We call on our community’s strength, resilience & advocacy

At this time of incredible challenge, we call on our community’s strength, resilience, advocacy, and solidarity. 

The onslaught of actions from the new federal administration continues to devastate us all. In partnership with our local, state, and federal policy team, political allies, advocacy coalitions, and aligned organizations and nonprofits, we continue to evaluate the potential impacts of executive orders, presidential appointments, and anticipated legislation. 

This week, SFAF has been affected by a freeze on federal funding as have health and social service agencies across our country. President Trump’s re-evaluation on spending priorities–and a pause enacted with little notice–is deeply concerning and will severely impact organizations providing lifesaving and vital services. Although our federal policy team is working to ensure that Ryan White and other essential direct service programs are exempted from the federal funding pause, we continue to be concerned that unauthorized programs such as Ryan White are at risk of being defunded permanently. 

Credited with saving an estimated 26 million people since its inception, funding for PEPFAR has been interrupted for at least three months by President Trump’s administration. The abrupt halt to PEPFAR and other global health funding interrupts decades of global progress in the fight against HIV, and will do nothing but cause harm to communities of people living with and affected by HIV worldwide. On top of this, making the decision for the U.S. to leave the WHO further threatens global response to infectious disease–beyond HIV. 

In the U.S., HIV care and prevention are likely to be affected by the administration’s dismantling of the ACA, Medicaid, Ryan White, and other safety net programs. 

Dehumanizing rhetoric and actions against immigrants and asylum seekers make us fear for the safety and livelihood of people who come to the U.S. because they are persecuted in their home countries for being LGBTQ+, for living with HIV, and for so many other reasons. Immigration raids are becoming a reality, and immigrants across the U.S.–and in our sanctuary city–are scared. 

The ban on DEI programs sets back recent advances made in race equity–and damages the futures of Black and brown people in this country as they fight to overcome our history rooted in racism and discrimination. 

Anti-trans and anti-LGBTQ+ rhetoric is at an all time high, just as the Trump administration mandates the federal government to “only recognize two sexes” and remove all references to LGBTQ+ equity. These mandates not only fly in the face of biological truth, they are a direct attack on our communities.

This week, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. may be confirmed to lead the nation’s health agencies–despite his questionable anti-science stances on everything from vaccines to HIV.   

There is surely more to come in the days and months ahead. 

We stand ready to protect our Queer and trans community members, immigrants in our sanctuary city, people living with HIV globally, people who use substances, those without housing, and Black, brown, and people of color. And we ask you to join us. 

Re-share the impact of these actions on you and your communities. Volunteer locally to make a difference. Sign up for the latest advocacy opportunities through the HIV Advocacy Network. And continue to support SFAF and other organizations working to fight back.