IAS Investigates Washington D.C. as Host of 2012 International AIDS Conference
Boy with AIDS Survives, Triumphs
CDC Issues Fact Sheet on Oral Sex, HIV Transmission
Cable Positive Foundation Funds Anti-Stigma Campaign
IAS Investigates Washington D.C. as Host of 2012 International AIDS Conference
The International AIDS Society (IAS) announced, on June 11, its interest in convening the International AIDS Conference in 2012 (AIDS 2012) in Washington, D.C. The final decision would depend on whether the United States drops its 22-year ban on the entry of foreigners living with HIV into the country.
IAS President Dr. Julio Montaner said, "This long-standing law, which is contrary to all scientific evidence and human rights principles, is one of the U.S.'s weakest spots in HIV policy.”
The U.S. is among only nine countries in the world that still ban foreigners from visiting and migrating specifically on the basis of an HIV-positive status. The others are: Brunei, China, Oman, Qatar, South Korea, Sudan, United Arab Emirates and Yemen. Despite Congressional repeal of the "HIV entry ban," as it is commonly referred to, in July 2008, the actual regulatory policy that puts the ban into practice is caught up in government bureaucracy and remains in force.
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Boy with AIDS Survives, Triumphs
On June 6, Bryan Jackson, 18, of St. Charles Missouri, graduated from Francis Howell North High School, Betsy Taylor reported in the Washington Post. While that may not seem unusual, what does make it significant is that Brryan survived being injected with HIV-tainted blood by his own father at the age of 11 months. Four years later, the child had progressed to AIDS and it seemed hopeless.
However, Brryan endured a daily routine of 23 pills, three IV medications and two injections, along with being ostracized and ridiculed by his peers, asked by fearful adults not to use water fountains, and missing school due to fatigue and illness. Today, he is a young man with wisdom beyond his years and a vision of what to do with it.
He plans to eventually go to college, but for now will focus on the non-profit organization he’s started, called Hope Is Vital. He’ll work this summer with Project Kindle, an organization that sponsors summer camps for children affected by the disease. He also serves as a speaker with that group and with Upward Bound Ministries. He is even considering going into politics in the future.
His father, Brian Stewart, 42, was convicted of first-degree assault and sentenced to life in prison. He will be eligible for parole in 2011.
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CDC Issues Fact Sheet on Oral Sex, HIV Transmission
According to an article from the June 4, 2009 Lakeland Ledger, the CDC has released a fact sheet informing people that there is some risk of transmitting HIV to others through oral sex, even though it is much lower than the risk of transmission from vaginal or anal intercourse. The CDC says many people believe that oral sex is safe or has no risk of transmitting disease. The CDC fact sheet said that abstaining from any sexual activity or engaging in mutual monogamy where both partners are uninfected are the only ways to completely prevent HIV transmission, but that condoms and other barriers between the mouth and genitals can reduce the risk of transmission through oral sex.
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At a press conference on June 8, 2009, the AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF) celebrated the kick-off of a three-week, 14-city tour of their AHF/Magic Johnson Mobile Testing Van, which will travel from Los Angeles through many Southern and Eastern states, culminating in Washington, D.C. on June 27th, National HIV Testing Day. AHF hopes to increase awareness about HIV testing in local communities along the route. The cross-country tour will include free HIV testing and press events in each city.
Actor and AIDS activist Blair Underwood stated at the press conference that, “It is important that people learn how to avoid becoming infected with HIV; or if they are infected, know their HIV status, and seek medical treatment, if needed. These free HIV testing vans provide the testing, counseling, and results all in one session, so people can know their status right away on the same day.”
A fully outfitted 34-foot HIV/AIDS mobile medical treatment clinic will also join the HIV testing caravan starting in New Orleans. The van, affectionately dubbed, ‘Bertha,’ will travel with the AHF/Magic Johnson Testing Unit on to Washington. This mobile clinic will serve as an additional backup HIV testing van along the route. Bertha, however, will return to service as a mobile medical clinic in rural areas of Florida after the National HIV Testing event in Washington on June 27th.
For more information, go to www.aidshealth.org
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Cable Positive Foundation Funds Anti-Stigma Campaign
On June 9, the Western North Carolina AIDS Project (WNCAP) sent out a press release announcing the launch of its “I Need You to Know” campaign. This innovative campaign is an attempt to raise awareness about the problem of HIV/AIDS stigma in the Asheville area and in surrounding rural communities of North Carolina, where fear of stigma is a profound barrier to HIV prevention and treatment.
The campaign will use a set of commercials featuring residents of North Carolina saying what they need others to know about people living with HIV/AIDS. It will also feature an internet sign-on letter in which community members affirm the rights of HIV-positive people.
Cable Positive Foundation, a national organization that mobilizes the cable and telecommunications industry to raise HIV/AIDS awareness, to support education, prevention and care, and to end the stigma surrounding the disease, funded this campaign. The commercials were filmed at Bonesteel films, with time and talent donated by the production company.
To learn more, or to sign on to the WNCAP letter, visit www.wncap.org/iknow.
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