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I hope that neither Larry Kramer nor anyone else will mind me saying that Larry does look like UK comedian Harry Hill.
L.K. is someone who I owe my life too. I don't always agree with his position on everything but, I am grateful he still speaks his mind especially today. I find what young gay men face today as horrific as the 80s was in S.F. just the circumstances are different. Big Pharma frightens me as much as the virus. Technology, drugs, rampant misinformation, the eroticism of both not being gay and, intentional infection are some examples. ACT-UP formed me. Having community saved me. I listen.
While I disagree with King's assertion that things are worse than ever (who would want to go back to the 80's before there was any treatment), he's right that only those of us who can afford that treatment are better off. There's obviously huge room for improvement for those who have little or no access to treatment. I think our efforts should focus on access and drug prices. Even those of us with insurance struggle to pay the outrageous co-pays imposed by big pharma.
In 1995 with the protease inhibitors, HIV infection became minimized. The attitude was that if you become infected, no big deal, just pop a pill and life goes on. Those pills are very expensive, and if you don't have access to them, you're screwed. In lieu of the current administration, access may become far more difficult. It has the possible potential to be the 1980s all over again. Knowing my status since 1985, I didn't expect to be alive in 2018. I worry about the young generations.
Kramer is right to call on white gay urban professionals to be more aware of both lingering and emerging issues. There are emerging contradictions on the left regarding how to deal with the opiod crisis. The global problems are still there but in a world that is very different from the end of the Cold War. Racial issues domestically also have failed to be rethought even as the US has become so much more diverse. There can no longer be excuses for lack of minority leadership on the epidemic.
I voted no but my vote is based on my experiences and challenges over the past 25+ years. I don't have the broader view that Mr.Kramer has of the global HIV stats. I remember when we all fought for the same thing, healthcare. I feel the HIV+ community is more divided than ever and has become individual groups fighting for different things. We must stay united as a group of people who fight for healthcare, against racial injustice& demographic discrimination. We need one another more than ever!
Larry, like myself, remembers the days when the body counts were high and constant. Those days have passed us. The education has worked, the medical progress has worked, the activism has worked. Are the achievements threatened? Yes they are, they always were and always will be, so the mission need to continue. I was beside Larry those years ago but I have to disagree with him, it's not getting worse. Our efforts are working.
RichardUK
I don't think it's worse than in the 1980s. Back then it had no cure nor any sign even of any control. Yes, the numbers are higher now (worse), but there are now effective controlling drugs (better) - albeit only if you are lucky enough to be rich / privileged or else live in a rich country that attempts to care. Some countries, though, remain incubators for HIV because they can't afford to do anything or else they choose to ignore it.
September 6, 2018 • UK