February 7th is National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day.
National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day
was founded by five national organizations funded by the Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention in 1999 to provide capacity building assistance
to Black communities and organizations. The initiative begin in 2000 with these
five key organizations: Concerned Black Men, Inc. of Philadelphia;
Health Watch Information and Promotion Services, Inc.; Jackson State University
- Mississippi Urban Research Center; National Black Alcoholism and Addictions
Council; and National Black Leadership Commission on AIDS.
National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day
began as a grass roots effort with hundreds of organizations
registering events and/or activities to raise the awareness of HIV and AIDS in
their communities. It is shaped around the needs of those communities that work
hard each and every year to make it a success. Each year, almost 20,000 Blacks
in the United States test positive for HIV, that is an alarming amount if you
multiply it times the last five years alone - that's 100,000
Blacks who are now living with HIV or may have died from AIDS related
complications. It's time for us to do something different that inspires young
and old, gay and straight, religious and non-religious, etc. to get on board
with realizing the value and worth of Black life and acting accordingly.
First stop Maryland eastern shore. I had the honor of returning to present to students on HIV/AIDS Awareness and promote HIV testing.
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