Another activist with cancer:

[oxbow]

I just wanted to point out another activist working on universal healthcare right now. Damu Smith is a human rights, environmental justice and peace activist, and prolific grassroots organizer. He has recently been diagnosed with colon cancer. He is using the opportunity to increase awareness of our national healthcare system's inadequacies.

http://www.damusmith.org/

For those interested in pursuing universal healthcare as Andy's legacy, Smith's organization (Spirit of Hope) might be the ideal partner to work with. If you would like to contact them, I believe the email is [email protected]

[ailsagirl]

1. I'm sorry to hear this-- did they catch it early?

I have to log off so I can't read the article...

I know that it's curable when caught early enough...

[oxbow]

5. I heard the man on NPR yesterday

I think he has not been operated on yet, but don't quote me on that! I can't install realplayer at this computer (i'm in school) but if anyone wants to listen to the interview, go here:

http://www.wamu.org/programs/kn/05/07/07.php

[Donailin]

9. no, it's late stage colon cancer nt

[oxbow]

2. self-delete

[Scottie72]

3. My prayers are with him

I do not know how he does it. I have yet to see how much my radiation therapy is costing. No bill from my health insurance yet. They are going to pay for it in full. Thank God for good health insurance. One of my anti naseau med cost almost 900 for one prescription. I only have to pay a 30 co pay. How in the world do people w/o insurance do it? It is not fair that the best health care goes to people with money who are lucky enough to have good insurance.

My two operations cost almost 100,000 total. About 1000 a day for the use of a hospital room, medicines in the hospital were about 5,000 for each stay, the recovery room alone cost about 1500. ICU rooms cost about 2000. Just utterly ridicoulus. We meed to bring this to the publics attention just how much it does cost.

[sojourner]

6. it's scandalous.

But don't expect RWers to get their shorts in a wad over it. They figure that if you don't have the $$ then you're obviously lazy and lack the lard's blessing - therefore, certainly worthy of dying a long, painful and lonely death.

[SoCalDem]

10. The real question is this...

WHY ON EARTH should an anti-nausea medicine COST $900.00?? That is downright sinful...are they made of ground up platinum??

Drug companies have artificially inflated the costs of their products to such a level, that ordinary folks cannot afford them WITHOUT insurance (and sometimes even WITH it)..

[qanda]

4. My husband has worked with him

Over the past few years doing stuff with Black Voices for Peace. He is a wonderful man and I know they're having a special service for him today, hopefully they will raise a lot of money to help him out. My prayers are with him and his family.

[Java]

7. Cancer and other diseases

This is going to be a little off topic. I know that Universal Health Coverage is a good way to have a healthier nation because there are so many people who simply cannot afford medical insurance.

And it does cost Money. And while this is a solution in providing access to Medical Care.

Another side of the coin is funding medical research or helping it in someway.

My point is that there are a lot of distributed computing projects which utilize people's spare CPU time, in drug screening, and protein folding.

For example: I am currently participating in two of them: the Human Proteome Folding Project by being a member of the World Wide Community Grid (http://www.worldcommunitygrid.org/)

And the Find a Drug Program (Drug Screening) which has one project screening Cancer Drugs which I participate in.
(http://www.find-a-drug.org.uk/)

The Cost is nothing except a little of the electricity to run your computer.

For Andy's Memory and for the sake of people who are trying to survive each day while fighting cancer and other diseases, I urge everyone to help participate in any or some of these distributed computing programs.

Thank you.

[DemBones DemBones]

8. Please read about Damu Smith:

"For over 30 years Damu has been a passionate and tireless human rights, environmental justice and peace activist, and prolific grassroots organizer. 

He is former executive director of the Washington Office on Africa, National Associate Director of Greenpeace USA, and Associate Director of the American Friends Service Committee's Washington Bureau.  He is currently executive director of the National Black Environmental Justice Network (NBEJN), the first ever national network of African American environmental justice activists, and founder of Black Voices for Peace (BVFP).

Damu has worked tirelessly to help scores of poor and communities of color across the U.S. fight toxic exposure and environmental racism. Through the founding of BVFP, Damu has helped mobilize the black community to speak out against the unjust war in Iraq and to take the stand that the billions of dollars the Bush administration is spending on the global U.S. military network, the war against Iraq, and in supporting the Israeli occupation of Palestinian land is money that should be spent on universal healthcare, education, jobs, housing, environmental protection, reparations, and other human needs here at home."


That's quite a record! All of the above is at the link given by oxbow, which tells about tonight's fundraiser for Damu at Howard University. Damu's treatment is estimated to cost $400,000.

[oxbow]

11. yes, he has been in the battle for a good long time

he certainly deserves to rest and recover, but he is using this disease as yet another opportunity to make things better for everybody. I hope that this is a topic that stays alive. Howard Dean has said that universal healthcare is very near the top of the democratic agenda, and good for him if he's serious!

I wish I could post his 'resume' in the op but its too late for editing. Everyone, please read about his work though, and realize that he has been fighting the good fight for a very long time. I hope he gets in touch with the DNC and that they help him

[Bluerthanblue]

12. Oxbow, THANK YOU for posting this- and

helping me see that actually something positive DID come out of all the fighting and division about Andy and his struggle to get his surgery at the best hospital, and on time-
Someone,back in mid May just as time for the first scheduled surgery on Andy was drawing near, was getting frazzled about all the garbage being passed around, and mentioned that they might possibly have done Damu a disservice by not expending as much energy on him, as on Andy- so,- out of curiosity, and a desire to 'do what i can' as much as i am able- i went to his sight, and donated my pitiful, but none the less appreciated 'mite'- and got the opportunity to learn about another wonderful man-

SO, even out of the worst of times, some goodness was planted.

We all need each other- in so many ways- and even a 'little' bit helps-
thanks for bringing back to memory, and for bringing Damu into the spotlight.

'WE ALL NEED EACH OTHER, TO LEAN ON' i've leaned many times- and thankfully, people have been there- how can i not return that act of kindness? We may not 'know' each other, but we are ALL in this together-

[oxbow]

13. It's days like this that I'm proud to be a progressive

thank you for your love and support of Damu. I feel like its my life that you're trying to save right now because you are absolutely right: we ARE one community. Even though many of us have never even met, we are family, and will continue to support each other come whatever.