We are a group of people who wish to tackle the issue. Individuals who wish to prevent a catastrophe at our doorstep. People who wish to probe, to challenge, to react.

We had a meeting on July 20th, 1989, between Khush: South Asian Lesbians and Gays, AIDS Committee of Toronto, and the Toronto Counselling Centre for Lesbians and Gays. Two things happened - a commitment to the cause, and the development of a team. We went out to solicit other interested people. Three meetings later, on 28th September 1989, the South Asian AIDS Coalition was formed.

We are conducting a 'needs assessment'. This constitutes an analysis of how many South Asian people are affected, how they are affected, what we need to do to prevent this 'affection', and how we can help those already affected. The Toronto Counselling Center for Lesbian and Gays is playing an instrumental role in pulling this data together. Meanwhile, we are brainstorming outreach methods, mediums to use, dispersal strategies, languages, cultural sensitivity, education, prevention. There's a lot to do. We need to organize and prioritize. Give us a hand.

A few hands have come to join. The Coalition now consists of representation from the South Asian women's community. Some South Asian agencies and organizations have expressed a strong interest. The Department of Public Health has also indicated a keen interest in this initiative. So what now?

Once we have pulled together an execution plan, meaning the 'what' and the 'how', we will evaluate the resources required. We believe we can procure funding from municipal and provincial bodies to help us achieve our objectives. The bottom line is if we help one person, just one person, it will all be worth it. And we have helped. One person. Already!