Uprisings: Walking forward

It was 1991, if my memory serves correct, that I got the call from my stepbrother Michael. He knew that I had just come out of the closet. He knew, also, that he was dying of AIDS. “Welcome to the club,” he said, very kindly. I shivered a bit at the time, knowing that we were in the thick of a crisis, and even with all of the pats on the head and begrudging support that finally came from the White House – too late – there were still people dying en masse.

This year, in part to honor Michael, I attended the Hope & Help AIDS Walk. What’s most interesting about AIDS walks, at least to me, is that there are people from the entire spectrum of society in attendance. There were children. There were activists. There were corporations. There were advocates. It’s not a pride parade by any measure – there was not blaring music but that from the bagpipes behind me – but it’s incredibly sincere.

Which is why what we’re hearing from the White House in the Trump administration is so confusing and terrifying. The absence of sincerity is palpable. Though the strange beltway ether seems to imply that Trump’s daughter – from her office we’re all paying for, inexplicably – is sensitive to the needs of the LGBTQ community, Trump himself has been a more confusing factor in the HIV/AIDS funding argument. At the end of last month, Trump was backing a budget that would cut $314 million from the Centers for Disease Control in its efforts to further research the plague and treat it.

Of course, there was some backpedaling. While Trump claimed that current funding would be “sufficient” for the current patient load – largely poor groups of people – the budget also spoke of slowing new signees.

Try telling that to one of those walking a few laps around Lake Eola on April 15. Tell that to Michael, my stepbrother. It’s a new breed of callousness, one that hasn’t necessarily been seen from the executive branch since Ron and Nancy refused to acknowledge the new “gay cancer.” It’s a disgrace.

Even George W. Bush has come out against Trump’s attempts at cutting funding for global AIDS initiatives, most notably PEPFAR, which assists the poor in foreign countries.

“Nearly 15 years later, the program has achieved remarkable results in the fight against disease. Today, because of the commitment of many foreign governments, investments by partners, the resilience of the African people and the generosity of the American people, nearly 12 million lives have been saved. And nearly 2 million babies have been born HIV-free to infected mothers,” Bush said earlier this month.

This is not just a walk around the lake. This is living and breathing and caring. Thank you to everyone who still cares. Michael says, “Hi.”

Pot blocked

Just when we all thought things were going to get a little hazier – and healthier – it was announced this week that Orlando will not become a haven for medical marijuana dispensaries in any large manner. According to the Orlando Sentinel, Orlando will only allow seven dispensaries that cannot be within 200 feet of homes, 1,000 feet of schools or within a mile of each other. Also, they have to limit their hours to daylight, meaning 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. Oh, and you can’t smoke or consume the marijuana on site. We’re assuming that all other plants with potential health benefits will be under the same restrictions. Actually, we’re not. We’re high. The city council is expected to vote on the measure in June.

Going agro

A somewhat dreamy Democrat Michael Christine – two first names! Different sexes! – has thrown his hat into the ring to take over the hefty seat of Florida Agriculture Commissioner. Christine is presently a law student at the University of Miami and filed his papers for taking over term-limited (and hair insane) Adam Putnam on April 11. Christine is only 27 years old, but he has some wise words.

“We need to build up the declining agro industry by giving them a new cash crop –one with a proven track record of generating so much excess revenue that it can be used toward other neglected programs throughout the state like educational programs, environmental conservation programs, substance abuse programs and veterans assistance programs,” he said in his announcement.

Trujillo to ambassadorship?

Suspicions were raised when Miami Republican Rep. Carlos Trujillo didn’t show up for his own Florida House budget committee hearing on April 18. Then again, everyone knew what was going on. Trujillo has been riding the wild wind of the Trump campaign since its inception, and nobody else was, really. The “word” according to the Miami Herald is that Trujillo was being actively considered for an ambassadorship in Central America, so he couldn’t really be bothered to make his committee hearing. Related: Trump is considering one of his former Apprentice contestants Republican Rep. Jose Felix Diaz to be a federal prosecutor.