HIV

Sep 23 2011

The search for treatment among African Americans

Say mental illness in the African American community, and most likely you will cause a pause in conversations as large as the white elephant in the room. Mental illness has a disturbing and persistently negative history in the Black community throughout the United States.

Fueled by mistrust of a system that often views Black people as nothing more than guinea pigs ripe for experimentation, accepting the label “mentally ill” comes with a huge stigma.

Aug 16 2011

For Adult Industry Responsibility

UNIVERSAL CITY, Calif.—The Los Angeles-based AIDS Healthcare Foundation announced a petition drive today to get a city ordinance on the June ballot that would require porn actors to wear condoms.

“At present, animals working in film and TV productions in Los Angeles enjoy more safety and health protections than adult film performers do,” according to Michael Weinstein, president of AHF. “There are laws and state statutes to protect adult performers, but there is no real enforcement.”

Jun 24 2011

Results given onsite

PASADENA, Calif.—HIV testing will be administered by the Pasadena Department of Health in Parking Lot B of the Rose Bowl from noon-4 p.m. Sunday.

The testing consists of swabbing the inner cheek. Results are given about 20 minutes later.

Counselors will interpret the results and give details on how to stay HIV negative.

HIV Testing Day at the Rose Bowl will also include hot dogs provided by the Pasadena Firefighters Association and HIV and AIDS education materials and resource tables.

Jun 6 2011

30th anniversary

LOS ANGELES, Calif.—Thirty years ago, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released the first study on the severity of what would become the AIDS epidemic, based on research that focused on five men in Los Angeles who contracted a rare type of pneumonia with no apparent cause.

“The elation of the discovery of a new disease was soon replaced by sadness,” Dr. Michael Gottlieb, who headed the 1981 study, said Friday at a City Hall news conference.

Juliana D. Norwood  |   OW Staff Writer
May 19 2011

Non-profits assistance spans continents

Two Los Angeles-based organizations are working to improve the quality of life in the Motherland, specifically Cameroon, where the rates of HIV infection, maternal mortality and lack of access to healthcare and education are major issues. Additionally, about half of Cameroonians lack sustainable access to safe sanitation while over one-third lacks sustainable access to safe water.

Across Black America

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

California
San Diego college students and volunteers will carry out their sixth home restoration project on Wednesday, July 10 through Sunday, July 14. as part of the “Healing our Heroes’ Homes” (H3) program created by the nonprofit Embrace. The five-day effort will take place at the home of medically retired Marine Corps Capt. Sarah Bettencourt. Bettencourt served with many different units across the country during the Global War on Terrorism and developed a rare neurological disorder in 2008. With a focus to restore the homes of disabled veteran homeowners, H3 falls in line with Embrace’s mission to mobilize college-student volunteers and community members to serve less fortunate members of civilian and veteran communities. The project for the Bettencourts’ home includes kitchen and bathroom remodeling, building ADA-compliant disability ramps, widening their driveway to ADA standards, widening doorways and landscaping.
 
District of Columbia
The 2013 Smithsonian Folklife Festival will showcase its five-year community research project on African American identity with the program “The Will to Adorn: African American Diversity, Style, and Identity.” This multicity collaboration examines the history and culture of the aesthetics of African Americans. The festival will be held June 26-30 and July 3-7, outdoors on the National Mall between Seventh and 14th streets. “Whether we realize it or not, we are all dress artists. The way we compose our look is a creative expression of our ideas about who we are and who we aspire to be,” said Diana N’Diaye, program curator. “This program explores the diversity of African American traditions of style, but also teaches young people the importance of documenting their own culture and saving that information for themselves and future generations.”