Episcopalians: Demand that your lawmakers save nearly $1bn in AIDS, TB and malaria funding.

From the ONE Episcopalian campaign:
As Congress returns to work, one of the first and most important decisions facing lawmakers will be our nation’s response to the crises of AIDS and extreme poverty in the world. Some lawmakers are advocating keeping 2007 government spending levels at the 2006 figures through use of what is called a "CR – Continuing Resolution." If they are successful, U.S. programs to fight AIDS, TB, and malaria abroad stand to lose approximately $1 billion in promised funding.

The results of this cut would be devastating. At least 350,000 people slated for live-saving treatment in 2007 would not receive it, with anywhere from 100,000 to 175,000 of those people dying. The hardest hit will be women, orphans, and vulnerable children. For more information, click here.

WHAT YOU CAN DO:
A bipartisan group of lawmakers led by Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Sam Brownback (R-KS), along with Representatives Barbara Lee (D-CA) and Chris Shays (R-CT), has joined the White House in urging that this vital AIDS funding be saved. In order to show support for the AIDS funding, these lawmakers are asking their colleagues to join them in letters to congressional leadership asking that the AIDS money be protected.

Please click here to e-mail your lawmakers TODAY and ask them to sign on to the letters being circulated by Senators Durbin and Brownback, and Representatives Lee and Shays. Time is running out, but if enough lawmakers sign the Durbin/Brownback and Lee/Shays letters, the $1 billion can still be saved.

http://episcopal.grassroots.com/ONE/CRFund-Actn/#ActionForm