Today is World AIDS Day 2020
From the World Health Organization (WHO)… On 1 December WHO joins partners in paying tribute to all those working to provide HIV services, and in calling on global leaders and citizens to rally for “global solidarity” to maintain essential HIV services during COVID 19 and beyond. It is a call to focus on vulnerable groups […]
NASTAD: Black Lives Matter
From the National Alliance of State and Territorial AIDS Directors… The core of NASTAD’s mission is an unwavering commitment to social justice. We recognize that we will not end the HIV and hepatitis epidemics and related syndemics without dismantling the systems of oppression that fuel racial disparities in access and outcomes. We prioritize fighting […]
Fauci: Gay people lifted stigma with ‘incredible courage’ in HIV/AIDS epidemic
From the Washington Blade… Dr. Anthony Fauci said Tuesday the visibility LGBTQ people brought to themselves during the height of the HIV/AIDS epidemic helped change the tide for public perception. Fauci made the remarks during the daily White House Coronavirus Task Force briefing when responding to COVID-19’s disproportionate impact on black Americans, saying the disease […]
Challenging HIV Stigma
From Sean Strub, POZ Magazine’s founder… Biomedical advances against HIV since the dawn of the epidemic have been nothing short of astonishing. An almost always fatal disease is now, for those with the privilege of access to treatment, a manageable chronic illness, treated with a single daily pill. A person who acquires HIV today has […]
NIH Statement on World AIDS Day 2019
From the NIH… Ending the HIV Epidemic: A Plan for America aims to close this implementation gap. NIH-funded advances in effective HIV prevention, diagnosis, treatment and care are the foundation of this effort. In addition, expanded partnerships across HHS agencies, local community organizations, health departments, and other organizations will drive new research to determine optimal implementation […]
The most insidious virus: stigma
From the Washington Blade… Stigma did not create AIDS. Yet it prepared the way and speeded its ravaging course through America and the world. First stigma delayed understanding of the disease: it’s a gay cancer, it’s a punishment from God, they brought it on themselves, so who cares? Then stigma delayed government action, research, and assistance for […]
Latinx students need access to PrEP on college campuses
From hivplusmag.com… It’s clear that there are discrepancies in the support young men of color have when it comes to accessing key sexual health services. So, what can we do to change this? One way we can help young people prevent HIV is through providing PrEP on college campuses. Providing PrEP on college campuses gives […]
Acceptance Journeys Pittsburgh – Photo stories of love and acceptance
Faith, Michael, and Michelle “When a person comes out to you, keep in mind that the person has not changed. The relationship you established with that person stays the same. It’s just another label, and there are layers and layers of labels that we all put on ourselves and that we give to each other. […]
We won’t end the HIV epidemic until we help the most vulnerable
From Plus magazine online…. By Terri Jackson How do we reduce rates concentrated among black and Latino men who have sex with men? Or meet the needs of HIV-positive patients caught between insurance plans or places to live? To end the epidemic, we must start where we began — by focusing on those most affected, uniting […]
An epidemic during a pandemic: 40 years since HIV
From NorthcentralPA.com… Williamsport, Pa — The Coronavirus pandemic is not the only virus which has upended the lives of countless millions. On June 5, 1981, Americans heard the first rustlings of what soon became known as the AIDS epidemic. Few could have predicted the widespread havoc this new virus was about to have on the […]