Photo: Nadya Kwandibens/Red Works Photography for Global Citizen
For the past several months, since April 2022, we have been campaigning alongside a coalition of Canadian civil society partners to support the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria’s Seventh Replenishment campaign, #FightForWhatCounts. What started with rallying behind a growing coalition Week of Action where volunteers and supporters met parliamentarians to share a common ask for an ambitious investment in the Global Fund, has become a coalition of 14+ organizations calling on Canada for a CAD$1.2 billion pledge to end the three epidemics everywhere. You can get a feel for the breath of our coalition here: proud partners video.
marching in the Toronto Pride parade
One of our most recent collaborations came at the Toronto Pride parade on June 26, where we marched with the goal of showcasing our coalition and ask to government leaders and all the parade attendees. The parade was an integral part of our campaign to #FightForWhatCounts as we focused on one of the communities most affected by HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis (TB), and malaria – the LGBTQ2+ community.
Here are a few of reflections the Results team on their Pride Toronto experience:
Chris Dendys
Executive Director
“It’s hard to pick just one inspiring moment, [but one was] engaging with an amazing woman in the street who shared her experience in the 1990s losing friends to the AIDS epidemic - and then sharing that her own son was HIV positive. She was grateful that because of access to treatment, his diagnosis wasn’t a death sentence – and wished that for everyone around the world. I won’t forget Pauline or her story”.
Robyn Waite
Director of Policy and Advocacy
“The most memorable moment to me was meeting one of our drag artists, giving her the down low of what we were doing at the booth, and then watching her speak to her first passer-byer – she dove into telling her story as a positive person now on treatment and being undetectable, meaning she could not transmit the AIDS virus to others. She then asked – “shouldn't everyone, everywhere have access to life-saving treatments? Just because someone lives in a low-income country context doesn’t mean they should suffer, die, or live in their shell for fear of spreading disease”.
Neha Beri
Parliamentary Affairs Manager
“As we were walking to get in line to march in the parade, I noticed Liberal staff along the parade line. By the time we were able to reach the Liberal Banner, I noticed all the GTA Toronto MPs and the Minister of Finance (Chrystia Freeland) waiting to begin their march. It was now or never - I walked up to the Minister of Finance and told her we were here on behalf of The Global Fund looking for Canada to commit CAD$1.2 billion to the multilateral. She consented to take a picture with our drag artists and is now aware of our Global Fund ask. The drag performers said they have never done advocacy like that before and thanked Results for the opportunity of a lifetime”.
It’s amazing what we can accomplish when we stand strong together.
gaining support for a letter to the Prime Minister
Backed by the coalition of Canadian civil society organizations and grassroots supporters, throughout May to July, we called on our Members of Parliament and Senators to gain signatures and support for a letter to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau asking for an ambitious pledge to the Global Fund. To kickstart this initiative, Results Canada hosted a Week of Action between May 30 and June 3. Following this, staff and volunteers continued outreach through email and constituency office phone calls with amazing success! In summary, we have secured 50 supporters representing all parties including Liberal, Conservative, NDP, Green, Bloc, and Senator support and finally submitted the letter to the Prime Minister’s Office!
preparing for the International AIDS Conference
Next up, the International AIDS Conference, happening in Montreal July 29 - August 2, is an opportune moment for Canada to announce this commitment and we are ready to be loud in our response. Everyone is still working hard this week to ensure Canada makes the #1Point2Billion pledge, see Chris Dendys’ feature in this article in The Globe and Mail and Leigh Raithby’s op-ed in Devex.
We hope to celebrate alongside all of you who have been working with us to secure this pledge and see Canada #FightForWhatCounts to end the epidemics. For an opportunity to take action during the conference, sign up to our mailing list.
take action now
Help amplify powerful video messages from those who understand the devastating effect HIV/AIDS had in Canada in the 80s to 90s and continues to have globally, drag artists and grandmothers.
We must be louder than ever to #EndAIDS by calling on Canada to invest in the Global Fund to End AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria’s Seventh Replenishment. You can also find more ways to take action in our interactive learning tool to #FightForWhatCounts.
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