                     AIDS Daily Summary 
                        May 18, 1994


The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) National AIDS
Clearinghouse makes available the following information as a public
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Copyright 1994, Information, Inc., Bethesda, MD


"Uniroyal Chemicals May Fight AIDS Virus"
Journal of Commerce (05/18/94) P. 6B
     Federal researchers at the National Cancer Institute have 
discovered that a family of chemicals developed and patented by 
Uniroyal Chemical Co. of Ontario, Canada, may hold some promise 
for fighting HIV.  The compounds, called Thiocarboxylate ester, 
were developed for agricultural purposes, but failed in that 
area.  Instead, the NCI--which routinely screens chemicals from 
pharmaceutical firms--found that the compounds exhibit some 
activity against HIV.
      
"Head of BEBASHI Quits as AIDS Group Tries to Repay Debt"
Philadelphia Inquirer (05/18/94) P. B2;  Kaufman, Marc
     Rashidah Hassan, founder of BEBASHI (Blacks Educating Blacks 
About Sexual Health Issues), has resigned as executive officer of
the trailblazing AIDS education organization.  Her resignation 
was tendered shortly after attorneys filed a plan of 
reorganization for the agency in bankruptcy court.  The Chapter 
11 bankruptcy was filed last spring, after the agency accumulated
more than $1.2 million in debt.  Hassan, 43, started BEBASHI in 
her North Philadelphia kitchen in 1986 after noticing the rapid 
spread of AIDS in the minority community.  The organization 
bloomed quickly, thanks to more than $5 million in federal and 
city government grants and, in 1989, moved from free offices to a
Center City building with a $8,600 monthly rent.  That move, 
combined with unpredictable AIDS funding, caused BEBASHI to fall 
behind in its finances, according to Hassan.  Michael Reed, a 
bankruptcy lawyer working with the group, says the plan of 
reorganization could be approved within three months.  Under that
plan, more than $100,000 in outstanding federal and state taxes 
would be paid in full over time, and unsecured creditors would be
paid 5.68 cents for every dollar owed.  Reed says that to pay 
creditors immediately, BEBASHI would need $50,000 to $100,000 in 
cash--a sum board president Lorina Marshall hopes to generate 
through fund-raising events.  Hassan will remain a board member 
and chair of the programs committee, as well as retain her 
positions on the boards of the Philadelphia AIDS Consortium and 
the Minority AIDS Consortium.
      
"R.I. Adopts Needle Exchange"
United Press International (05/17/94)
     On Tuesday, Rhode Island joined the list of more than 20 cities 
and states that have needle exchange programs designed to curb 
the spread of AIDS.  The bill, signed by Gov. Bruce Sundlun, 
allows state health authorities to implement a pilot program in 
which they distribute clean syringes to intravenous-drug users to
prevent them from transmitting HIV around through shared, dirty 
needles.  The needle exchange will also provide counseling to 
addicts, and help them access treatment.  Needle-infected addicts
now represent more than 40 percent of all new HIV cases in Rhode 
Island--one of the highest rates in the country, according to 
Rhode Island Project AIDS, a private group that lobbied for the 
bill.  Ironically, the state also has one of the nation's 
toughest needle control laws, which makes it a felony to even 
have a needle and syringe in one's possession without a license. 
Only addicts participating in the pilot program will be exempt 
from this law under the new legislation.  The program is to be 
paid for entirely through federal and private funds.
      
"AIDS Victim's Will Challenged in Texas"
United Press International (05/17/94)
     The family of Randy Brown, a Dallas man who died of AIDS at age 
34, has challenged his will because it bequeaths part of his 
$146,000 to an AIDS group.  Brown, who died on Jan. 30, requested
that proceeds from the sale of his home and some of his 
belongings go to the Foundation for Understanding in Dallas.  
Robert and Joan Brown, the deceased's parents, claim their son 
did not have the mental capacity to draw up the will and that 
undue influence was placed on him in his final days.  Their 
objections center on Marilyn Gordon, executor and a beneficiary 
of Brown's will, who cared for Brown in his final months.  They 
are not, however, opposed to their son's bequest to the AIDS 
foundation, where he sat on the board of directors.  "I think 
part of Randy's vision was to try and make a difference in the 
fight against AIDS," says foundation director John Thomas.  What 
the dispute actually means is that the group, regardless of the 
court outcome, will receive only a fraction of what Brown willed 
to it because of the cost of the legal challenge.  A jury is 
scheduled to hear the case in August.
      
"Wherehouse to Donate to AIDS Causes"
United Press International (05/17/94)
     Wherehouse Entertainment, one of the largest retailers in the 
western United States, announced that its stores will donate $1 
to AIDS charities from each rental of the film "And The Band 
Played On," which is to be released on video today.  The movie, 
featuring Matthew Modine, Alan Alda, Phil Collins, Lily Tomlin, 
Richard Gere, Steve Martin, and Angelica Houston, is a 
dramatization of the early years of the AIDS epidemic.  Because 
of the social relevance, Wherehouse decided to donate profits 
from the video to AIDS research, education, and patient care.  
"The Wherehouse is committed to building the awareness of this 
tragic disease, and it is our hope and intention that as many 
people as possible have the opportunity to watch this dramatic 
movie," said Scott Young, the company's president and chief 
executive officer.
      
"Virus Similar to AIDS Implicated in Diseases"
Reuters (05/16/94);  Mikkelsen, Randall
     New research on HTLV-II, a little-understood cousin of HIV, 
suggests that the former is linked to higher death rates than HIV
among those exposed to it.  According to rough estimates, about 
250,000 to more than 500,000 Americans may be infected with 
HTLV-II, and the virus is spreading rapidly among intravenous- 
drug users in the developing world.  Scientists also said that 
although it is much less easily transmitted than HIV through 
donated blood, it may often escape the most common screening test
used by blood banks to detect it.  Like HIV, HTLV-II belongs to a
family of viruses known as retroviruses.  Unlike HIV, however, 
HTLV-II is thought to have been present among humans for tens of 
thousands of years.  It is found among the indigenous people of 
the Americas and central Africa.  A decade-long study of 567 drug
users conducted in New Jersey found a three-fold increase in the 
death rate among the 67 patients who died of respiratory 
ailments.  Other studies have found links between HTLV-II and 
nervous systems disorders, according to scientists.  Dr. Stanley 
Weiss, author of the New Jersey study, also found that many 
patients who were infected with HTLV-II had also been exposed to 
HIV, but not infected by it--which suggests that their bodies 
might have been able to fend off the virus.  These findings could
be significant in the search for an AIDS vaccine, said Dr. 
William Blattner, chief of viral epidemiology at the National 
Cancer Institute.
      
"Judge Says Student Can't Wear Condoms to School"
Reuters (05/16/94)
     U.S. District Judge Terry Hatter ruled on Monday that a public 
school district has the authority to prohibit an eighth grader 
from adorning her clothing with packaged condoms as an approach 
to promoting safe sex.  A lawsuit was filed against the Los 
Angeles Unified School District by Astrianna Johnson, a 
14-year-old middle school student who pinned packaged condoms on 
her clothes and wore them to school to promote their use in AIDS 
prevention.  School officials barred Johnson from wearing the 
condoms, and so, with the support of the American Civil Liberties
Union, the student charged that the school violated her right to 
freedom of expression.  Hatter cited prior law which calls for a 
balance between the First Amendment rights of students to 
advocate controversial views and society's interest in teaching 
students the limits of socially acceptable behavior.  "Educators,
not children, should be given the right to choose which values to
emphasize and the means by which those values will be instilled 
in their students," he wrote in his ruling.  ACLU attorney Amos 
Dyson was disappointed by the decision.  "There's a genuine First
Amendment issue here," he said.  "Now there's just one less 
person out there warning middle school students about the dangers
of HIV."
      
"Elizabeth Taylor to Miss "Flintstones" Premiere"
Reuters (05/17/94)
     Recovery from hip replacement surgery will prevent superstar 
Elizabeth Taylor from attending next Monday's fund-raising 
premiere of "The Flintstones," which will benefit the Elizabeth 
Taylor AIDS Foundation.  All proceeds from the premiere at the 
Ziegfield Theater in New York and the following reception at 
Planet Hollywood go to Taylor's foundation, which has distributed
more than $2.3 million to AIDS organizations around the world 
since its establishment in 1992.  In a statement, the actress 
thanked "Flintstones" producer Steven Spielberg and his film 
company.  "I regret that I will not be able to make the trip," 
Taylor said.  "Having recently been bed-ridden myself and knowing
how much it means to know others are pulling for you, I am more 
dedicated than ever in my fight against AIDS."
      
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