ADVOCATES FOR YOUTH

Advocates for Youth Calls Bush Pledge for UN Global AIDS Fund "Insufficient"

Youth Say Meager Funding Jeopardizes the Lives of Their One Billion Peers Worldwide

WASHINGTON, DC (May 11, 2001) Citing the fact that 2.6 million young people worldwide will contract HIV this year alone, Advocates for Youth's President, James Wagoner, today calls President Bush's $200 million pledge for the UN Global AIDS Fund a "potential death sentence for millions of young people worldwide."

"The U.S. - the richest nation in the world - has just voted a massive tax break for its wealthiest citizens. Yet, it decides to contribute a sum that is a mere fraction of the funding needed to combat an epidemic that could very well destroy an entire generation of young people," said Wagoner.

"The best minds in the world believe that $7 to $10 billion a year is needed to effectively fight this disease. In light of these estimates, we urge President Bush to increase the U.S. contribution to ending this pandemic," said Wagoner. "He should reappoint the Presidential Advisory Council on HIV/AIDS to hear directly from those who live these issues everyday," said Wagoner.

Mr. Wagoner is not alone in his concern for the health and well being of young people worldwide. Teens themselves are concerned about the U.S. response to the global AIDS pandemic.

"Every minute of every day, five of my peers around the world become infected with HIV—that's 300 young people every hour," said Sean Barry, a junior at the University of Maryland, College Park, and a member of the International Youth Leadership Council of Advocates for Youth. "Young people do not have the luxury of time. The Bush Administration must immediately increase funding for HIV/AIDS prevention and treatment. Every day that the U.S. delays action, 7,200 of my peers contract HIV."

"Our government should not stand on the sidelines while young people around the world are on the frontline facing one of the most terrifying health crises in human history," said Barry. "The U.S. has the power to make a significant contribution to HIV/AIDS prevention efforts at home and abroad, but we must act now, before more of my peers' lives are lost unnecessarily," concluded Barry.

The International Youth Leadership Council consists of a diverse group of Washington, DC area college students dedicated to educating policy makers, the media and the American public about the importance of increasing U.S. funding for global HIV/AIDS prevention and international family planning. The Youth Council is a project of Advocates for Youth, an international, nonprofit organization that creates programs and advocates for policies that help young people make safe, responsible decisions about their sexual and reproductive health. For more information about the Youth Council's yearlong education and mobilization campaign, My Voice Counts, visit online at www.advocatesforyouth.org/youth/.

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Note to Editors and Producers: For more information or to set up an interview with a Youth Council member or a global HIV/AIDS expert, please contact Bill Barker at (202) 419-3420.

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