Not doing something was simply out of the question.
To ignore the suffering in their eyes and to go on without attempting to help the AIDS patients they encountered was almost unimaginable for Mark Dakkak and Harkiran Gill.
For Dakkak, a third-year math and economics student, and Gill, a fourth-year anthropology student, AIDS was a devastating reality they knew afflicted all too many across the globe, and they were determined to do something about it.
The two met early in the fall when Dakkak, who after traveling to Haiti with Partners in Health, a global initiative aimed at fundraising for AIDS prevention and treatment, decided to found a chapter of FACE AIDS, a sub-organization of Partners in Health.
He met Gill who already was in the process of filing the paperwork for a local chapter at UCLA. The two soon met up with another UCLA student, Stacey Yudin, and together began work for a FACE AIDS chapter.
The organization employs patients from Partners in Health to make pins that are later sold for $5 at each chapter to raise funds for the organization, said Dave Ryan, the executive director for FACE AIDS.
Ryan said that the organization was founded in 2005 and has since grown to include more than 103 chapters in the U.S. and has raised over $1.2 million.
A few weeks into the program in Haiti, Dakkak sat watching malnourished children get a meal. He had been in the program, working alongside Harvard researchers and others from Partners in Health to help the most impoverished Haitians and those afflicted with AIDS. Sitting there, he came to the conclusion that simply discussing AIDS wasn’t enough, Dakkak said.
“It’s so easy for someone to say, “˜This shouldn’t happen.’ (But) to say that doesn’t do anything,” Dakkak said. “You’re making the decision to bind your life to that child … (and saying) “˜I will do whatever I can to make the fate of that child better.'”
He said that he had decided to join the organization in an effort to find out whether working for a nonprofit was something he wanted to do.
“The whole purpose of me going on this trip was to kind of make these connections that I wasn’t making in the classroom,” he said. “My goal was to try and expose myself to people that would inspire me.”
For Gill, her encounter with AIDS patients came during an exhibition at a world HIV/AIDS conference, Make Art/Stop AIDS, during the summer. David Gere, an associate professor in the department of World Arts and Cultures, hosted an exhibition at the conference where AIDS patients were able to talk about their personal experiences struggling with the disease.
“It was a real turning point for me in learning about global health,” Gill said. “It was powerful.”
She said that seeing those people at the conference transformed her in an astonishing way. “What made me care was seeing their pain. … The pain in his voice and the look in his eyes,” Gill said. “It haunts me.”
She said that there was a great sense of relatability to them, which continues to motivate her to work for their cause.
“You see how they’re just like you. They’re trying to find their way in life,” she said.
Her experiences in India have also inspired her to continue working to help prevent and treat HIV/AIDS patients. After traveling there a few summer ago, she said that she came back astonished at the human rights violations and conditions people live under. However, she added that because there is a large stigma about HIV/AIDS in India, it is often difficult to help those in need.
“It’s heartbreaking. … It’s never ending,” she said.
Dakkak said that his experience in Haiti often places him in a challenging position. He said that he often had many Haitians ask him for favors and gifts. He held out most of the time though he admitted he struggled along the way.
“To say “˜no’ to one person is easy, because one person can ask you for something and you’ll say “˜no.’ But imagine giving something to that one person, then hav(ing) a hundred people come to you and say, “˜I saw you give that person something, can you give me something?'” he said.
However, there was one time that he gave in.
Dakkak said that once on a trip, he came across a 65-year-old man who had one child who had died of AIDS. The man’s poor state of living made him give the man some nutrient bars.
“Literally, this guy had nothing. He was living off of the goodwill of his neighbors and in Haiti, your neighbors probably have nothing,” Dakkak said.
Still, Dakkak and Gill said that the reason that they were drawn to FACE AIDS was because they want to show others that there are people out in the who are working to solve the crisis in a positive light.
“I think they’re going to lead a great effort at UCLA,” Ryan said. “The most important thing is their passion so they can inspire the community at UCLA and I think that will take them a long way.”
For Dakkak and Gill, the focus is never on themselves. They said they want to start a movement on campus.
“We want to reengage students in what’s going on … and hopefully instill some passion in them that will motivate them to act.”