21 years of being here for you

2006 marks the AIDS Action Council of the ACT's 21st year of existence. In this, our 'coming of age' year, we are planning several events to celebrate the work of the many volunteers, staff and other community members who have been involved in the many achievements of the Council.

To commemorate 21 years of action, the Council held a grand ball and will be launching a book on the history of the Council.

You may be interested in reading a brief history of the AIDS Action Council in Joey Tabone's speech from the 2005 International Candlelight Memorial.

Other events from 1985

The formation of the AIDS Action Council wasn't the only thing to happen in 1985:

• The Greenpeace vessel, the Rainbow Warrior, is bombed and sunk in Auckland harbour by French DGSE agents.
• The fear of AIDS caused firemen in the UK to ban the kiss of life, and caused holidaymakers to cut their holiday short for fear of contracting AIDS from an HIV-positive passenger on the Queen Elizabeth 2.
• Capital gains tax introduced to Australia.
• Ray Martin takes over Mike Walsh's old daytime slot, replacing The Mike Walsh Show with Midday with Ray Martin.
• The actor Rock Hudson died of AIDS-related illness on October 3rd 1985. He was the first major public figure known to have 'died of AIDS'.
• U.S. President Ronald Reagan is sworn in for a second term in office.
• The first .com domain name, symbolics.com, is registered by the Symbolics corporation.
• The U.S Food and Drug Administration licensed, for commercial production, the first 'blood test for AIDS'. The test actually tested for the presence of HIV (then known as LAV or HTLV-III) antibodies and was initially used to ensure the safety of the blood supply.
• Live Aid pop concerts in Philadelphia and London raise over £50 million for famine relief in Ethiopia.
• The first case of AIDS in China was reported. AIDS had now been reported in every region of the world.
• Coca-Cola changed its recipe/formula and packaging to New Coke in North America in what later turned out to be a disaster for the company.
• John Howard replaces Andrew Peacock as federal Liberal leader and federal Leader of the Opposition.
• A man wearing a chicken suit walks into the Australian House of Representatives and sits on the government front bench.
• The first report of HIV transmission from mother to child through breast feeding appeared.
• Network 0/28 becomes known as SBS.
• TWA Flight 847 is hijacked by Hezbollah on 14 June.
• Neighbours premieres on the Seven Network. Six months later it is axed, but Network Ten picks it up.
• Microsoft Corporation releases the first version of Windows, Windows 1.0.
• By the end of 1985, 20,303 cases of AIDS had been reported to the World Health Organisation. In 2005, there were an estimated 40.3 million people living with HIV and 3.1 million people had died with AIDS since the beginnning of the epidemic.

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia and Avert.org history of AIDS.