The first AIDS cases were reported 20 years ago, but despite an array of scientific advances, there’s still no cure for the 430,000 Americans and 36 million people worldwide who are infected with HIV. This Sunday, June 3, AIDS Walk Boston will sponsor the 16th annual AIDS Walk — and, for the first time, organizers also are planning a simultaneous AIDS 5K Run, so participants can choose how they’d like to raise awareness about the disease. The event, expected to draw more than 12,000 participants, will benefit the AIDS Action Committee and other local organizations.

Though a “cocktail” of anti-HIV drugs — including 3TC and protease inhibitors — has made life better for people with the disease, AIDS Walk Boston spokesman Bob Kuegel points out the continuing problems. HIV is decimating Africa, where the cost of protease inhibitors puts them beyond the reach of most of those infected; so many adults have died that a generation of children are growing up as AIDS orphans. The ensuing regional instability could come back to haunt industrialized nations with lower rates of the disease. “People are finally beginning to see that in a global economy, you can’t let one part of the world succumb to this and not see the dominoes fall,” Kuegel says. Even in the US, he notes, “the infection rate is really holding steady at 40,000 new cases a year. Now that people are living longer with HIV and AIDS, there’s even more of a need for housing, medical, and advocacy services.” But the most pressing goal, as the disease turns from a short-term crisis into a long-term phenomenon, may be the hardest to achieve: educating people that AIDS is still a threat. Organizers hope the AIDS Walk will serve as a reminder that AIDS hasn’t just disappeared. Says Kuegel, “We have to stay on this and stay vigilant.”

AIDS Walk Boston will take place this Sunday, June 3. Registration opens at 9 a.m. at the MDC Hatch Shell along the Charles River Esplanade. Opening ceremonies for the walk, which will be held rain or shine, begin at 9:30 a.m. Pre-registration is encouraged at www.aidswalkboston.org, but participants are welcome to sign up at the event. Those who raise at least $250 will receive an AIDS Walk souvenir.

Issue Date: May 31 - June 7, 2001