ABSTRACT
The world of AIDS had changed dramatically over the past year. It is time for everyone involved in any part of what has come to be known as the "AIDS system" or "AIDS Inc". to take a collective deep breath and engage in serious review and analysis. While voices have been calling for AIDS service organizations (ASOs) to rapidly review and restructure their priorities, the kind of systemic change demanded necessitates deep self-reflection by governmental AIDS bureaus, medical professionals in hospitals and health clinics, and self-help organizations of people with HIV/AIDS. At least two remarkable projects emerged from San Francisco in the 1980s that have been widely praised for their unique role in the international effort against AIDS. Project Inform, a community-based organization led by Martin Delaney, and AIDS Treatment News, a publication founded and led by John James, both translate complex biomedical and treatment information into language many nonscientists.
