Fabregas, Tomas

Biography

Tomas Fabregas, a Spanish citizen, traveled to the United States in 1979. Fascinated by New York, he became a legal permanent resident. Fabregas worked for the United Nations in New York prior to moving to California in order to pursue graduate work at UC Berkeley. When he was diagnosed as HIV positive in 1989, Fabregas put his career on hold to become an AIDS activist. He began his involvement with the San Francisco AIDS Foundation in 1989 by volunteering for the Foundation's Public Policy Department.

He continued his work with the San Francisco AIDS Foundation in 1990, helping to create a multilingual newsletter for HIV positive people on behalf of the Foundation's Education Department as well as being elected to the San Francisco AIDS Foundation's board of Directors and the Healing Alternatives Foundation's Board of Directors. Additionally, Fabregas became a member of ACT UP Golden Gate and ACT UP San Francisco in 1990. Fabregas worked with ACT UP on the Treatment Issues Committee as well as the Joint Immigration Working Group of ACT UP San Francisco and ACT UP Golden Gate.

In his capacities at the San Francisco AIDS Foundation and the ACT UP Immigration Working Group, Fabregas campaigned to have immigration and travel restrictions on HIV positive people lifted worldwide. In the United States, Fabregas campaigned against the Nickles amendment, a piece of U.S. legislation which retained the exclusion of HIV positive immigrants and travelers. Fabregas also campaigned both the Bush senior and Clinton administrations to release the HIV positive Haitian refugees quarantined at Guantanamo Bay.

Fabregas traveled to AIDS conferences worldwide, often as a keynote speaker. He was instrumental in urging the 8th International AIDS Conference to move the conference location from Boston due to U.S. immigration and travel restrictions on HIV positive people. The 8th International AIDS conference was held in Amsterdam in 1992, featuring Fabregas as a speaker at the opening ceremony. Jeffrey Brooks, Fabregas' partner, often traveled overseas with him.

Fabregas resigned from the San Francisco AIDS Foundation in 1993. He died of AIDS related complications in 1994 at age 36.