Tag: Awareness

HIV Smart Fight Stigma Photo Event – Staten Island

HIV Smart is a photo awareness campaign focusing on education about prevention methods such as PrEP & PEP, the importance of knowing your status, the link between HIV+ people and depression, and fighting stigma.
 
ALL people regardless of status are encouraged to attend.
 
HIV Prevention education will be available about PrEP/PEP by Mount Sinai.
 
WEAR BLUE for your photo!
 
* FREE HIV testing will be provided onsite *
 
Everyone is encouraged to use their pictures in all social media to foster conversations regardless of status.
 
Location:
College of Staten Island
2800 Victory Blvd
Staten Island NY, 10314
 
Official Website: http://www.HIVSmart.org/
 
Donations to the campaign can be made at http://www.HIVSmart.org/give
 
Know Facts, No Myths
 
#HIVSmart #KnowFactsNoMyths #GetEducated #FightStigma #NotAlone

Her Words – Cacophony Daniels (Drag Queen Extraordinaire)

My personal story with HIV- I’m old enough to have known people taken from us due to HIV/AIDS, but young enough that I watched the worst of the crisis from my mom’s house while I was growing up. For those of us in my generation, being gay was synonymous with dying of AIDS. When I came out to my mother, she was accepting and wonderful, but when I found her in tears later that day she said “I’m just scared for you, I don’t want people to treat you differently and I don’t want you to get AIDS.” Gay men in my age group had it drilled into us that the ONLY sex was safe sex. When you “slipped up,” there was no PEP to fall back on. You waited an anxious 6 months for the tests to finally show whether a simple mistake or temporary lapse of judgement meant a death sentence.

Many faces of Cacophony Daniels

Many faces of Cacophony Daniels

My husband Jason has always worked for non-profit organizations, first at the National Gay & Lesbian Task Force, then at Wingspan (the LGBT community center in Tucson, AZ) and most recently at Gay Men’s Health Crisis. Through him, and through being an actor and raising money with Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS, being an ally has been a part of my life for over a decade. I have lost friends to HIV/AIDS, and as a community we lost an entire generation. We need to stop it. We CAN stop it, if everyone is educated. And by everyone I mean EVERYONE. Gay men, their doctors, their elected representatives, health insurance companies, everyone.

PrEP and PEP are SUCH important tools for us. I can’t believe there’s even an argument about it. It’s a PILL that can STOP HIV. What’s to argue about?

I’m passionate about getting information out there because I’ve seen how UNinformed or MISinformed people are. There are doctors, DOCTORS, who don’t know about PrEP and PEP. Why not? Because they’re not told about it. I had a friend in a Red state who needed to access PEP last year. He had to go to an emergency room and explain to the staff what it was. You’re supposed to start it within 36-72 hours, and that precious time was spent educating doctors and nurses and insurance companies and pharmacies about a life-saving drug. He finally got it and it all worked out, but the experience opened his eyes and mine.

To the newly diagnosed, I say this: Keep seeing your doctor. Stay on your meds. Interrupting your drug regimen gives the virus a chance to develop resistance. Keeping the virus undetectable helps to lessen the likelihood of passing it on. Staying on your meds and keeping up with your doctor is the best way to keep yourself healthy and to stop the virus from spreading to anyone else. But also- keep going out. Keep meeting new people. Keep having hot, amazing, body-afirming sex! Your diagnosis is not a death sentence, so don’t let it squeeze the life out of you!

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HIV Smart Photo Event – Grand Central Nightclub MD

GrandCentralNightclub_Jan31

HIV Smart @ Grand Central Nightclub

HIV Smart @ Grand Central Nightclub

January 24 – Grand Central Nightclub 1-4PM

HIV Smart is a photo awareness campaign promoting education and testing.
All people, regardless of status are encouraged to attend.
Participants MUST wear a BLUE shirt. Pictures will be available on the www.HIVSmart.org website.
Free HIV testing will be provided by Project_RE.
Everyone is encouraged to use their pictures in all social media to foster conversations regardless of status.
Join Sir Eli, Mr. Maryland Leather 2016 as the guest host and be part of HIV Smart + campaign.
There will be giveaways by the Grand Central Nightclub and a 50/50 raffle benefiting HIV Smart.

Official Website: http://www.HIVSmart.org

Donations to the campaign can be made at http://www.HIVSmart.org/give

Know Facts, No Myths
#HIVSmart #KnowFactsNoMyths #GetEducated #FightStigma #NotAlone

HIV Smart Photo Event – Eagle NYC

DEC 13 - THE EAGLE

DEC 13 – THE EAGLE

HIV Smart is a photo awareness campaign promoting education and testing.
All people, regardless of status are encouraged to attend.
Participants MUST wear a BLUE shirt. Pictures will be available on the www.HIVSmart.org website.
Free HIV testing will be provided by GMHC.
Everyone is encouraged to use their pictures in social media to foster conversations regardless of status.
Join Barber Q- Mr. Eagle NYC 2016 your host, WEAR A Blue Shirt or Tee and be part of HIV Smart + campaign.
There will be Giveaway & Raffles by The Eagle NYC & ManSkins.

Official Website: http://www.HIVSmart.org

Donations to the campaign can be made at http://www.HIVSmart.org/give

Know Facts, No Myths
#HIVSmart #KnowFactsNoMyths #GetEducated