ACT UP

ACT UP is an activist organization founded in 1987 to demand urgent action on the AIDS crisis, especially from governments, pharmaceutical companies, and medical institutions.

Direct action: Political action that confronts a target directly rather than relying only on established channels. ACT UP used confrontational public actions to force AIDS policy and treatment into view.
AIDS epidemic: The global spread of HIV infection and AIDS, recognized as an epidemic in the early 1980s. The epidemic's mounting deaths and stigma drove ACT UP's founding.
Peter Staley: An American AIDS activist who became a prominent ACT UP member and advocate for treatment access. Staley helped bring scientific and pharmaceutical expertise into ACT UP campaigns.
AIDS Clinical Trials Group: A U.S. network of clinical research sites established to test treatments for HIV and AIDS. Activist pressure helped make trial design and access more responsive to people with AIDS.
Stop the Church: An ACT UP and WHAM! protest against the Catholic Church's positions on AIDS and sexuality at St. Patrick's Cathedral in 1989. The action exposed conflict between AIDS prevention and church influence over public policy.
Die-in: A protest in which participants lie down as if dead to represent deaths caused by an issue. Die-ins made preventable AIDS deaths visible in streets and public buildings.
Larry Kramer: An American playwright and AIDS activist who helped found ACT UP in New York City. Kramer's call for militant organizing helped bring the group together.
Maxine Wolfe: An American feminist activist and ACT UP organizer known for her work on direct action and coalition building. Wolfe helped sustain ACT UP organizing and broaden its political alliances.
Food and Drug Administration: The U.S. federal agency responsible for regulating drugs, medical devices, and food safety. ACT UP pressed the FDA to speed access to promising AIDS treatments.
Seize Control of the FDA: An ACT UP demonstration outside the FDA headquarters in Rockville, Maryland, on October 11, 1988. Protesters demanded faster drug approval and access to experimental treatments.

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