What is the Protest Policy?

The Summit promotes freedom of expression as an essential principle in the HIV response. Activism has always been central to our movement, and we encourage debate and dialogue as key elements of the Summit, including the right to engage in peaceful protest.

However, NMAC and its partners strongly object to any actions that interrupt conference sessions, meetings, or secondary (satellite) exhibits in a way that prevents attendees from fully participating in the educational and learning opportunities offered at the Summit.

We ask all participants to respect the mission, spirit, and integrity of the Summit and to use sound judgment when organizing demonstrations. Any individual or group planning a demonstration or protest during any portion of the conference—including within the exhibition hall—must notify conference staff in advance at conferences@nmac.org and designate a primary contact person.

Demonstration organizers must also adhere to the following guidelines:

• Limit demonstrations to a maximum of 15 minutes
• Hold no more than one demonstration per day

NMAC reserves the right to determine whether a demonstration is disruptive or detrimental to the mission and values of the Summit. While we recognize and value freedom of expression, we must balance this with the needs of our members, sponsors, exhibitors, and attendees to ensure a productive and respectful conference environment for all.

Failure to comply with these guidelines may result in removal from the conference and possible prohibition from attending future NMAC-sponsored events.