

Past Event
Lessons from Concurrent Pandemics of COVID-19 and HIV/AIDS
Join us for an important intergenerational conversation with LGBTQ Asians and Pacific Islanders and their allies. Our panelists will share QTAPI stories and experiences of the dual pandemics of HIV/AIDS and COVID-19; their histories as Asians and Pacific Islanders in the United States; their past and current roles in community organizing and the political process; as well as other issues that are part of the current cultural and political shifts and relevant to the experiences of QTAPI individuals.
Meet the Speakers
Ignatius Bau was the HIV prevention program coordinator at the Asian & Pacific Islander American Health Forum in the mid-1990s, and served as a member of the President's Advisory Council on HIV/AIDS and advisory groups about HIV/AIDS for the federal Office of Minority Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and National Institutes for Health. He also has served on the board of directors for the Gay Asian Pacific Alliance Community HIV Project, Asian & Pacific Islander Wellness Center, National Minority AIDS Project, and Funders for LGBTQ Issues.
Cecilia Chung is the senior director of strategic initiatives and evaluation at Transgender Law Center, a health commissioner of San Francisco and an internationally recognized civil rights leader in the LGBT and HIV community. Chung has served as the co-chair of GNP+ and is currently a member of the WHO Advisory Council of Women Living with HIV.
Vince Crisostomo is a gay Chamorro (Pacific Islander) long-term HIV/AIDS survivor who believes in the healing power of community and has dedicated more than 30 years to HIV/AIDS activism and LGBTQ communities. He is passionate about bringing health care to all and social justice equity to people of every sexual identity, HIV status, gender, race and age. Crisostomo is SFAF’s director of aging services and previously managed the Elizabeth Taylor 50 Plus Network for long-term HIV survivors. He co-chaired the HIV & Aging Work Group and was an active member of the Mayor’s Long-Term Care Coordinating Council. Crisostomo has led a number of grassroots HIV advocacy and LGBTQ organizations in the United States and overseas. He was executive director of the Coalition of Asia Pacific Regional Networks on HIV/AIDS, founded the Pacific Island Jurisdiction AIDS Action Group, and served as a United Nations NGO delegate for the Asia Pacific. In 2019, having won the popular vote, he was community grand marshall for San Francisco Pride. In July 2021, he was appointed to the San Francisco Human Rights Commission’s LGBTQI+ Advisory Committee.
Notes
This is a free program; any voluntary donations made during registration will support the production of our online programs.
A complimentary lunch will be provided before the program for in-person attendees.
The Commonwealth Club thanks Gilead Sciences, Inc. for its generous support of The Michelle Meow Show.
Program presented in partnership with GAPA Theatre, The Connection at the San Francisco Community Health Center, the San Francisco AIDS Foundation, and The Commonwealth Club of California.
This project was made possible with support from California Humanities, nonprofit partner of the National Endowment for the Humanities. Visit www.calhum.org.
This program has 2 types of tickets available: In-person and online-only. Please pre-register to receive a link to the live-stream event.
Safety Protocols:
• In-person capacity is limited.
• Masks are required in the building.
• We follow best practices laid out by the CDC and state and local guidelines.
• All guests, staff and volunteers must be vaccinated and show proof of vaccination.
• Elevators are limited to a maximum of four (4) people at a time.
Our LEED Gold-certified building is designed to cool with outside air, using digitally controlled moveable windows and large ceiling fans. We are deploying additional HEPA filters inside to scrub the air. This is all in addition to increased cleaning of surfaces throughout the building.
October 6, 2021
The Commonwealth Club of California
110 The Embarcadero
San Francisco, CA 94105
United States
Speakers

Ignatius Bau
Former HIV Prevention Program Coordinator, Asian & Pacific Islander American Health Forum; Former Member, President's Advisory Council on HIV/AIDS

Cecilia Chung
Senior Director of Strategic Initiatives and Evaluation, Transgender Law Center; Health Commissioner, San Francisco

Vince Crisostomo
Director of Aging Services, San Francisco AIDS Foundation

Michelle Meow
Producer and Host, "The Michelle Meow Show," KBCW TV and Podcast; Member, Commonwealth Club Board of Governors—Host and Moderator
Format
11 a.m.–noon doors open, check-in and complimentary lunch
noon–1 p.m. program
(all times PDT)