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To
ACT UP
AIDS COALITION TO UNLEASH POWER
PHILADELPHIA
Welcome to Act Up Philadelphia. Whether this is your first meeting or
you've been coming along for awhile, this booklet has been put together to
provide you with an introduction to the day-to-day operations of Act Up,
its Monday night meetings, and the various sub-groups that work for the end
of the AIDS pandemic.
United in anger and committed to direct action to end the AIDS crisis:
ACT UP's dynamic approach, often using mass demonstrations and dramatic
acts of civil disobedience, focuses attention on crucial AIDS issues. ACT
UP's work has been instrumental in educating the public and creating
dialogue with drug companies and politicians to help end the AIDS crisis.
The following are a few highlights from the history of ACT UP Philadelphia:
4. "City and State AIDS funding 4. City and State AIDS funding have
should be increased." been maintained. (There's more
work to do).
Welcome to your first Monday Night Meeting ! The Monday Night Meeting is
the most important and crucial event during and ACT UP Philadelphia week.
It is the meeting in which all actions, responses, criticisms, and
compliments are aired. The Monday Night Meeting provides answers to
questions that are raised by various committees and caucuses of ACT UP
Philly, and, most importantly, gives members who are not involved in those
committees a chance to hear what is planned or already going on. An
important principle of the Monday night Meeting is inclusion. All those
who attend the meeting should feel included in debate and discussion, and
there should be time for all views and positions on any issue to be
discussed.
Another important part of inclusion is the Agenda Board. The Agenda Board
sets the order of discussion for each meeting, it is open to anyone who
attends the meeting. Items can be added to the agenda board at any time
before or during the meeting. If you have an announcement or issue of any
sort that you would like discussed by the meeting, simply add it to the
agenda board when you arrive at the meeting.
1. P.I.S.D. Caucus
2. Women's Caucus
3. Treatment and Data
4. Action Committee, Artists' Committee, Media Committee
5. Fundraising Committee
6. Prevention Point Philadelphia (Needle Exchange)
7. Condoms in Schools
8. Defense Committee
9. People of Color in ACT UP
The agenda board is for your use. Do not hesitate, at any point during the
meeting, to go up to the board and add an issue or question that is
concerning you.
The Facilitatrix/or: When the agenda board has been filled with issues for
the week, the facilitatrix will call the meeting to order. The
facilitatrix is there to help the meeting run as smoothly as possible.
She/He is not a leader or an official-- she/he must try to stay neutral in
all debates and recognize as many speakers from different positions as
possible. It is important that you use the facilitatrix/or if you want to
raise an issue or respond to a point already made. All speakers must raise
their hands and be recognized by the facilitatrix/or before speaking. This
is not a power trip on the part of the facilitatrix/or, but simply an
attempt to include as many speakers as possible. If you speak without
being recognized, the facilitatrix/or may interrupt you and recognize
another speaker. Be patient in raising your hand and your point will be
heard.
Discussion ground rules: People talking at the same time and people
talking to each other should be discouraged. If people have questions,
they should usually be put to the meeting at large rather than to other
people. The facilitatrix may ask questions of people to clear up
confusion. When you are recognized by the facilitatrix, you should speak
loudly, clearly, and briefly.
Decision ground rules: Voting is a quick, but bad way to make decisions.
As a way of deciding something, it does nothing towards making people
discuss their differences of opinion about the subject at hand. It lets
large groups of people dominate smaller groups (white people and people of
color for example). Often, it makes people who "lose" a vote feel bad.
Voting should be avoided. Instead, the facilitatrix will use a
discussion/decision method that finds common ideas in opposing viewpoints.
The facilitatrix will encourage people to find an agreeable common goal and
get people to make proposals for actions. When a proposal is made, the
facilitatrix will ask clearly if anyone objects to the proposal. If
someone does object, the discussion can continue, or, if the discussion has
gone on too long, it can be postponed until the next general meeting or go
to one of the committees. (The group may, at some time, reach a consensus
that the only way to decide something is to vote. If the issue is very
serious or nasty, a secret, written vote may be needed, but this is very
rare.) If there is no objection to the proposal, then the facilitatrix
should declare that it has passed. It is then an officially approved ACT
UP proposal.
Working on a proposal:
* Who is our audience? Who do we want to reach or who will actually see
our zap or action?
* What is our tactic? How will we achieve our goal, hit our target,
reach our audience and get our message across?
The simpler our answers to these questions, the easier it will be for
us to come up with our plan, or scenario.
In deciding upon a proper response to a particular problem, ACT UP Philly
makes a distinction between a zap and an action. Whereas actions such as
larger demonstrations and pickets tend to be broad ranging arid symbolic,
the zap is often focused on specific target or goal. Zaps do not require
the extended planning of an action (no Action Meeting is required for a
zap), but instead can be proposed at a Monday night meeting and executed
before the next meeting. Zaps can take any form, from pickets to
disruptions of speeches and meeting, or simply the disruption caused by
distributing information (safe sex info, condoms, flyers, or fact sheets).
Initiating a zap: If you wish to propose a zap to the Monday Night
Meeting, you should prepare a number of copies of a zap proposal which can
be distributed for consideration at the Monday Night Meeting. This
proposal should include the issues involved, the names of culprits, and
suggested responses to the culprit. Many times, the immediate nature of
the need for a zap will not allow time for you to prepare such a written
proposal, but you should come to the Monday Night Meeting with the proposal
in your head if not in written form. At the meeting, you should place the
zap on the Agenda Board under the ZAP heading. The Monday Night Meeting
will then debate the zap proposal and, by consensus, either approve or
suggest modification to the zap.
Immediate concern and anger can be expressed through a Phone and/or Fax
zap. These are an easy and direct way of letting public officials and
others know what you want the to do or stop doing. It may involve voting
on a particular bill, or actually implementing plans they have proposed but
haven't acted upon. You may want to pressure "higher-ups" in the name of
their constituencies. People in positions of power take such actions
seriously. Politicians for example, usually keep track of their pro-and
con- calls on controversial issues.
The advantage of a fax over a phone call is that your entire message gets
directly to the specific person you want to reach rather than to a
secretary or switchboard operator. You can be creative and send graphics
as well as words. However, faxing costs more than a phone call. Phone and
fax zaps are particularly useful when you need to respond to something
quickly.
If you wish to propose an action, bring your proposal to the Monday Night
Meeting, list it on the agenda board under ACTIONS, and join in the
discussion and debate.
There are many types of actions. The most basic is the moving picket line.
This is a legal demonstration consisting of a group of people with fact
sheets, posters, and other visuals, walking and chanting in a circle in
front of a specific site. The First Amendment guarantees us the right to
free speech, and as long as we are on public property, keep the line
moving, and leave some room for pedestrians, we are not doing anything
unlawful. Similarly, handing out flyers and fact sheets at the demo site
or across the street (or in any public space) is perfectly legal.
If we decide to move our picket from one site to another, we have a march.
Other popular variations on the moving picket line include sit-ins, kiss-
ins, and die-ins. A die-in is when protesters lie down on the ground to
represent the thousands who have died or are being killed by the policies
and neglect of the government or our target. Often people chant ("How many
people have to die?, "We die they do nothing!", etc.) Sometimes protestors
carry cardboard tombstones with names or slogans, creating an instant AIDS
cemetery, and other times the "dead" bodies are outlined in chalk with
messages written in.
Members planning to get arrested should fill out a support sheet with their
name, home address, date of birth, emergency phone numbers, and 24-hour
needs (medicines, etc.) This sheet is handed in to the designated support
person and used for identification purposes. This list is kept internally
and is not given over to the police. Everyone wishing to risk arrest (or
even participate as support) is also encouraged to go through a CD
training, if possible. Of course, sometimes the police don't give you that
option.
Whatever the action, we always use fact sheets, chants, and visuals. Fact
sheets are information sheets briefly outlining why we're protesting and
what our demands are. Chants help get our information out to the public
(and the media)in small soundbites ("Health care is a right--Health care is
a right—ACT U P ) . Chants also keep the momentum of the group at a high
pace.
Another on-site job is that of legal support. Their job is to observe the
action and write down any "happenings" or interactions with the police,
paying particular attention to the names and badge numbers. This job has
recently become easier with the addition of an ACT UP video recorder.
Legal support people do not participate in the actions, they are just
interested bystanders with pen and paper. They do not have to be lawyers.
They also may be aware of contingency plans: the "what-ifs ?" that may come
about because of rain, site choice, or police reaction.
Dealing with the media:
Committees:
Although the Monday Night Meetings are the backbone of ACT UP Philadelphia,
it is the committees that provide the hard work and research to keep our
political work moving. It is important to say that without the committees,
ACT UP would cease to exist. You are welcome, indeed encouraged, to come
along to the regular committee meetings each week. Below is a concise
description of each committee as well as its meeting place and time:
P.I.S.D.:
Women's Caucus:
The women's caucus meets periodically to discuss issues and plan
activities related to the needs of women living with AIDS, and women's
health in general. The caucus has worked in the past on the regional
Woman and Aids conference, treatment availability for women, women's
representation and coverage of women's issues by the Philadelphia Aids
Consortium (TPAC), and women's involvement in ACT UP Philadelphia.
You must be a woman to participate in this caucus. Caucus meetings
convene at the ACT UP Philadelphia office, 201 S. Camac Street,
Penguin Place.
Action Committee:
The Action Committee develops, prepares, researches, and helps to
execute actions that have been proposed by the Monday Night Meeting.
Action is one of the most active committee meetings in ACT UP, and a
must-see for all new members. Meetings work on the actual logistics
of actions and some zaps, and prepare everything form banners to press
kits. Meetings are every Wednesday night, 7:30 PM, at the ACT UP
Philly office, 201 S. Camac St., Penguin Place.
Fundraising Committee:
The fundraising committee is the central group involved in organizing
events to fund ACT UP's actions. We have organized successful
dinners, dances, and parties at numerous clubs to keep our bank
account stable. If you have any interest in financial or fund-raising
matters, please do get involved. We meet at the ACT UP Office, 201 S.
Camac Street, Penguin Place. Dates and times will be announced at the
Monday Night Meetings.
Condoms in Schools:
Defense Committee:
NAME:
ADDRESS
PHONE:
1. P.I.S.D. Caucus
2. Women's Caucus
4. Action Committee
5. Fundraising Committee
7. Condoms in Schools
8. Defense Committee
General Information:
The ACT UP Office: The ACT UP Philadelphia office is a lovely space for
all your activist needs. There is gorgeous furniture, a copy machine, a
fax machine, a computer, and a phone for your use in any activist pursuits.
The FAX number is 731-1845; the phone number is 731-1844, there is a phone
mail box so feel free to leave a message. The address of the office is 201
S. Camac Street, Penguin Place. Directly behind the 12th St Gym.
The Monday Night Meeting Space: The Monday Night Meetings meet each Monday
at 7:30 at St. Luke's and the Epiphany Church, 13th St. between Spruce and
Pine.
The ACT UP Network: The ACT UP network is our means of communication with
other ACT UP's across the world. Conference calls are held frequently with
other ACT UP's. There is also a women's conference on the network. Call
545-2212 for info.
The Critical Path Aids Project: One of the best publications dealing with
many issues of interest to ACT UP members. ACT UP Philly's Kiyoshi
Kuromiya is editor, and provides us with copies. Critical Path provides
the information that will help to bring a swift end to the epidemic.
The Treatment and Data Digest: Published by ACT UP New York, gives up to
date information on treatment and data. Distributed at ACT UP Philly's
Monday Night Meetings.
Standard of Care: On April 15, 1992 the Treatment and Data Committee,
coordinated by Jonathan Lax, Kiyoshi Kurmiya, and Coleman Terrell,
published the first HIV Standard of Care. The Standard of Care has been
extremely well received and is a must have for anyone involved in the fight
for an end to the AIDS crisis. Standard of Care's can be found at the
Monday Night Meeting or by calling the office and requesting that one be
sent.
ACT UP PHILADELPHIA GLOSSARY:
ACT UP meetings can be very difficult to follow when there are obscure
vocabulary and mystical acronyms flying around the room. We have compiled
a list of frequently used terms and acronyms here, and we encourage you to
make use of this reference during the meetings. If there is a term that is
used and not mentioned here, please ask the facilitatrix/or for a
definition of the term. That's what he/she is there for. The glossary is
divided into two sections; first a glossary of Philadelphia-related terms
and institutions; secondly, a basic glossary of treatment terms.
PHILADELPHIA GLOSSARY
ACT UP, Phila.: That's us. 201 S. Camac St. Philadelphia PA 19107. 731-
1844, fax 731-1845.
BETAK: (AIDS specific nursing home in West Mt. Airy)—ACT UP was the main
force behind its opening.
Gold, Maria: Deputy Health Commissioner for the Infectious Disease Control
in the Philadelphia Health Department. AACO reports to her.
Smith, Gregory: A prisoner in the New Jersey prison system who has been
accused of biting a guard and sentenced for attempted murder because of hid
HIV+ status. ACT UP Philadelphia works with the Justice for Gregory Smith
Coalition to make sure that he is treated reasonably well.
We the People with AIDS/ARC: 425 S. Broad Street.: Support groups,
clothing bank, healing circle. 545-6868. David Fair, Director.
National Organizations and Treatment Glossary
Acquired .Immune Deficiency Syndrome: A manifestation of infection with HI
characterized by the presence of one or more diseases or conditions as
defined by the Center for Disease Control (CDC). These diseases occur
after HIV has severely damaged the immune system, leaving the affected
person susceptible to unusual infections and malignancies, (see
Opportunistic Infection).
AZT: Also known as Zidovudine. The trade name is Retrovir. Some people
can only tolerate AZT for 18 months to 2 years. The only anti-HIV agent
approved by the US so far.
ddC, ddl : Drugs currently under study for use alone and in combination
with AZT. Both nucleoside analogs, like AZT.
Gay Mens' Health Crisis (GMIIC): One of New York's AIDS service
organizations.
National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases: One part of the NIH,
and the most important one for AIDS research, it supports basic research,
epidemiology and natural history studies, blood screening tests, drug
discovery and development, vaccine development and testing, and treatment
studies. It administers the ACTG network of testing units at hospital's
around the country and the CPCRA, a community-based network of AIDS
treatment research.
Phase II: This phase of clinical trials is the stage at which drug
effectiveness is established.
Risk Factors: Any behavior that increases the chances of HIV infecti<
T-4 (helper) cell: Also known as a CD4 cell. Immune cells which seel
attack invading organisms. AIDS reduces the number of T-4 cells, thu:
increasing chance of illness from infection.