TakingITGlobal: Inspirar, Informar, Envolver

We envision a world in which AIDS is no longer a death sentence, in which economics and geography do not determine access to life-saving drugs, and where every woman, man, and child has the knowledge, means, and rights to protect her- or himself from infection. To achieve this world, we must...
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We envision a world in which AIDS is no longer a death sentence, in which economics and geography do not determine access to life-saving drugs, and where every woman, man, and child has the knowledge, means, and rights to protect her- or himself from infection. To achieve this world, we must remake our institutions to reflect a shared commitment to our common humanity. We must confront the underlying causes of the AIDS plagueÑpoverty, inequalities of race, gender, and class, sexual stigmas, and a politics that allows us to deny our responsibilities to and for each other. Our global economy must be matched by a global conscience. We have the tools to fight AIDS: prevention, treatment, support for orphans and families. To succeed, we must summon the will to use these tools. We will not accept excuses for inaction; we will not accept false barriers that divide us; we will not accept the myth that any of us are powerless. We pledge ourselves to the struggle against AIDSÑa struggle that becomes a fight against apathy, against indifference, against injustice. By forming a global youth movement, we will rise to the challenge of fighting AIDS. We will halt this pandemic.

AIDS is the crisis of our generation, and we will be defined by our response to it. Years from now, we will have to answer to our own children: did we stand by as millions died, or did we take action?
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Founded in February of 2001, the Student Global AIDS Campaign has rapidly grown to become the United States’ largest student network devoted to combating the global AIDS crisis. With members at 250 high schools, colleges, and graduate schools in 43 states, the SGAC is a major voice in...
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Founded in February of 2001, the Student Global AIDS Campaign has rapidly grown to become the United States’ largest student network devoted to combating the global AIDS crisis. With members at 250 high schools, colleges, and graduate schools in 43 states, the SGAC is a major voice in international AIDS advocacy. SGAC members played leadership roles in Youth Caucus at the UN Special Session on AIDS, the Youth Conference at the UN Conference on Racism in South Africa, and at the UN’s World Youth Forum in Senegal. SGAC members—at schools ranging from Princeton to Texas A&M to Kalamazoo Valley Community College—are dedicated to building a national student movement around the AIDS crisis in the tradition of the anti-apartheid, anti-war, and civil rights movements.

The SGAC translates outrage into action by taking aim at U.S. global AIDS policy. The SGAC calls upon the United States government to donate at least $2.5 billion per year to global AIDS efforts, particularly through the UN's newly-created Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB, and Malaria. Through regional training conferences across the country, weekly national conference calls, and constant e-mails, SGAC members stay in touch to coordinate strategy on everything from internal education to media outreach. The Student Global AIDS Campaign lobbies Congress and the Administration through handwritten letter campaigns; meetings with Congressional staff; and direct actions including public protest. Additionally, it works to increase media coverage of the global AIDS crisis, organizes campus events, and forms partnerships with groups fighting AIDS at home and abroad. A final component of the SGAC, currently under development with Youth Against AIDS (www.yaids.org), is youth-to-youth financial support through fundraising for efforts by young people fighting AIDS on the ground in Africa.
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