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New HIV/AIDS advocacy coalition forms

by Jessica Carreras

The Michigan Coalition for AIDS Advocates held its first meeting on June 9, where leaders from HIV/AIDS, LGBT and community nonprofits across the state met to discuss possibilities for building not the first, but the largest HIV policy advocacy group the state has ever known.
David Munar, vice president of policy for the AIDS Foundation of Chicago, led the discussion, providing an overview of the ways in which a coalition can effectively do advocacy work. Then, the organizations began to discuss the structure of MICAA, its goals moving forward and their future plan of action.

From HAAM to MICAA

Formed under the umbrella of the Michigan AIDS Coalition, the meeting brought to the table voices from MAC, Affirmations, Transgender Michigan, Alternatives for Girls, Traverse City's Thomas Judd Care Center, the Michigan Department of Community Health, ACLU of Michigan, Kalamazoo's Community AIDS Resource and Education Services and others.
According to MAC Board President and former Michigan Equality Director Derek Smiertka, who is heading up MICAA's efforts, close to 30 organizations have already signed on to be a part of MICAA. However, AIDS Partnership Michigan, one of the longest running and largest HIV/AIDS organizations in the state, is not one of them.
AIDS Partnership Michigan Executive Director Barbara Murray has been head of the state's original policy coalition for years, which was the first of its kind. But the HIV/AIDS Advocacy of Michigan is now all but defunct, and two of the remaining four member organizations – CARES and the Lansing Area AIDS Network – have tentatively agreed to join MICAA as it carries forward the mission that HAAM started. The HIV/AIDS Resource Center of Ann Arbor, along with several other nonprofits not affiliated with HAAM, have been invited to join MICAA but have not yet given a definite yes.
As of press time, Murray could not be reached for comment on APM's likeliness to join the coalition.
MAC Special Grants Manager Terry Ryan, who is helping to head up MICAA's efforts, noted that he is confident that APM will join the new coalition, and that MICAA is looking to build off of HAAM's work, not trump it.
"HAAM actually was the group that really launched doing some policy and advocacy work around HIV/AIDS in Michigan," Ryan said, adding that both the Michigan AIDS Fund and the Midwest AIDS Prevention Project – now merged as MAC – were both members.
The need to move on and create a different coalition, Ryan explained, came from the fact that HAAM's membership was dwindling and their structure, impractical. Members had to be AIDS service organizations, and were required to pay thousands of dollars in yearly dues. The result was that when organizations merged, disappeared or simply couldn't pay dues, HAAM's membership dropped from about 10 to four groups.

"(HAAM has) done good work over the years," Ryan said. "But there are fewer ASOs than there ever were, and in this particular economic crunch, those several thousands of dollars for member agencies is tough."

Moving forward with MICAA

MICAA's structure, though still up for debate among member organizations, is much different. Members include both AIDS service and community-based organizations with an interest in HIV/AIDS work. Fees are non-existent. Active membership is based solely on participation, the exact terms of which are not yet set, but will most likely include representation at one or two meetings per year and contribution to action groups, which will work on specific advocacy and policy issues.
"Some of the ideas that we're coming together for are to advocate, to cover areas that are on all of our plates and to bring our minds to the table so that we can collectively, with our energy, fill the need that we have in the state of Michigan for our voice," summed up Smiertka. "We're all professionals. Most of us know each other, most of us have worked with each other for years. Now is a great time to bring our collective energy and collective professionals together and move forward in Lansing and beyond."
Last week's meeting laid the groundwork for that larger endeavor with a discussion not only about MICAA's structure, but its policy goals moving forward.
Issues put forward included sex education, consent and testing laws, needle exchange programs, confidentiality and, of course, funding. After the long list identified at last week's meeting is sent out to member organizations, they will have the chance to identify their top-five issues, which will then be used to set MICAA's policy and advocacy priorities.
Munar, speaking on behalf of his work at the AIDS Foundation of Chicago, advised that goals be set not only in terms of personal priority, but also by the ability to accomplish them.
"I think that's a good place to start – to ask members what, among these issues, is a top priority," Munar commented. "But I think there should be another group of folks to take another look at that list from the vantage points of what has the biggest impact, what's most achievable and what has momentum."

The next steps

The stage has been set for what MICAA hopes will be a new era in HIV/AIDS policy work in Michigan. But there's still a long way to go. Details about membership and governance must be ironed out. Priorities must be set. And, most importantly, funding must be obtained to hire a staffer who will be responsible for being the voice of MICAA in Michigan's legislature.
That funding will likely come from national sources. The Michigan AIDS Coalition is a partner of the National AIDS Fund, which is currently in talks with federal policy group AIDS Action to merge – a collaboration that will most likely mean increased funding put toward regional policy efforts, much like what MICAA hopes to do.
"I have a couple of important feelers out to some national players about funding for the staff person," revealed Ryan, although the group will probably not apply for grants until early this fall.
What's most important now is getting their structure and priorities set – and doing so in a way that brings all relevant AIDS and community-based organizations on board, including those that haven't yet committed to MICAA.
Jay Kaplan, staff attorney for the ACLU of Michigan's LGBT project, noted that from his experience in LGBT policy work, collaboration is essential to winning battles in Michigan's legislature. "I definitely see the need to have a coalition working together to try to have a uniform voice, because not only do legislators say that they don't hear from constituents or supporters of LGBT issues, but many times in the past, we've had different messages going forward from different members of the community," said. "It doesn't mean that there's not diversity of opinion, but when we're able to work together to develop a uniform stance on issues, we're a lot stronger."
"We represent the bulk of HIV/AIDS service organizations throughout the state," added Smiertka. "Big and small, grassroots, grasstops – we are Michigan HIV and AIDS. I think that us coming together as one force and one voice can move mountains."

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