smaller-scale organization based on affinity groups. They follow a general principle of civil disobedience and non-violence, seeking instead to optimize media attention and impact. There are clear guidelines on the website for what actions are acceptable, what happens in an arrest, and how to form affinity groups:

“Affinity groups are self-sufficient support systems of about 5 to 15 people. A number of affinity groups may work together toward a common goal in a large action, or one affinity group might conceive of and carry out an action on its own. Sometimes, affinity groups remain together over a long period of time, existing as political support and/or study groups, and only occasionally participating in actions.”

“1. Your objectives must be reasonable. You must believe you are fair and you must be able to communicate this to your opponent.

2. Maintain as much eye contact as possible.

3. Make no abrupt gestures. Move slowly. When practical, tell your opponent what you are going to do before you do it. Don't say anything threatening, critical, or hostile.

4. Don't be afraid of stating the obvious; say simply, "You're shouting at me," or "You're hurting my arm."”

Act-Up has done numerous major demonstrations, typically towards the goals of raising awareness about AIDS, AIDS prevention, government inaction and mismanagement, the high cost of antiretroviral medications, and other major concerns.

The first major protest done by Act-Up was on Wall Street, where activist demanded access to potentially life-saving medications. The protestors practiced civil disobedience, and several were arrested by the police.

http://www.actupny.org/documents/1stFlyer.html

Time Line: 1987-1988

March, 1987: Outraged by the government's mismanagement of the AIDS crisis, concerned individuals unite to form the AIDS Coalition to Unleash Power. Our first demonstration takes place three weeks later on March 24th on Wall Street, the financial center of the world, to protest the profiteering of pharmaceutical companies (especially Burroughs Wellcome, manufacturer of AZT). Seventeen people are arrested. Shortly after the demonstration, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announces it will shorten its drug approval process by two years.

June 1, 1987: ACT UP joins other national activist groups in civil disobedience at the White House in Washington, DC. In a display of AIDS-phobia, the police wear rubber gloves while arresting protesters. Another demonstration is held at the Third International Conference on AIDS.

June 4, 1987: When Northwest Orient Airlines refuses passage to people with AIDS (PWAs), ACT UP erupts in protest at the airline's New York offices. Two suits are brought against Northwest. The policy is reversed.

June 21, 1987: ACT UP's four-day, round-the-clock protest at New York City's Memorial Sloan-Kettering Hospital, one of four AIDS Treatment Evaluation Units (ATEU's) in the City, demands more clinical trials of promising drugs other than AZT and more people with AIDS in the trials.

September 9, 1987: ACT UP protests the inadequacies of the newly-formed Presidential Commission on AIDS when it meets for the first time in Washington, DC. Several ACT UP members give testimony.

January 15, 1988: ACT UP NY's Women's Caucus organizes first ACT UP action focused on women and HIV. Five hundred people protest an article telling heterosexual women that unprotected vaginal intercourse with an HIV+ man is safe. A documentary about the action, "Doctors, Liars, and Women: AIDS Activists Say NO to Cosmo," produced by two Women's Caucus members, is later shown around the country, winning awards and placed in the permanent collection of the Museum of Modern Art.

March 24, 1988: To celebrate our first anniversary, ACT UP returns to Wall Street. More than 100 activists are arrested; ACT UP receives major media coverage and issues central to the AIDS crisis are reported. The concept of "AIDS activism" gains credibility.

May 1-9, 1988: ACT UP branches around the country mount nine days of protests focusing on specific, unattended aspects of the epidemic such as IV drug use, homophobia, people of color, women, testing programs, prison programs and children with AIDS. More than 50 cities participate.

June 23, 1988: ACT UP meets homeless people at a "Talk-In" at a Tent City in City Hall Park, built to protest the city's policy on the homeless. ACT UP gives out information on AIDS and distributes condoms; the homeless share their experiences in the shelters and in the streets.

October 11, 1988: ACT UP, joined by the national ACT NOW coalition, closes down the FDA outside of Washington, DC. More than 1,000 activists stage a series of demonstrations which result in almost 180 arrests. The event receives international press coverage. A historical event, shutting down the FDA represents to a vast audience the lethargy of this dysfunctional bureaucracy, which is in charge of testing and approving possible AIDS treatments.

November 25, 1988: Trump Tower Thanksgiving Action - ACT UP protests a lack of housing for PWA's while city gives tax breaks to wealthy developers. Numerous affinity group actions and arrests are made.