Some of the “Seven Days in June” sponsor organizations.
I’m going to make this quick because this is happening right now and you should be joining in and not reading my blog.
AIDS activism godfathers Cleve Jones and Sean Strub got their sizable brains together to create Seven Days in June, a national and nonpartisan campaign to highlight the issues of affordability and healthcare during the very busy election primary month of June 2026.
That’s in a few weeks. That’s why you need to read this quickly and then do something. From the Seven Days in June website:
From June 1 to June 7, local organizations and advocates from across the country will demand that local, state, and federal representatives clearly articulate how they will:
- Improve affordability and access to care and treatment.
- Sustain and strengthen biomedical research.
- Protect and modernize domestic and global public health infrastructure.
- Provide stability for seniors, veterans, rural communities, people with disabilities, working families and others reliant on accessible, affordable healthcare.
Local groups and advocates will organize town halls, panel discussions, forums, demonstrations, marches, rallies, vigils, interfaith services, and other tactics, as appropriate for their organizations and communities.
Did I mention that this effort is taking off like wildfire, with major organizations and even celebrities like Noah Wyle on board to lend their support?
The campaign encourages local communities to do anything they can to highlight affordability and healthcare while voters are paying attention to their potential elected officials and what they stand for – or against.
This isn’t HIV specific. In fact, a cavalcade of national organizations and labor unions have come on board because the threat to our pocketbooks and access to affordable healthcare affects everyone. That said, my lived experience as an HIV/AIDS survivor will certainly play a role in my messaging.
And just in case you didn’t know it, the crushing cuts to public health and safety nets like Medicare that were included in the so-called Big Beautiful Bill do not go into effect until after the midterms. That’s by design, so people won’t feel the pinch until it’s too late. This campaign is meant to wake people the hell up, and engage with candidates to find out how they feel about their constituents losing coverage and facing mounting debt from health events.
Politics isn’t my lane. But this is about something broader and you’d be surprised how quickly people jump on board.
Activism lions Sean Strub and Cleve Jones.
Here in Atlanta, I put out a call to a few advocates I knew, and within four hours we were in a zoom call brainstorming – and both Sean Strub and Cleve Jones took the time to show up for it. Actually, they’re in these organizing meetings all day long. They’ll probably show up for your zoom call, too.
What could you do? You could get a hold of a couple like-minded friends and schedule a vigil for June 5, 2026 (Long-Term HIV/AIDS Survivors Awareness Day, marking 45 years since the crisis began), schedule a zoom call and get Cleve or Sean to fire up the troops, show up at a candidate Town Hall and ask about the impending cuts to healthcare, or write an op-ed for your paper about this.
Nothing is too big or small. Now head on over to the Seven Days in June site to learn more. If you are unable to get involved, please send the link to someone who might be interested.
Thank you, and please be well,
Mark
