For the past five years, AIDS Project Los Angeles (APLA) has purchased paid advertisements on Big Blue Bus for its annual AIDS Walk Los Angeles. The City of Santa Monica is now refusing these ads and all other public service messages from charities.


Santa Monica Mayor Richard Bloom is scheduled to introduce a motion at Tuesday night's City Council meeting designed to immediately overturn this discriminatory policy. APLA has encouraged residents of Santa Monica to phoneCity Hall and also attend the meeting to let the City Council know that this policy is unfair, arbitrary, a possible violation of free speech, and puts AIDS Walk Los Angeles and other non-profits at a further disadvantage in a marketplace that is already saturated

with commercial messages. Representatives of APLA scheduled to attend Tuesday's City Council meeting will include APLA Director of Government Affairs Phil Curtis; APLA Board Member and West Hollywood City Councilman, John Duran; and APLA Board Secretary Carl Baker

WHEN:
Tuesday, September 11, 2012
5:30 PM

WHERE:
Santa Monica City Hall
1685 Main Street #200
Santa Monica, CA 90401

About AIDS Project Los Angeles (APLA): AIDS Project Los Angeles (APLA), one of the largest nonprofit AIDS service organizations in the United States, providesbilingual direct services, prevention education, and leadership on HIV/AIDS-related policy and legislation. With nearly 30 years of service, APLA is a community-based, volunteer-supported organization with local, national, and global reach. For more information, visit apla.org.

About AIDS Walk Los Angeles: Since 1985, AIDS Walk Los Angeles has raised more than $72 million for HIV programs and services throughout Los AngelesCounty, and has grown into one of the largest AIDS fundraising events in the country. In 2011 alone,30,000 participants, many of whom were members of 1,600 corporate and community teams, raised

nearly $3 million for AIDS Project Los Angeles and 20 other AIDS service organizations. For more information, visit aidswalk.net.

About MZA Events: AIDS Walk Los Angeles was founded in 1985 by Craig R. Miller and his organization of activists, MZA Events. Miller is the AIDS Walk originator and has produced hundreds of public service campaigns and fundraising events, generating more than $368 million for major AIDS organizations throughout the country.
For more information, please visit mzaevents.com.