Jay Lassiter Interviews New Jersey Congressman Donald Payne

Jay Lassiter of Lassiter Space and a frontpager at Blue New Jersey just scored an interview with New Jersey Congressman Donald Payne. Payne is next in line to chair the subcommittee on Africa and Human Rights in the new Democratic Congress.

Lassiter writes,

"For the millions of people in the Darfur region of Sudan, Congressman Payne's chairmanship can't come soon enough. As you know, all hell is broken loose in Darfur. It's a full-blown genocide, a humanitarian crisis of epic proportions. Donald Payne promises to make the genocide in Darfur a top priority. He has some bold ideas to end the dying as well as the smarts (and the foreign policy chops) to address the Darfur issue head on. And pretty soon, he'll (hopefully) have the clout as well. So check out the interview and see for yourself why Congressman Payne is our last best hope to break the current cycle of genocide."

Click Here to read Jay's brilliant and important interview. Jay you've done the progressive blogging community proud. Thank you.

World AIDS Day

Today is World AIDS Day. AIDS/HIV has been around for 25 years and every year on December 1st our planet remembers the victims. Currently 40 million people are HIV positive and 5,500 lose their lives in Africa daily because of it.

One of my favorite bloggers is Jay Lassiter of Lassiter Space. Jay is HIV positive and he reminds his readers that simply honoring the victims is not enough. As he notes, the red ribbons are a nice gesture but the best way individuals can make a difference is to get tested. Please CLICK HERE and read Jay’s important post on this topic. You can also read Jay’s personal story of when he found out he tested positive by CLICKING HERE. Jay posted again this afternoon (CLICK HERE) and wrote,

"I don't wanna die of AIDS. I 'm tired of my friends dying of AIDS. So many are dead that I am an elderstatesman (of 34) and archivist of the fight, which is a miracle in itself. You can imagine when first diagnosed, the last thing I was thinking was I'd ever be the long-term archivist of anything. For this much I remain grateful."

Jay and I are about the same age and I can't imagine what it must be like to lose one's peers from the very disease he's infected with. I applaud Jay for his courage and leading by example. Jay has responded to adversity by working to improve the human condition. He’s an activist with a big heart who champions peace, justice and human rights. And he’s willing to share his personal story so others will get tested, not spread the disease and be empowered to enjoy fulfilling lives. Thanks Jay.