AIDS

May 16 2013

Free exams

Sunday, May 19, is a day when many in Los Angeles and surrounding cities will have an opportunity to be twice-blessed. On that day, many will go out to worship, but will also have the options of getting their physical health and mental health check-ups at the same time.

This Sunday is the day that first ladies of 35 local congregations will host free medical tests for illnesses that particularly target African Americans and Hispanics in the community.

Mar 29 2013

Be alert and watch the gloves and instruments

The recent news in Tulsa, Oklahoma, brings to light an issue that is rare, but nonetheless important — cross infection in the dental office, or the transfer of infection from one patient to another in a health care environment.

The unfortunate reality is that you, as the consumer, have very little chance of knowing what’s going on — it’s a huge trust relationship. Cross contamination is literally invisible because it’s caused by microbes invisible to the human eye, so only the professionals can guarantee that it doesn’t happen.

Mar 25 2013

AIDS continues to grow in Africa and in U.S. minority communities

Bill Gates is putting out a call to inventors, but he’s not looking for software, or the latest high-tech gadget. This time he’s in search of a better condom.

On its Grand Challenges website, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation is offering a $100,000 startup grant to the person who designs “the next generation condom that significantly preserves or enhances pleasure” and promotes “regular use.”

Mar 18 2013

Results give researchers hope that a vaccine is possible

Evidence is mounting that it is possible to control the virus that causes AIDS with early treatment, so further therapy is not immediately needed.

A recent study in the journal PLOS Pathogens reports that 14 patients with HIV, who received antiretroviral treatment within 10 weeks of infection, had their viral loads decreased so much that scientists say they are “functionally cured.”

Nov 30 2012

“Working Together for an AIDS-Free Generation”

LOS ANGELES, Calif.—Free HIV testing will be offered and panel discussions will be held in Los Angeles County in connection with Saturday’s 25th observance of World AIDS Day, whose theme is “Working Together for an AIDS-Free Generation.”

Free HIV testing will be offered noon-6 p.m. at L.A. Live, 3-5 p.m. at the AIDS Monument in Lincoln Park in Lincoln Heights and 7-11 p.m. at the Sweet Dreams Dessert Lounge in Whittier.

Across Black America

Here’s a look at African American people and issues making headlines throughout the country.
 

Alabama
Freeman A. Hrabowski, president of the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, will address the annual African American Business Council luncheon on June 28. Hrabowski, who is chairman of President Barack Obama’s Advisory Commission on Education Excellence for African Americans, has a national reputation for his work studying the performance of minority students in math and science. Hrabowski, named one of the 10 best college presidents in the country by Time magazine, was a child leader in the Civil Rights Movement in Birmingham in the 1960s.
 

Arkansas
The Liberty Counsel filed a motion and a brief in United States District Court for the Eastern District of Arkansas seeking to intervene on behalf of a Concepts of Life crisis pregnancy center to defend against a suit filed by the American Civil Liberties Union and the Center for Reproductive Rights. The groups seek to impose a permanent injunction before the Human Heartbeat Protection Act goes into effect July 18. Liberty Counsel also filed a brief opposing the ACLU’s request for an injunction. The “Heartbeat” bill states that when a woman seeks an abortion at or after the 12th week, doctors must test for a fetal heartbeat before an abortion is performed and inform the pregnant mother that the child in her womb has a heartbeat. If a heartbeat is detected, a woman cannot have an abortion, except in cases of rape, incest, and if a mother’s life is in danger. “As we promised when the legislation was introduced, Liberty Counsel will defend this law without reservation for the people of Arkansas, born and pre-born,” said Matt Staver, founder and chairman of Liberty Counsel. “No right is more foundational than the right to life. Without life, all other rights are irrelevant,” concluded Staver.