5 minute read
Walking through the struggles
Pierce’s GSA walks for a cause
Elliot Golan / Roundup
The Pierce College Gay Straight Alliance (GSA) was one of 1,648 teams at the AIDS Walk Los Angeles on Sunday.
The 25th anniversary of the walk was attended by more than 30,000 walkers and raised more than $3.1 million, according to James Leahy, team coordinator and fundraising specialist for AIDS Walk Los Angeles.
Leahy said the number of teams and walkers has steadily increased over time, with the first walk having 4,500 participants.
The Pierce GSA team had 36 members, according to GSA President Chris Murphy.
GSA member Liz Komen said the GSA team raised approximately $1,400. By raising more than $1,000, Murphy agreed to complete the walk in a dress. She lived up to her end of the bargain, arriving in a black dress and brown Dr. Martens.
“Sometimes I feel more feminine and sometimes I feel more masculine,” said Murphy, who identifies herself as a genderqueer. She had to purchase the dress specifically for the event because she did not own any.
Celebrities of all kinds were present at the event, including AIDS czar Jeffrey Crowley and President Barack Obama.
“I think there has been some complacency,” Crowley said, stressing the important of college students to “re-engage” their efforts.
Attending AIDS Walk Los Angeles was stop seven of a 14-destination trip across the country intended to “develop...a national strategy” for AIDS, Crowley said.
Former Pierce student and music icon La Toya Jackson was also at the event.
Jackson, who said she took a 6 a.m. business law class at Pierce, urges the youth to get more involved.
“Youth can spread the word faster with all the texting and blogging and twittering,” Jackson said.
The very upbeat and festive mood was momentarily interrupted
as the walk turned onto La Cienega Boulevard and a group of protesters began yelling at the crowd.
Don Stewart, 55-year-old construction worker, was one of the self-proclaimed “bible preachers” protesting.
“The only way to stop AIDS is to stop the sin that started it,” Stewart said. “I’ve been attending these sodomite parades for over 10 years.”
As the protestors yelled into the crowd, a volunteer for the walk, Ken Hansen, cheered the walkers along.
“You’re amazing, AIDS Walk,” Hansen yelloed through a megaphone. Though many walkers were offended by the protest, some accepted it as “freedom of speech.”
“I think it’s fine. I don’t have to agree, but people have the right to protest,” said Bill Davis, a 47-yearold teacher from Burbank.
The man holding Davis’ hand had a different view of the protestors.
“I think we should just stand there and make out,” said fellow teacher John Keiffer, 54, who once took a rodeo class at Pierce. The two men debated about tolerance versus confrontation while they walked hand in hand.
The path the walk followed was blanketed with stands of snacks and refreshments at every turn. More than 1,700 AIDS Walk volunteers were also placed throughout the course with megaphones cheering the walkers along.
Amenities included free HIV testing offered by the JWCH Institute, a nonprofit community health organization. There was also a constant stream of music coming from either live groups or radio station stands.
One such group, Jameson Moss and the Thrillers, volunteered their time.
Moss, 18, is a music major at Santa Monica College and called AIDS Walk a “great cause,” adding he would like to perform again next year. The walk was extended to represent much more than AIDS by some. One of those people was George Takei, most known for his role on the series Star Trek.
“We are marching for the ideals of our democracy,” Takei said.
