COMMENTARY: BAMMER hosted its first Zoom webcast “Reflections on the AIDS Crisis in the Age of COVID-19” on Saturday evening, May 9th, with close to 100 participants signed up from all around the world.
ACT UP co-founder Eric Sawyer and AIDS specialist (from 1981) Dr. Howard Grossman were the guests of honor and weighed in on the similarities and differences between the AIDS crisis almost 40 years ago and the coronavirus pandemic engulfing the globe now.
Other topics covered include lessons learned from AIDS that might benefit us with COVID, why there hasn’t been an uprising against government inaction and ineffectiveness (like ACT UP in 1987), what the “new normal” will probably look like, and potential positives to emerge from this horrible situation.
Participants on the call included straight and gay viewers from Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, India, Mexico, New Zealand, Turkey, Uganda, the UK, and the US. The general reaction afterward was high praise for the knowledge and perspective offered by the guests of honor. As one tough critic said: “The discussion exceeded my expectations… and they weren’t low to begin with!”
Check it out and let us know your reactions. BAMMER will be organizing other Zoom webcasts to come. Let mike@bammer.co or tom@bammer.co know if you have any suggestions and links to guests we might all want to hear interviewed.
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