AFC is heartbroken to learn that long-time HIV advocate Ben Montgomery passed away. Ben was a campaigner from the West Side of Chicago and fought for health care access, HIV funding and equity and justice. Ben raised hell when he needed to — and got results. He was one of the driving forces behind the first-in-the-nation HIV/AIDS Quality of Life scratch-off lottery ticket, which has raised millions of dollars for HIV services in Illinois. He also led advocacy efforts for the Illinois African American HIV/AIDS Response Fund, which directed HIV funding to Black-led organizations. “Ben Montgomery was unapologetically Black and believed that Black people must be leaders when it came to tackling issues that affected Black people,” said Coleman Goode, Manager, Community Organizing. Ben was a true champion, continuing to rally, advocate and coordinate HIV service providers on Chicago’s West Side with the Westside Health Advocates Regional Planning Coalition (WHARP). Rest in power, Ben.
