This past Monday, October 8, 2007, history was made.

African American Clergy from every faith came together that day at the Time Warner Conference Center in New York to develop a strategic plan of action to combat one of the deadliest diseases that mankind has ever faced - HIV/AIDS.

The National Center for Health Statistics 2000 Report indicates that HIV/AIDS is one of the top 10 leading causes of death for African Americans. African Americans also accounted for more than half (54 percent) of estimated new HIV infections in the United States.

However it was not just the fact that clergy from all over the country came to meet, discuss, strategize, and educate each other. It was who else was in the room.

Gail E. Wyatt - PhD, Professor, Associate Director, UCLA AIDS Institute - was one of many esteemed educators to participate in the day’s sessions. Dr. Wyatt ignited and took the room on a powerful and passionate rollercoaster ride through the sexual history of the African American people. From the pain of watching our women raped as slaves, to suffering through the indignity

of still not being recognized as a "whole" person. If anyone ever has the opportunity to come and hear Dr. Wyatt speak I implore you to go, as it will be an experience you, like the many members of the meeting today, will never forget.

Also in attendance, Pernessa C. Seele - founder and CEO of The Balm In Gilead, a non-profit, non-governmental organization whose mission is to improve the health status of people of the African Diaspora by building the capacity of faith communities to address life threatening diseases like HIV/AIDS. Seele, recognized and "put it on record" that the church, while slow to take action, did not take 27 years to enter the fight against HIV/AIDS and acknowledged that the church has been there and will continue to be there.

The Honorable Charles B. Rangel - Chairman, Ways & Means Committee US. House of Representatives - announced pending legislation that could soon change the face of the fight against HIV/AIDS forever. Rangel was one of many government leaders who joined the fight today. The Honorable Willie Brown, the former Mayor of San Francisco, was also there lending his support.

Debra Frazier Howze - the director of the National Black Leadership Commission on AIDS, the sponsor and organizer of the event - lauded those in attendance and cited the importance of not only attending but of working together and putting aside differences in order to create a firm, measurable plan of action.

Closing out the evening at a working dinner, The Honorable James E. Clyburn - Majority Whip, US House of Representatives - thanked the participants for their support, commitment, and willingness to fight the good fight. Representative Clyburn, who has previously spoken at The Potter’s House, also thanked us for making him who he is today.

In reality he is a giant in Congress and a very smart politician who has no doubt paid his dues to be where he is…though he stated that without us, he would never be where or who he is today.

It was a rare opportunity for both the secular and the sacred to fuse together, welded by the need to stop the rapid increase of infections and the disparities that exist in health care, economics, and other issues for people of color.

On the surface it would seem racist to focus on people of color, but it was not meant to say that others are not suffering…..it is just that the stats in the African American community are increasing at such an alarming rate it is staggering.

The funds spent now are mainly geared toward serving other people groups whose needs and nuances are different from our own. Unfortunately, where you see the highest number of casualties from this disease is within the communities of color. African Americans are seven times more likely to die from the disease than their white counterparts when both are infected. TRAGIC!

Some of the things we learned from the Center of Disease Control and others is that it was apparent that there are certain extenuating circumstances unique to our community - such as the high rate of incarceration of African American men, and the high percentage of those who come out of prison infected, yet are never tested and thus cannot begin treatment soon enough for it to make a difference. We learned about the challenges faced by the unemployed and underemployed people of color in finding access to health care and that many, because they do not get tested on a regular basis, never know of their HIV infection. As a matter of fact, it is estimated that 250,000 people of color are currently walking around, infected - and do not even know it.

In Washington, D.C., 25% of Black men are HIV positive and do not know it!

I also wanted to touch on another point and to try to clarify it as best as I can. I have read a lot of the frustration felt by those that are not Black. The argument is that they see the separation of the discussion on HIV/AIDS as counterproductive to the cause. Let me say I am a firm believer in reconciliation amongst all people. However, when it comes to the dissemination of information, this cannot be a one-size-fits-all fix or solution. The AARP focuses on the uniqueness of the over

50 group - a group of which I am now a proud member. People with messages aimed at my teenage kids utilize MTV or BET to reach their target audience, and their verbiage and message is tailored to that segment. Market research firms are paid millions upon millions of dollars to conduct extensive research for Fortune 500 companies to tell them who their target market is and how to best reach them.

The disappointing fact of this disease is that African Americans are disproportionately infected, and affected, by it and while we are lost in debate over which group we should reach out to and how, people are falling by the wayside of life.

For those of you who are not Black and are reading this, think of something we know from not responding fully when HIV/AIDS was largely considered a "Gay Man’s Disease." Think about this as well - what we do not respond to in one group will spread to another. We are all interconnected in the most undeniable way and we must, as the Bible says, "be our brother’s keeper."

So the take away is that when one of us suffers, we all suffer. And when one stumbles, we all crash. That is why these issues are everyone’s issues. If a man is infected in Africa, it is only a matter of time before that disease, unchecked, reaches our shores. We should go back to loving one another and demanding that more be spent to stop this disease!

And that really sums up why the battle against HIV/AIDS is so critically important to all Americans – and the African American community IN PARTICULAR

If we don’t fight now, if we don’t take a stand now, if we don’t come up with a plan now, there will be no one left to not only fight, but to live.