Solidarity calls us to see, affirm human dignity

By Dan Lunney

	An Advent series on Catholic Social Teaching

Colleen (name changed to protect her identity) is a white, middle class Catholic, a wife, mother and grandmother living in the rural upper Midwest. She is also a person living with AIDS.

I have known Colleen for several years and have been impressed with her resilience.

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She has spoken at the annual National Catholic HIV/AIDS Ministry Conference in Chicago and has been a member of the conference planning team.

Last year, Colleen told me about going to a Catholic bookstore not far from her house to post information about AIDS Compassion Sunday.

	Related article: from December 1, 2006 issue: • AIDS shows need for justice     The poor are waiting for     compassion from the world

The store owner told her that people became infected with HIV because of sin and they deserved what they got. The bookstore owner then said that the perversity of homosexuals is what has led to the spread of AIDS.

Colleen gathered up her courage and said that she is living with AIDS. The bookstore owner asked her to leave and never come back. Colleen was devastated and was shaking as she recounted the story.

I felt anger welling up in me. I wanted to give the bookstore owner a dose of reality. Instead, I decided to recognize my anger, but to remain fully present with Colleen. She had endured great pain and rejection. I sat with her and consoled her.

I share this story to illustrate solidarity.

The bookstore owner is not in solidarity with Colleen because the owner does not see Colleen as a person made in the image and likeness of God, thus having inherent dignity. We are in solidarity with another when our relationship recognizes and affirms another person's dignity and humanity.

Colleen didn't asked me to listen to her to avenge a hurt. If I had been swept up by my anger, I would have moved out of solidarity with her and onto my own agenda.

Solidarity is also mutual. Colleen demonstrated courage in sharing her story with me. She had been wounded by her experience and by others who did not listen to what she was asking of them.

HIV and AIDS stigma is very damaging. Just as Jesus did in encountering the Samaritan woman at the well, we must meet people living with HIV and AIDS first as human beings. Our curiosity about how a person became infected with HIV can move us out of solidarity with them. It can also lead to judgment.

In this 25th year of the AIDS pandemic, take the time to learn about the reality of HIV. With over 1 million people in the United States and over 40 million globally infected by HIV, this is a pandemic of major human proportions.

Nearly 50% of infections are among women and young people ages 15 to 24.

Despite the advent of anti-retroviral medications that have prolonged the lives of many in the United States, too few people globally have access to these medications.

Solidarity calls us to see each and all as our sisters and brothers. Solidarity leads us to the realizations that if one among us is living with AIDS, we are all living with AIDS.

We need to heed the call of the late Pope John Paul II, "The battle against AIDS is everyone's battle."

AIDS is not a curse from God. But our response or lack of response is a test of whether we truly are the Catholic Christians we claim to be.

(Lunney, who was born and raised in Green Bay, is the executive director of the National Catholic AIDS Network in Chicago.)