AIDS activists chain themselves inside US Mission building

Police used bolt cutters to separate AIDS activists who had chained themselves to each other on May 31 in the lobby of the building that houses the US Mission of the United Nations. The protesters had come to the building on East 45th Street to rail against what they said was the United States' failure to do enough to fight the global epidemic. Charles King, one of the organizers, said they were denied admittance to deliver a letter, addressed to US Ambassador John Bolton, which prompted the sit-in and chaining. Police said they ended up taking 21 people into custody for resisting arrest. The protesters chained themselves in a circle in the lobby of the mission around a large poster that featured a blowup of the letter, while chanting "End AIDS Now!" After police cut through the heavy chains to remove the protesters, some walked out and others, like King, had to be carried out. The letter criticized the United States for not fulfilling everything it pledged at the UN General Assembly Special Session on HIV/AIDS in 2001. "We're here to bring public attention to the fact that the United States signed the declaration on AIDS... but it's failed to keep many of the promises it made," King said.