Caffeinated Politics

This topic is very personal to me.

It was profoundly wrong for Donald Trump to utterly refuse recognition of World AIDS Day. This day, established in 1988 by the World Health Organization, is not a token gesture. Not a woke event. a trite so willfully misunderstood word in the MAGA world. Rather, the day is a solemn reminder of the millions of lives lost to AIDS-related illnesses and the millions more still living with HIV. To ignore it is to dismiss decades of progress, sacrifice, and leadership. World AIDS Day is about awareness, solidarity, and recommitment. It keeps the epidemic in public consciousness, mobilizes funding, and fights stigma. Silence from the highest office in our nation undermines all of that.

Trump’s refusal to acknowledge the day was an abhorrent and deliberate break with tradition. Every president since 1998, had marked the occasion, as each of those presidents had a moral center and a strong, emphatic nature. They all recognized the moral responsibility of the United States to lead in the fight against HIV/AIDS. By turning away from this responsibility, Trump sent a message of indifference to survivors, advocates, and grieving families. At a time when funding cuts threatened HIV-prevention programs, his silence compounded fear and stigma. Having worked many years ago as an employee of the AIDS Network, I can assure my readers that trampling on awareness of this disease and the day’s recognition is totally foolhardy. Awareness is the foundation of the international strategy. Without visibility and highlighting this day, prevention and treatment are easier to allow to falter.

The fight against HIV/AIDS is far from over. In the United States alone, more than a million people live with HIV, and thousands of new infections occur each year, disproportionately affecting marginalized communities. Globally, the epidemic continues to devastate lives. World AIDS Day is not about empty symbolism; it is about recommitting to the promise that no life should be forgotten or abandoned when it comes to HIV/AIDS. To ignore it is to risk undoing decades of progress and to allow complacency to creep in. Since Trump has never been called an educated man, none of what I am writing would have resonated with him. But the staff and counselors around Trump cannot be so blind or completely incompetent as not to recognize the social problems and financial burdens of not continuing to combat HIV/AIDS.

Contrast Trump’s ugly silence with the strong, deliberate leadership of President George W. Bush. In 2003, Bush launched PEPFAR—the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief—which remains the largest commitment by any nation to combat a single disease. PEPFAR has saved more than 25 million lives, transformed the global fight against HIV/AIDS, and brought hope to communities across Africa and beyond. Today, due to strident cruelty from the Trump Administration, funding cuts have resulted in perilous risks for the global HIV response that threaten the health and well-being of millions of people throughout the world. In stark contrast, Bush’s initiative showed that American leadership matters, When the U.S. speaks and acts, the world follows. His recognition of World AIDS Day was not just ceremonial; it was a reaffirmation of America’s role in saving lives.

Trump’s immoral refusal to honor World AIDS Day was deplorable because it betrayed the memory of millions lost, undermined ongoing prevention efforts, and broke faith with America’s legacy of leadership. I am one of those old-fashioned Americans who understand the role we have in the world, as I have read and understood history that clearly proves the benefits that role has created.

I wish that Trump, instead of spending time ‘working’ in a McDonald’s eatery, had instead stopped by a non-profit organization that fights AIDS and educates the local community. Had he done so, he would not have treated today in such a sloppy fashion. Trump would then know something about moral responsibility, global solidarity, and the promise that the fight against HIV/AIDS will continue.

Instead, what Donald Trump espouses is silence. That equals surrender.

That is not a strategy Caffeinated Politics can accept.