Page 27 - Act Up News Today

Talking about aids publicly. >> actup is born in 1987, emerging from the powerlessness that many affected by the disease are feeling. >> actups original motto was also its formula. anger into action. our grief, after a while, became anger. we took that anger and frustration and we focused it. >> a key part of actups strategy is to use the media to spread its message. >> actup was very, very savvy. we had people like ann northrop who used to be diane sawyers producer at cbs. we had bob ravsky who...

And its supporters. the demonstrators are from a defiant political action group called actup, the aids coalition to unleash power. actups co-founder, eric sawyer, was diagnosed with hiv in 1984. >> one thing we realized writing letters or articles to the editor about the health crises wasnt getting the publics attention and decided we really had to disrupt people in their daily lives the way aids was disrupting our daily lives. >> the crisis began in 1981 when a mysterious disease started spread...

>> tony arena is a former videographer for actup. >> what i remember the most was the noise. i mean, we were so loud. >> so its hundreds and hundreds if not a thousand people inside grand central. it was an incredible thing to see. >> seeing the banners hanging over the train schedule and the banners floating on the ceiling gave me a sense of pride, you know, like, we really did it. >> day of desperation attracts attention to the cause, but the urgency of actups mission continues to grow. comi...

News organizations, planning to disrupt their live broadcasts. they succeed at cbs. >> good evening. were going to take a break for a commercial just now. >> we knew that cameras were going to cut off as soon as they could. so we didnt know whether we were going to get one word out, two words out, or a whole sentence. so we came up with "fight aids, not arabs, act up, act back, fight aids." >> the next day, actups planned demonstrations wreak havoc on the city. the plan for the end of the day is...

The attention it brings to aids. >> we got the drug companies and the federal government to develop treatments that were extending lives and stopping the immediate carnage. >> by 1996, a drug cocktail is introduced that brings about dramatic improvements for many of the afflicted. >> those of us who had under 100 "t" cells and were really sick, our health started to rebound. >> eric sawyer is one of the longest-term survivors of hiv. he now works on international aids issues. >> i think actup wa...

>>. >> here is whats happening. a suicide bombing hit the afghan capital hours after president karzai announce a deal to allow u.s. troops to remain after 2014. six people were killed, targeting the site where thousands of leaders will gather next week. taliban are claiming responsibility. police believe they found the boetd of a man who fell out of a private plane into the waters of south florida. back to "caught on camera." as the aids crisis enters its second decade, members of new yorks ...

Bush administration. >> i think the ashes action was kind of drawing a line in the sand and saying, we arent going to take it anymore. you know, we are bringing our dead to your door, and you had better start doing something to stop the dying, or, you know, you literally are going to be walking over our bodies. >> shame, shame, shame, shame. >> it was the most emotionally charged thing ive ever participated in. we never had a problem with showing our anger, but below that really thin layer of an...

Reporting live from grand central terminal -- >> tony arena is a former videographer for actup. >> what i remember the most was the noise. i mean, we were so loud. >> so its hundreds and hundreds if not a thousand people inside grand central. it was an incredible thing to see. >> seeing the banners hanging over the train schedule and the banners floating on the ceiling gave me a sense of pride, you know, like, we really did it. >> day of desperation attracts attention to the cause, but the urgen...

Disagreements. in the end, the coalition is considered groundbreaking for the attention it brings to aids. >> we got the drug company and the federal government to develop treatments that were extending lives and stopping the immediate carnage. >> by 1996, a drug cocktail is introduced that brings -- >> those of us who had under 100 "t" cells and were really sick, our health start ed to rebound. >> eric sawyer is one of the longest terms survivors of hiv. >> i think actup was defiant because it ...

Nearly 3,000 members of new york citys gay and lesbian community and its supporters. the demonstrators are from a defiant political action group called actup, the aids coalition to unleash power. actups co-founder, sawyer, was diagnosed with hiv in 1984. >> one thing we realized writing letters or articles to the editor about the health crises wasnt getting the publics attention and decided we really had to disrupt people in their daily lives the way aids was disrupting our daily lives. >> the c...