Posted by Editor on June 21, 2002 at 04:47:54:
In Reply to: Pat Christen takes cuts salaries, jobs from SFAF posted by Editor on June 20, 2002 at 05:12:15:
From: ACTUPSF@aol.com The news of executive
director of the San Francisco AIDS Foundation (SFAF) Pat Christen's 12
percent pay cut in salary comes too little, too late. Since 1995 ACT
UP San Francisco has called for the dismissal of Pat Christen as
executive director for her racist, union busting, greed-driven, and
self-serving agenda. My own experience as a "client" at SFAF in 1996
was to be referred to a crack-ridden, rat-hole hotel as an example of
the foundation's "housing service." To my shock and dismay I discovered
at the time that the SFAF had gained a reputation serving the HIV
positive by taking federal and private funding and short-changing the
public in this gross manner. As an HIV positive gay man of Mexican
American descent, who was homeless at the time, I took grave offense to
this blatant example of racist exploitation. Investigative reporters
should do a back check and see how the Frankly a 50 percent pay cut would be a far better move if the
needed funds were actually going to benefit the HIV positive,
particularly the minority poor who, we are told over and over again by
AIDS Industry spokespeople, are being hardest hit by AIDS. At a time
when countless rentals are available in San Francisco and some seven
thousand homeless HIV positive individuals sleep in the streets it
This latest development
concerning Pat's ridiculous salary attests to the massive failure on
the part of so-called community leaders in the women's community, the
gay community and the city government who have remained all but silent
on this matter. Tom Ammianno still likes to cozy up and play photo-op
at any chance he can get with the likes of Pat Christen and that other
heinous exploiter of the HIV positive, Martin Delaney. Eileen Hansen,
who likes to brag she speaks for the HIV positive, has never broached
the subject of Pat's outrageous salary. Mark Leno has brunch with Nancy
Pelosi another despicable political hack who spends her time funding
these greed In 1999 Act Up San
Francisco members David Pasquarelli, Michael Bellefountaine, Todd
Swindell and myself, as well as our friend and comrade Michael
Petrelis, were dragged through court by the corporate law firm Morrison
and Foerester for daring to challenge Pat Christen on her bloated
salary and the lack of services at SFAF. Not one "community leader" had
anything to say about it! The message is clear, the time for
fiddling violins while Rome burns no longer works. The public, hard hit
by dire economic need, no longer have the stomach for the sickening
display of the arrogant rich and their wannabe Step-n-fetchits. For
those of us in need this latest fiasco in the continuing saga of Fat
Cat Pat can only be the beginning of a needed over-haul of the entire
AIDS Industry. Bring it on! Nothing less will benefit those who are
truly in need. ACT UP San Francisco From the Archives, Feb. 2000: Why is this outrageous? Because after the campaign (No on Knight was defeated) there was $250,000 left over, which could easily have gone back to AIDS service organizations. Instead, the money was donated to a gay lobbying group. My impression is that if asked, people living outdoors would prefer to have some kind of services.
Date: 06/21/2002 04:12:34
SFAF, Hank Wilson and other
so-called "AIDS activists" worked out of the notorious Ambassador Hotel
and other hell holes for years endangering the health and safety of
thousands of indigent PWAS all in the name of "AIDS services."
would behoove the city government to act in helping the needy
through out San Francisco instead of declaring war on the most
vulnerable in our society, the homeless.
driven parasites. Both ignore the outcry of HIV
positive gay men with a let'em eat cake attitude that is as out of
fashion as Nancy's latest face
lift.
Ronnie Burk
While homeless people with AIDS die in the streets, San Francisco AIDS Foundation donates $55,000 to No on Knight campaign