The Hill was swarming today. We kicked off the morning with a rally in front of the Capitol Building. People living with HIV, accomplices in the work, activists, lobbyists, CEOs, and politicians alike- all shouting:

“SAVE HIV FUNDING!”

“ACT UP! FIGHT AIDS!”

Powerful speeches were given by long-term survivors of HIV, urging us all to speak boldly to the politicians we would meet in the hours to come.

All the while, we could hear the shouts of a protest taking place on the steps of the Supreme Court across the street.

“SAVE PLANNED PARENTHOOD!” and right next to them…

“DEFUND PLANNED PARENTHOOD!”

Tensions were high everywhere we turned.

After the rally, we split up into our State groups and headed to our assigned meetings with congressional members. The North Carolina group was set to meet with Thom Thillis, Ted Budd, and Virginia Foxx- not a friend in sight.

As part of the CEO/ED group, I was assigned to various meetings with Senator Bernie Sanders, Representative Aderholt, and Representative DeLaurd. These meetings were strategically selected, focusing on Senatorial leadership and appropriations. We were there to make our asks: save Medicaid, secure full funding for Ryan White, and restore all funding for Infectious Disease and HIV to HHS.

I would love to tell you that all the meetings were fruitful —that I could count this trip a resounding success. The truth is, there were elements of my time that were entirely demoralizing. Every person I met looked exhausted, like they were fighting a losing battle. But they were fighting. We weren’t expecting to get any promises or cut any deals, but we were told (by a Republican!) to continue fighting for the funds we had been promised- that the cuts that were happening were illegal. That our State should be filing lawsuits.

One of the most encouraging moments happened when an ED who runs an organization based in Honduras, funded via USAID, explained to Bernie Sanders’ staffers that the HIV medication she provides to her patients would run out in 26 days. The staffers immediately asked her for a boots-on-the-ground contact at her clinic, took the contact and got to work connecting them with pharmaceutical representatives they knew. I can’t tell you that the problem got solved, but I can tell you that those staffers cared. They were making calls when we left the office.

By the time I returned to my hotel room that evening, I was thoroughly exhausted. During the conference I had connected with some wonderful folks doing HIV work in Puerto Rico. I had planned to join them for dinner and drinks. We met up, but our moods were a bit somber. The world felt bleak. Some of our friends had shared being completely shut out of meetings, left in hallways, meetings cancelled. One colleague shared about being met with rudeness and anger when they mentioned HIV. The colleague felt stigmatized and shamed as they are openly HIV positive.

Back in my room, I sat down to process my thoughts and write, and I simply couldn’t. I felt overwhelmed. I realized that I was feeling some grief, some shock, but mostly I was feeling tired. Rest is necessary to do this work effectively. So, I let myself fall asleep.

When I woke up the following day, my first thought was how ready I was to get home and to heed the call of Mr. Sanders’ staff:

“We’re doing what we can here, but this is a local game right now. Do what you can to gather support locally.”

So, I appeal to you, Wonderful Friends of THP. Please call your representatives. Demand action, and demand that they not let North Carolina go down without a fight.

Use the following talking points:

–       No Cuts to Medicaid; Medicaid is the largest public health insurance program in the U.S. and is the single largest source of health insurance coverage for people living with HIV

–       Full funding for Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program to provide life-saving access to medication for people living with HIV

–       Restore all federal funds for Prevention and Infectious Disease so that HIV does not spread and so that we can continue to take a syndemic approach to infectious disease, saving billions of dollars and preventing thousands of new infections and eventual deaths from HIV, syphilis, Hep C, TB and many other infectious diseases

There are thousands of North Carolinians depending on you. Let’s get in some good trouble together.