::Seeing Red::

Velvet Christmas ribbons are not the only things red this time of year. Today is the day of a different red ribbon; today is World AIDS Day. Unfortunately, this day does not offer a reprieve to the 5,500 African lives which will be lost by the end of the day to AIDS.
Undaunted by Sisyphean challenges, U2's Bono looked for inovative ways to reverse this trend, and, on January 1 of this year, he introduced his latest brainchild, (Product)RED, a private sector partner of the Global Fund. In this venture, Bono, who has established himself as an ambassador of humanitarian causes—most notably the ONE campaign with its famous tagline: "Make poverty history"—has teamed up with Bobby Shriver, brother of California's first lady.
The limited liability company behind (Product)RED is aptly named The Persuaders. Together, Bono and Shriver have managed to do the impossible: convincing the big kahunas to give up some of their profits for a worth-while cause. Gap is donating half of what they make off their (RED) tees. Apple promises to give $10 of the $150 price tag on the (RED) iPod nano. American Express will make an honorary philanthropist of any (RED) card holder by contributing the equivalent of 1% of the customer's total spending. Converse lets you personalize your hightops down to the color of the stiching, and passes on 15% of the MAKE MINE RED profits. And Giorgio Armani says "It's time to take action" with his Emporio Armani (RED) watches which match his (RED) collection.
In the six weeks since these companies launched their product lines in the US on October 13, (RED) sales have raised enough money to:
• Provide more than 40,000 men or women with ARV treatment for a year
Or
• Provide more than 2 million peer educators with HIV training
Or
• Provide a year’s worth of school materials and daily hot meals for more than 86,000 children orphaned by AIDS
Or
• Provide more than 1 million Rapid Tests which detect HIV and deliver instant test results.

In his World AIDS Day message, UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan acknowledged that global awareness has improved and, with it, financial contributions but went on to point out that stopping the spread of AIDS is a crucial step in attaining many of the Millennium Development Goals. Thus, greater commitment is needed, and "it requires every one of us help bring AIDS out of the shadows, and spread the message that silence is death. . . . [n]ot only this day, or this year, or next year—but every day, until the epidemic is conquered."

This is why I choose to post this entry with one minute to go before the official end of World AIDS Day. While you may not have the time to become a full-fledged AIDS activist, you can contribute in other ways. For the sake of Africa's future, get INSPI(RED).