President Biden called for a fight against “bias” and “misinformation” on World AIDS Day in remarks from the White House.
Biden: “We stand united in the fight against this pandemic.'' said on sunday. “It's important, it's important. …When I was in the Senate, when this pandemic was raging, there was a lot of bias and misinformation, and a government that was not acting and recognizing the dignity of our people. I remember it wasn't there. [LGBTQ] Life and the seriousness of the AIDS epidemic. ”
In the 1980s and 1990s, the HIV epidemic hit the LGBTQ community, causing deep trauma and prompting calls for government action from pro-LGBTQ activists. Groups like the AIDS Coalition to Unleash Power (ACT UP) emerged during this period, using civil disobedience to highlight government inaction on AIDS.
On Sunday, the president said the then-government's inaction had “caused significant damage.” “It compounded the pain and trauma for a community that had seen generations of loved ones and friends die. It went terribly, terribly wrong.”
“Like you, we have seen advocates, survivors, families, and allies turn their pain into purpose,” Biden added. “Their loss of resolve, their anger, turned into a movement that literally changed the world.”
In his speech that day, the president also noted that “a portion” of the AIDS Memorial Quilt resides in the White House, containing “stories of precious lives cut too short.” said.
There is a foreseeable path to ending the epidemic by 2030, according to a report released earlier this year by the Joint United Nations Program on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), the United Nations agency working to end the AIDS epidemic.
“The data and real-world examples in the report make it very clear what that path is. It's not a mystery. It's a choice. Some leaders have already followed that path and are successful. ', UNAIDS Executive Director Winnie Byanyima wrote in the report's executive summary.
Updated at 7:13 p.m.
