Congresswoman Lee Receives Award for Work in the Fight Against HIV/AIDS
For Immediate Release
February 16, 2010
Contact: Ricci Graham
(510) 763-0370
OAKLAND – Congresswoman Barbara Lee (CA-09) on Monday, February 15, 2010 received an award from the Alameda County Commission on the Status of Women for her legislative efforts to combat HIV/AIDS both nationally and abroad.
Congresswoman Lee was honored by the Alameda County Commission on the Status of Women and the Black Women Organized for Political Action (BWOPA) during their Annual Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day event at the Newark Community Center in Newark, CA. The event was held in conjunction with the 36th Annual Black History Month Observance celebration that was sponsored by the Afro-American Cultural & Historical Society.
“I want to thank the Alameda County Commission on the Status of Women, along with members of BWOPA, for this award,” said Lee, who was unable to attend the award ceremony. “I am truly honored and humbled to receive this recognition. I thank members of both organizations for their commitment and diligence in the ongoing fight against HIV/AIDS.”
Congresswoman Lee’s efforts in promoting effective, bipartisan measures to prevent the spread of HIV/AIDS and bring treatment to those infected has earned her both national and international recognition as a leader in the fight against global HIV/AIDS.
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Congresswoman Lee has been a leader in the fight against the global HIV/AIDS pandemic. She co-authored legislation signed into law creating the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB and Malaria in 2000, the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) in 2003, the PEPFAR Reauthorization Act in 2008, and legislation addressing the needs of orphans and vulnerable children affected by HIV/AIDS in 2005. She is the only member of Congress serving on both the House Committee on Foreign Affairs and the House Appropriations Subcommittee on State, Foreign Operations and the Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services and Education which have jurisdiction over all US global and domestic AIDS programs.