Tuesday, November 30, 2010

Aids Awareness Day


Africa Poster 2., originally uploaded by alyssaduhe.

Hey Y’all! So tomorrow is December 1st, 2010 ~ World Aids Day. It is a day set aside every year to raise awareness of AIDS and it’s preventability. I wear something red or a red ribbon every year on December 1st and practically everyday of December because it is a cause that is important to me. I do not know anyone with the disease or who died form the disease, but I know plenty of people and any one of us could be one of them. Aids is a disease with no cure that is spreading everyday because of carelessness and lack of education. Many people contract the disease because of unsafe sex practices. One mistake and the rest of their life has been changed. Others contract the disease the same way but because they are uneducated about it. They think that it’s a gay disease or a black disease or a young person disease, and that they cannot get it because they are not a part of that population. The fact is that AIDS is an EVERYONE disease. The good news is that it is preventable and it is not a death sentence.


Respect, Protect.....

There is a notion that if one does in fact contract the disease that their lives are over. That is not the case these days. Medicine has vastly improved and many people lead normal lives with the disease while they take their medicine. The important thing is to know your status so that you can move forward the best way possible. If you are positive go to the doctor and start your medicine. Ignoring the issue does not make it go away. If you are not positive then stay that way. Don’t practice unsafe sex, don’t have multiple partners. Get tested regularly. Make good decisions.

World AIDS Day Ribbon

I organized a World Aids Day event at college my senior year. It was a good experience but also a learning experience. The entire time I was setting things up I was hitting walls. The posters I made were not acceptable ~ but later approved. The brochures I made were not acceptable ~ but after a long conversation with the dean of students approved. The event is set up was deemed a waste of money ~ later approved. Many people that were close to me refused to wear the red ribbon. I was confused and realized that they were still associating AIDS with gay, black, and young. It was sad that a good cause caught so much flack ~ but the good thing is that the day went off as a success. So tomorrow let’s make it another success. Wear the ribbon and when someone asks you why you are wearing it tell them why. When people are aware of an issue they can do something about it, otherwise the cycle keeps going and there is no hope. I refuse to let that happen.
So this is my cause! What’s yours?

P.S. I found this interesting
http://www.businessweek.com/news/2010-04-01/aids-next-big-thing-gilead-pill-to-prevent-spread-update1-.html

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