The GOP’s Anti-Science Views and How to Survive a Plague
David France’s How to Survive a Plague is a comprehensive, detailed look at activism during the AIDS epidemic. Mostly told through archival footage, the film chronicles how AIDS patients denounced the federal government’s inactions to find a cure for the disease, which is slowly killing millions of people around the world. It presents a portrait of desperation, as thousands of Americans take the streets to fight for their lives, disturbing the peace of conservative federal workers. They don’t seem to care about human beings or don’t care enough to save them.
One of the most disturbing pieces of imagery France shows is how the federal administration responds to the crisis, which potentially echoes how the current administration responds to COVID-19. While activists denounce how President George H.W. Bush has willingly murdered people by not approving DDI instead of AZT, which could potentially save lives, the Commander in Chief is teeing-off, ignoring the rallying cries and suffering of individuals. At the same time, new cases and deaths keep climbing up each day. Does that remind you of a certain someone?
Without naming that individual, one of the most astounding (and prophetic) moments of How to Survive a Plague is how federal politics has never really changed since the AIDS epidemic. Conservative Christians vehemently oppose the use of condoms, saying that they can increase the risk of contracting AIDS, even if the scientists say it’s the only way to protect yourself against the disease, just like they are doing right now with masks.
As the activists cover the house of Republican senator Jesse Helms with a giant condom, saying, “A condom to stop unsafe politics. Helms is deadlier than a virus”, all I could think about was how the GOP’s anti-science views are still endangering the lives of millions of Americans today. “The China Virus is a hoax!” “Masks don’t protect us, because we breathe our own CO2.” “Hydroxychloroquine saves lives.” are quite similar to “I wish they’d shut their mouths and get their mentality out of their crotches,” “There is not one single case of AIDS in this country that cannot be traced in origin to sodomy.” OR “It’s their deliberate, disgusting, revolting conduct that is responsible for the disease.”, referring to homosexuality being the #1 cause for AIDS, going against any research to save the lives of suffering patients.
As Bob Rafsky leads a march to the Bush Election headquarters, the night before Bill Clinton becomes President-Elect, he reminds everyone how dangerous the GOP’s inaction caused the lives of thousands of Americans.
“This isn’t a political funeral for Mark. It’s a political funeral for the man who killed him, and so many others, and is slowly killing me: whose name curls my tongue and curdles my breath.
George Bush, we believe you’ll be defeated tomorrow because we believe there’s still justice left in the universe, and some compassion left in the American people. But whether or not you are — here and now — standing by Mark’s body, we put this curse on you. Mark’s spirit will haunt you until the end of your days. So that, in the moment of your defeat — you’ll remember our defeats, and in the moment of your death — you’ll remember our deaths.”
There are lots to unpack in How to Survive a Plague’s messages of activism and how civil disobedience led to one of the most unprecedented scientific breakthroughs in history, which has saved the lives of millions. However, the most brutal part of the film is seeing how the GOP’s behaviors to fight AIDS is the same for COVID-19. They don’t seem to care enough about human lives and scientists (like Dr. Anthony Fauci, who makes multiple appearances in the movie) by downplaying the risks of the virus, politicizing it even when their supporters, such as Herman Cain, die from the disease. Their endless spinning, blaming the LGBTQ+ community for AIDS or China for COVID, has put the country in such terrible shape, not only endangering human lives but also its reputation as “the best country in the world.” America has never been the best country in the world and never will be.
