This year, unfortunately, I’m a bit concerned WHERE our movement to end AIDS & extreme poverty is going.

We are struggling with PEPFAR in the U.S. Congress - the KEY piece of legislation which defines us as ONE is being used as a political football in this Presidential year.

Japan, who was so strong at the World Economic Forum in Davos in 2007 in claiming that they would pick up the baton for the world’s poor and march right into this year’s G8 summit on their behalf, is simply NOT keeping its promises to Africa.

Then there is France and Italy and Russia. (Need I go on or do you get my point?)

Our movement simply needs re-vitalization from the bottom up and not from the top down. New tactics are necessary, new people involved in the decision-making processes are also necessary.

And ultimately, MORE INVOLVEMENT FROM US - the grassroots - will be necessary to do as I witnessed Bono tell us he wanted to do during the “Heart of America” tour which established DATA in Dec. 2002 & “grow a movement for Africa”.

I am a loyal and productive member of ONE since our beginning and will continue to be AS ONE until AIDS and extreme poverty are no more.

But I refuse to be a mindless cheerleader who will applaud every thing that ONE does. I would rather be the “stone in the shoe”, the “pest” who won’t go away - confident that we do have the ability in our movement to re-arrange our tactics when they’re not productive and assu(red) that our friendship with each other is strong enough to withstand a little bit of acrimony when necessary.

As far as being “the stone in the shoe”, ask Bono. (smile) ONWARD TO THE G8 - for Africa’s Future and Our Own!

ALWAYS ONE in the Spirit, debbie
www.mpwn-uganda.org

i’m looking forward to your detailed blog and associated action items.

staying close,

sammi in seattle