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Date: Thu, 27 Jul 2000 14:25:50 -0700
From: International Bicycle Fund <[log in to unmask]>
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Subject: [wa-afr] FW: Constituency For Africa Town Hall Meetings


-----Original Message-----
From: Will Cusack [mailto:[log in to unmask]]
Sent: Thursday, July 20, 2000 1:25 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Constituency For Africa Town Hall Meetings


IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT FROM THE CONSTITUENCY FOR AFRICA (CFA)
Be a part of this historic effort

Constituency for Africa
Town Hall Meeting
U.S. Policy and Africa's Promise:
The Global Challenge of HIV/AIDS
In conjunction with the Democratic National Convention

Tuesday, August 15, 2000 , 9 a.m. - 5 p.m.
The Regal Biltmore Hotel, 506 S. Grand Avenue, Los Angeles, CA
Open to the public

Engage in frank discussions with national and international policy makers
... Shape U.S. Policy on Africa
... Debate the issues ...

Topics:
The 13th International HIV/AIDS Conference in Africa - Developing a Global
Strategy ... Trade,
Investment and Development: A Role for the Private Sector ... Debt Relief: A
Tool to Fight the HIV/AIDS
Pandemic and Support Human Development ... The Media: Friend or Foe of
Africa ... and more.

Featuring (partial list):
The Honorable James Clyburn, Chair, Congressional Black Caucus
The Honorable Ronald V. Dellums, Chair, Constituency for Africa; Chair,
President's Advisory Council on
HIV/AIDS
Ernest Green, Chair, African Development Foundation
The Honorable Richard Holbrooke, U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations*
Rev. Jesse L. Jackson, Sr., President, Rainbow PUSH Coalition
The Honorable Barbara Lee, Member, House Subcommittee on Africa; Marshall
Plan for Africa
The Honorable Donald Payne, Ranking Members, House Subcommittee on Africa
Dr. David Satcher, U.S. Surgeon General*
Ambassador Andrew Young, Former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations;
President, Goodworks, Inc.*
Dr. Ronald Walters, political commentator; syndicated columnist; Professor,
University of Maryland
(* invited)

Receive a "Road Map for Action" ... Attend the "Africa Policy Luncheon"...
Experience the African and African American AIDS Quilt ... Celebrate at the
"African Gala" (follows Town Hall Meeting; jointly sponsored by CFA and the
African Marketplace)

"Africa is where we must draw the line in the sand ... The weapons that will
stop the death march of HIV/AIDS will propel Africa toward a bright and
stable future." Ronald V. Dellums, Chair, CFA

For more information and pre-registration, call 310.281.7680 or CFA at
202.371.0588

Supporters (partial list):
African Development Foundation... African Diplomatic Corps...Africa
Club-World Bank...AFRICARE
...AGOA Coalition...AIDS Free Africa...AME Church Development & Service
Agency...Ark
Foundation...Barden Corporation International...Blacks in Government...Black
Meetings & Tourism
Magazine...Bread for the World... Congressman James Clyburn, Chair,
Congressional Black
Caucus...DC-Dakar/US Africa Sister Cities...Ford Foundation... Global Health
Council...Habitat for
Humanity...Congresswoman Barbara Lee...NAACP...National Association of
Churches...National Black
Leadership Forum...National Council of Negro Women...National Organization
of Black County
Officials...National Summit on Africa...Rainbow PUSH Coalition... Ronald H.
Brown Foundation
Sponsors (partial list): Bristol Meyer Squibb...Chevron...Coca Cola...Ford
Motor Company...Ford
Foundation...Health Care International Management Co...WorldSpace, Inc.

CFA was founded in 1990 by concerned U.S. citizens, Africanists and
Africa-focused organizations committed to
the progress and empowerment of Africa and African people. CFA educates the
public and U.S. policy makers
about Africa and fosters collaboration among a broad-based coalition of
American, African and international
organization. CFA is a 501(c)3 nonprofit corporation. Ronald V. Dellums,
Chair, Melvin P. Foote, President & CEO

*****
Background news release:
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: July 12, 2000
Contact: David Saunders, 202.371.0588 or Kay Hixson, 310.410.9891

Coalition Calls for War Against HIV/AIDS Pandemic in Africa
Message Delivered to the Democratic Platform Drafting Committee

(Washington, D.C., July 12, 2000) The Coalition for U.S. Policy to Conquer
HIV/AIDS in Africa called on
the Democratic Party to adopt as part of its official party platform an
"Africa plank" endorsing an
aggressive U.S. policy to combat the HIV/AIDS pandemic in Africa.

The Coalition, an alliance of Africa-focused organizations, is headed by
former Congressman
Ronald V. Dellums, chair of the Constituency for Africa (CFA), the host
organization. Dr. Ron Walters,
University of Maryland Professor of Political Science, is the coalition's
facilitator.

In his statement to the Democratic Platform Drafting Committee (see
attached), Mr. Dellums
challenged Democrats to "steer the political might and moral authority" of
the party toward immediate
and significant action. "The world has become a global community," reads the
statement. "Political
borders will not contain HIV/AIDS. It can not be discounted as someone
else's problem."

An "Africa Plank" will focus national attention on the need for the U.S. to
assert bold leadership,
in partnership with the international community, to fight HIV/AIDS and
increase funding to fight the
pandemic. The proposed plank reads in part, "Because America values
democracy, free trade and civil
stability, the HIV/AIDS crisis has become a national security issue. The
United States should work
towards the eradication of HIV/AIDS in Africa."

The HIV/AIDS crisis is the most threatening issue Africa faces. More than
6,000 people die daily.
In just a few years, it is estimated that Africa will raise 40 million AIDS
orphans. "Governmental,
educational and economic systems are crumbling as Africa's workforce - both
professional and laborers
- perish from AIDS," declared Dellums. "Africa is where we must draw the
line in the sand if we are to
curtail an impending global catastrophe."

Statistics report that AIDS is now the leading cause of death in Africa for
adults between ages 15
to 49. Most infected Africans do not know they have the disease and life
expectancy has been reduced
by 20 years. "It's a war we can win. Education, prevention and treatment
will stop the pandemic,"
remarked Mel Foote, president and CEO of CFA.

In the face of this tragedy, the Coalition has identified a window of
opportunity. The weapons
that will halt the death march of HIV/AIDS will catapult the continent
toward a bright and stable future,
according to the Coalition Facilitator Ron Walters. Access to health care;
transparent and accountable
governance; improved infrastructure; grassroots involvement; community
education; strengthened social
services and dependable communications systems will defeat the disease and
form the foundation for
Africa's future.

CFA will continue this focus at its Town Hall Meeting U.S. Policy and
Africa's Promise: The
Global Challenge of the HIV/AIDS Pandemic being held at the Biltmore Hotel
on August 15th in
conjunction with the Democratic National Convention.

CFA was founded in 1990 by concerned U.S. citizens, Africanists and
Africa-focused
organizations committed to the progress and empowerment of Africa and
African people. CFA educates
the public and U.S. policy makers about Africa and fosters collaboration
among a broad-based
coalition of American, African and international organizations.

(end)

*****
Testimony to the 2000 Democratic Party Platform Drafting Committee
The Honorable Ronald V. Dellums, Chair, Constituency for Africa; Convener,
Coalition for U.S.
Policy to Conquer HIV/AIDS in Africa; Chair, President's Advisory Council on
HIV/AIDS
Presented Thursday, July 6, 2000, University of Missouri at St. Louis

Ladies and gentlemen, Thank you for this opportunity. I am charged with the
monumental task of
persuading you, in just 5 minutes, to steer the political might and the
moral authority of the Democratic
Party toward a challenge unlike any it has faced. Yet I approach you with
the confidence that our collective
concern for humanity and our natural instinct for survival will drive you to
the same conclusion I reached. I
hope my argument is compelling, because at the end, I will ask for your
unequivocal commitment to the
war against the HIV/AIDS pandemic in Africa.

Let me paint the picture. Envision if you will, 7000 families, every single
day, laying to rest a loved
one who died a painful death from AIDS, a disease that was probably
undiagnosed and untreated, an
enemy they could not see and probably could not understand. By the time I
complete my presentation,
another 24 Africans will have lost their fight with AIDS, and of those, at
least half are likely to be children.
The future is something many African children will never see. And of those
who survive, a family is
something they may not know. In a few years, there will be 40 million AIDS
orphans.

Indeed, this picture is sobering. Life expectancy in some African countries
has been reduced by 20
years. Ninety-five percent of Africans infected with AIDS live in abject
poverty without access to HIV/AIDS
information, education, prevention techniques, diagnosis or treatment. Most
infected Africans do not even
know they have the disease. The African workforce from laborers to
professionals is being decimated
by AIDS. Governmental, educational and economic systems are crumbling. And
the death rate is
increasing.

I am aware of the often unspoken thought that we need to deal with the
HIV/AIDS problem here
before we worry about someone thousands of miles away. " To that, I respond
"yes ... but."
Yes, there is a domestic HIV/AIDS problem. The rate of infection is on the
rise once more,
especially among African Americans and other minorities. AIDS is now the
leading cause of death among
African Americans between 25 and 44. Yes, I support the allocation of the
necessary resources to confront
HIV/AIDS here at home. I applaud and support the Congressional Black Caucus'
comprehensive HIV/AIDS
initiative. And yes, I encourage all policy makers, government, nonprofits,
private industry and the faith-
based community to tackle the issue. For any of us to do anything less would
be irresponsible. Others will
make the case for domestic HIV/AIDS programs and please count me as one of
their supporters and
advocates.

But, my friends, we are not faced with an "either-or" dilemma. It is not a
"win-lose" proposition. As
the wealthiest, most technologically advanced, most powerful nation in the
world, we can and must do
both. Today I carry the torch for Africa. HIV/AIDS in Africa can not be
discounted as someone else's
problem. Waging war against the HIV/AIDS pandemic is a moral imperative. It
is the right thing to do; it is
in our self-interest; it is a strategic necessity.

The fact is HIV/AIDS does not respect borders, race, age, religion, sexual
orientation, education or
income levels. It is an equal opportunity disease that will seek host after
host after host. And, with the
increasingly close and intimate interaction of people traveling the globe
for business, adventure,
recreation, education and cultural experiences, there will soon be no
barrier to its spread. We are joined at
the hip with the rest of the world. The only question now is how to work
together to solve our collective
crisis.

If we allow the pandemic to tighten its choke-hold on Africa, it will soon
strangle us all. If it goes
unchecked, the pandemic will reshape the future of the world, including the
United States. HIV/AIDS is
already spreading at an increasing rate in Asia, Eastern Europe and India.
If we do not pursue an all out
offensive now, we will lose. Africa is where we must draw a line in the
sand.

Our Coalition of 30+ organizations does not stand alone in its call for a
strong U.S. policy to
conquer the HIV/AIDS pandemic in Africa. A red flag is being waved by a wide
array of U.S. policy
makers. President Clinton and Vice President Gore endorse such a policy.
Donna Shalala, Secretary of the
Department of Health and Human Services, calls it a threat to national
security. Richard Holbrooke, the
U.S. Representative to the United Nations, agreed and offered a chilling
assessment when he said '... of all
the problems we face in the world today, I really think (AIDS) is the most
important. It will wreck the
economics of Africa and you can't erect a wall around Africa and commit
continental triage, it won't work.'

In spite of the picture I've painted, the situation is not hopeless, by any
means. In the face of this
tragedy, we have a window of opportunity. The weapons that will halt the
death march of HIV/AIDS will
catapult the continent toward a bright and stable future. Access to health
care; transparent and
accountable governance; improved infrastructure; grassroots involvement;
community education;
strengthened social services and dependable communications systems will
defeat the disease and form the
foundation for Africa's future. Ironically, this statement also applies to
the domestic situation. Defeating the
pandemic in Africa will stabilize a continent of proud people, the birth
place of human kind, a reservoir of
rich culture and history. We can help Africa reach its promise if we have
the will and assert the leadership.
The pandemic is in the relatively early stages. If we stand with our
international partners to face
down HIV/AIDS in Africa, we will see a world victory. If we help transform
Africa into a model of prosperity
as we did Europe and Japan after World War II, we will be able to stand
proud among the nations of the
world. If we vest the same energy, determination, resources and commitment
that we have shown Kosovo,
the former Soviet Union, and Eastern Europe, we will be able to claim
success.

To the Democratic Party, my party, I ask that we dig deep, let our moral
compass point the way and
use our self-interest for motivation. Join us on the front line of the
global war against HIV/AIDS in Africa.
On behalf of the Coalition for U.S. Policy to Conquer HIV/AIDS in Africa, I
proudly submit the
"Africa Plank" for inclusion in the 2000 Democratic National Platform. I
implore you to assert your
visionary leadership and make history by adopting the "Africa Plank."

We must put the Democratic Party squarely and aggressively on the side of
confronting the
HIV/AIDS pandemic in Africa. To do less is to abdicate our responsibility to
the children of the world.
Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for this opportunity.
***

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