FREE RETREAT February 7th-9th

During the retreat you will get a chance to talk to other individuals about issues that you face everyday and discuss ways to help overcome issues by listening to others that have overcome similar issues, all while being away in a relaxing retreat.

Healthy Relationships is a program for small groups off people living with HIV/AIDS. Knowing that the lives of persons living with HIV/AIDS are stressful, this retreat aims to build coping skills to reduce stress. Some of the skills involve:

• Solving problems
• Making decisions
• Negotiating choices

These skills can be used in situations such as:

• Disclosing HIV status to family and friends
• Disclosing to sex partners
• Building healthy and safer relationships

Healthy Relationships does not tell people they should disclose. Participants use the skills to make informed decisions about disclosure and sexual behavior.

For more information:

call 202-446-1100
or
Email

Ken Pettigrew
Kpettigrew@uhupil.org

Kenya Hutton
Khutton@uhupil.org

Community Marches and Speaks Out against HIV/AIDS in SE DC

On Saturday Nov 3rd around 150 people took to the streets in SE Washington, DC to demand changes to the way the HIV/AIDS epidemic is being addressed. The Metropolitan Washington Public Health Association and DC Fights Back were joined by numerous organizations and community members.You can read the Examiner's coverage of the event here



In this photo members of RAP Inc serving as marshals for the March.

Community members were joined by folks from MetroTeen AIDS, Save Lives Free the Condoms, GW Student Global AIDS Campaign, the American Federal Government Employees Union Local 12, and many others.

Recently there have been some positive changes made by the government of the District of Columbia in the way it is responding to the HIV/AIDS epidemic. DC Fights Back applauds the community oriented approach taken by Dr. Shannon Hader. But clearly there are serious problems remaining, many of which are outside of the scope of Dr. Hader's authority.




In this photo hundreds of participants lined the streets in SE.

This March in South East was undertaken to highlight the institutional and social determinants of HIV and AIDS. Many of the principles put forward by both DCFB and MWPHA members are captured by the Prevention Justice Mobilization Campaign. The most succinct of these is AIDS DOESN'T DISCRIMINATE… BUT SOCIETY DOES.




In this photo Larry Bryant and George Kerr help to facilitate the Speak Out portion of the day.

The Speak Out was meant to continue the dialogue about why HIV/AIDS is so catastrophic in DC, to understand why certain communities bear such a disproportionate burden of HIV while others, even though they have the same levels of “individual risk activity,” do not. We wanted to further an understanding of how two individuals from different communities can engage in the same activities but be at much different levels of risk for HIV.

At the last Speak Out community members identified four critical areas where disparities exist which fuel the local epidemic. At this Speak Out we concentrated on determining concrete and obtainable solutions in these areas,



In this photo participants eat and get ready for the break out groups.

1)JOBS
2)HOUSING
3)YOUTH
4)SUBSTANCE ABUSE

Each group discussed the problems and came up with concrete solutions which will be posted on www.dcfightsback.org when we have arranged them.

A highlight of the Speak Out portion was when we were joined by Ward 8 Councilmember Marion Barry who sat in on each of the groups, listened, promised his support to our efforts, and encouraged participants to work with local government on finding and implementing solutions.



In this photo Ward 8 Councilmember Marion Barry participates in the Jobs break out group

This day of solidarity and action is not the end, but rather the beginning of a campaign to affect serious policy changes to End AIDS in the District!

Upcoming events:
Saturday, November 17 12:00pm: OUTREACH and Housing Committee meeting at Highlands Public Library, 115 Atlantic St. SW. More info www.mwpha.org

Wednesday, November 28 5:30pm: ALL OUT for the school health education hearing at the State Board
of Education; 441 4th St. NW. More info www.metroteenaids.org
(Judiciary Square)

Friday, November 30 1:00pm: World AIDS Day, Action at the White House. One of policy asks identified at the Speak Out will be included as the local ask for this action. More info www.dcfightsback.org

Speakout Reports: Stigma Breakout Group

Several organizations co-sponsored a DC HIV/AIDS Speakout on May 17th, 2007. I will be posting the reports from each of the breakout groups throughout the next week. The final outcome document from the Speakout will be published on the DC Fights Back Website. If you'd like to get involved, please be sure to join this yahoo group.

One of our smaller breakout groups at the Speakout was Stigma, which is quite a challenging topic to take on. We all know that stigma impacts HIV in DC. It's one of the reasons some people are reluctant to get tested for HIV in the first place, or to be open about their HIV status.

As our breakout group stated, stigma causes "shunning, hurt, hopelessness, denial of dignity, denial of opportunities, low self esteem, and marginalization.

But how do we fix stigma? Again, our breakout group said: "We fix stigma through education, advocacy, by being real and truthful, through grass roots organizing, by utilizing resources, being involved, and getting others invoved."

One of the concrete suggestions that came out of this group was creating a speakers bureau of HIV positive individuals in DC. I think this is a great idea.

Personally, I think the best way to overcome stigma is for people living with HIV to be out, open, honest, and live their lives with integrity. We are lucky to have several such folks in DC including: Wallace Corbett, David von Storch, Danielle Pleasant, Larry Bryant, Monte Wolfe, and countless others.

As we continue to look at this topic, there are two great resources I want to share with you. The first is NMAC's HIV/AIDS Stigma Resource Center. You'll find lots of great information and resources on that site. Second, the Academy for Educational Development has an "Understanding and Challenging HIV Stigma: Toolkit for Action." It's a rather lengthy PDF file, click here to download the toolkit.

And be sure to share your thoughts on fighting stigma by posting a comment below or e-mailing me privately. Thanks to DC Fights Back member Geno Dunington for facilitating this breakout group and providing opening comments at the Speakout.

click here to download the notes from the stigma breakout group.

Day 4: DC at the US Conference on AIDS

Yesterday I attended a workshop on HIV/AIDS stigma presented by staff of the National Minority AIDS Coalition. We've come a long way in changing the way people see HIV/AIDS, but the stigma associated with HIV is still a barrier for many folks who need to access testing and receive care, especially in communities of color

NMAC presents a two-day training on HIV/AIDS Stigma. You can find out more about the trainings, and find other resources in this area by vising NMAC's Stigma Resource Center.

Striving and Surviving with HIV/AIDS

Whitman Walker will be sponsoring a 9 week discussion group for folks who have recently found out they are HIV Positive. The program, called 'Striving & Surviving with HIV/AIDS' is provided by Whitman-Walker Mental Health & Addictions Treatment Services (MHATS) a program of Whitman Walker. It is slated to begin September 27th.

This group is appropriate for individuals who have been:

• Recently diagnosed with HIV/AIDS
• Seeking more information about HIV and treatment options
• Coping with the difficult emotional effects of their diagnosis, including: depression, anxiety, shame, stigma, confusion
• Seeking a safe and supportive space to discuss HIV/AIDS

To participate in the Striving and Surviving group, or other MHATS programs, individuals must first meet with a MHATS staff person for an initial screening appointment. Some reading and homework will be required for this group. To make an appointment for an assessment, or to ask questions, please contact:

Kevin Waldorf-Cruz, LGSW
(202) 939-7637 or kwaldorf@wwc.org
Whitman-Walker Clinic
1701 14th Street, NW
Washington, D.C. 20009