WASHINGTON, D.C. -- "Drop the debt, treat the people, fund the fund, now!"

In the first Youth AIDS Day held in Washington, D.C. on Saturday, these words echoed through the air as students from around the country, including about 80 from Penn State, learned that although AIDS does not infect everyone, it affects everyone everyday.

"We are the ones we've been waiting for," said Bernice Reagan, a civil rights advocate, as the crowd chanted in unison and waved signs, which ranged in support for more diverse sex education in schools to asking for $1.5 billion toward the Global AIDS Fund.

The day began with an 11 a.m. rally at Lafayette Park in front of the White House, as speakers frequently turned around and criticized President George W. Bush for not giving enough funding to fight AIDS.

"There are a lot of people that are unaware of it the epidemic, especially college students," Theresa Caruolo (sophomore-elementary education) said. "Global funding needs to go up."

Youth AIDS Day spokesman Bob Elliott said that about 3,000 people attended the rally.

Interest in the event declined, as temperatures started to drop, which caused people to leave the rally after the Student March Against AIDS.

"When we got to the Capitol at the end of the march, it was a very empowering and inspiring moment," Alli Gahr (sophomore-human development and family studies) said. "All the speakers made sure to create a sense of awareness."

During the march to the U.S. Capitol Building, onlookers stopped to watch and several cars honked their horns in support for the messages displayed on the marchers' signs.

The Student March Against AIDS was one of many events around the world to promote AIDS awareness. About 3.1 million people, or 8,000 people per day, died from AIDS last year worldwide, according to www.unaids.org.

"The walk and the chants were very powerful and the statistics were surprising," Caruolo said. "I feel more educated now."

Kevin Brehm, Penn State Global AIDS Initiative vice president of advocacy, said he was impressed by the turnout of Penn State students, which included many who are not involved in the Penn State organization.

"Hopefully, all the students that came out today will bring back some knowledge so they can use it to help bring change," Brehm said. "With the numbers that we had, we can show Bush and Congress that we came here for an important cause."

In addition to increased global funding, the march had three other key demands: Placing full funding in and re-authorizing the Ryan White CARE (Comprehensive AIDS Resource Emergency) Act; supporting prevention programs based on science instead of politics; and canceling debt for the 50 poorest countries, which would allow them to provide better healthcare.

Tom Donohue, a former Penn State student and founder of Who's Positive, a non-profit organization devoted to sharing insight into the lives of HIV-positive youth, told the crowd about the Ryan White CARE Act. The act, named for a teenager who died from AIDS 15 years ago, provides funding to those who are affected the most by HIV/AIDS in the United States.

Donohue, who was diagnosed with HIV in October 2003, spoke of two individuals, White and Pedro Zamora, who was on MTV's Real World, as examples of people who lived with AIDS and ultimately died as a result of the disease.

"I look to you all today -- and I hope," Donohue said. "This is a fight for me, a fight for your families and a fight for the community."