Upcoming Community Event: 2nd Annual Saving Ourselves Symposium

  

This year The Red Door Foundation will host an exciting symposium planned that includes different activities involving presenters from various interdisciplinary fields, including HIV/AIDS and STD fields on both local and national levels. Speakers include:  Dr. Mitchell Wharton (University of Rochester), Daniel D. Driffin (University of Connecticut), Michelle Allen (Georgia Department of Public Health), Dr. Leo Moore (Yale University School of Medicine), DaShawn Usher (New York Blood Center- Project ACHIEVE), Jonathan Paul Lucas (FHI360), Noël Gordon (Human Rights Campaign), Anthony Roberts, Jr. (ARJR, LLC), Justin Tyson (The Academia Society, Incorporated), Steven Martinez (AVAC), Dr. Shanell McGoy (Tennessee Department of Health), Marvell L. Terry, II (The Red Door Foundation, Inc.)  and Blake Rowley (National Association of State and Territorial AIDS Directors).  To see a complete list of confirmed speakers and their bios, click here.

Thursday, June 5 and Friday, June 6 will be the Black Gay Men’s Technical Assistance Meeting. The technical assistance workshops is designed for traditional and non-traditional stakeholders working with Black Gay Men in a effort to improve their overall health outcomes.  Workshops include topics such as Culture Sensitivity, Faith & Black Gay Men, Bio-medical Prevention,  Mental Health, Exploring Sub-cultures and Building Rapport with Black Gay Men, to name a few. 

  Plenary discussions during the 2014 Saving Ourselves Symposium will be hosted by Young Black Gay Men’s Leadership Initiative, AVAC, Intimacy & Colour and Gilead Pharmaceuticals.

SpeakOut will be the topic for the Twitter Town Hall Meeting on Friday night, June 6, 2014.  SpeakOut will convey the need for black gay/bi-sexual and same gender loving men to speak out about their relationships, their health and for their communities in the South.  This discussion will be interactive by using #SpeakOut on twitter.

  Saturday morning will involve community level workshops on topics such as PrEP (pre-exposure prophylaxis), Finance Management, Interpersonal Relationships, Spirituality and Sexuality,  Self-Care, Social Media Activism  and Leading with Passion.

Sponsors for the 2014 Saving Ourselves Symposium are Southland Park Gaming and Racing, Tennessee AETC, James Anderson Lester, King Rose Consulting, Positively Aware, WellsConsulting, Family Safety Center,  and the Human Rights Campaign. Sponsorship opportunities and vendor space is still available. Contact trdfmemphis@gmail.com to request information.

 

Deadline to book rooms at the host hotel under the conference rate of $91.00 is Friday, May 16, 2014.  For Lodging/ Venue, Registration and Theme Information visit www.trdfmemphis.com.  

 Credit to original news source: HIVmemphis.org

Leaders of Today

RECENTLY I HAD BEEN struggling with my career decision, doubting whether or not the work I am doing is affecting change. There are few young African American men who have sex with men (MSM) in Columbus who are in key positions in the field of HIV prevention, policy and advocacy or who have a desire to mobilize the African American MSM community. I often felt alone and without support in my struggle, but all that changed on April 2 when I became part of the Young Black Gay Men’s Leadership Initiative (YBGLI). I dedicate this column to them.

The Center for Disease Control and Prevention announced an alarming 48 percent increase of new HIV cases among young African American MSM between the ages of 13 – 29. As a result, the National Black Gay Men’s Advocacy Coalition assembled five dynamic young gay leaders to strategize to address the need for increased peer-based community mobilization and activism in combatting the HIV epidemic. In the spring of 2012 the five leaders created the YBGLI.

The initiative is led by an organizing committee of  young black men who have sex with men (YBMSM) under the age of 30 with professional backgrounds in research, community mobilization, policy and advocacy. Membership consists of young African American gay, bisexual, and/or same gender loving men from different areas of the country. The initiative’s mission is to address the issues disproportionately affecting their peers, particularly related to HIV prevention, care and treatment, through leadership mobilization and policy efforts.

In 2012 the YBGLI hosted its first Policy and Advocacy Summit in Washington, D.C. Fifty-three African American MSM came together to discuss the HIV/AIDS epidemic and different ways they could contribute to the fighting it and to address other disparities within the MSM of color community. Members also participated in discussions on research, policy, advocacy, leadership, health disparities and mobilization.

I applied to and was accepted to attend the recent 2014 YBGLI Policy and Advocacy Summit in Atlanta, Georgia. The summit was one of the most inspiring, motivating and educational experiences in my life. I was surrounded by like-minded men who shared the same passion I have for mobilizing YBMSM to become mentally, physically and emotionally empowered. It was so refreshing since it was so different from what I have experienced in Columbus or in Ohio.

This year’s summit also included 58 of the most passionate and determined YBMSM. We were chosen to be a part of the summit based on the work they were doing and the potential we had to become better leaders within their communities. We gathered to discuss HIV/AIDS, policy, advocacy, Obamacare, the African American church and homosexuality, stigma and ways we can mobilize our communities. To be able to be in a room with so many diverse and inspiring men was simply amazing.

From the moment I stepped onto the plane to Atlanta, I knew my life would change. Prior to attending the summit, I was struggling with the fact that there are very few African American MSM who are open about their sexuality to look up to as leaders in Columbus, and I was continuously looking for others like myself who I can look up to for advice, affirmation and lean on for support. I now know that I am not alone. It is empowering to have a group of supporters throughout the nation who I can call on and look up to. I no longer struggle; instead, I am stepping up to be one of the few YBMSM leaders in my community. My passion for the work I do was reignited by the summit and I left knowing that the work I am doing is needed and supported. No matter what challenges that I have or will face, I will never give up.

Young Black Gay/Bisexual/Queer/Trans Men are In!

 
  April second through the fourth saw 55 young black men from across the nation to meet in Atlanta, Georgia for the YBGLI’s second Policy and Advocacy Summit. When I confirmed to my parents that I was gay so many years ago they warned me that my life would be very difficult, and that it would be full of barriers that would require me to be the very best in everything that I do. This belief stayed within and made me believe until more recently that if I was not perfect or the best in whatever I was attempting then there was no reason trying to pursue.

  While on my flight heading to Atlanta so many thoughts were running through my head. I really wanted to work hard to learn as much as possible and network. I am not going to lie when I felt as if the summit would be the same as any other conference, which would be information overload and maybe some opportunities to network. We all met downstairs to talk and network before walking over to the location we had our first session waiting for us. It was a great opportunity because it was a happy hour. This allowed us to begin the process to truly get to know each other. It was truly great to see old friends but have the ability to start the process of making new ones. Our first night had us at The Evolution Project. The Evolution Project is a drop-in community center for young black gay/bisexual men and transgender individuals between 18 and 28 years of age. There we got an overview of the drop-in center, listened to representatives of AID Atlanta and the state health department, and got to hear from Jose R. Rodriguez-Diaz who is the CEO of AID Atlanta. We then received a presentation on the Affordable Care Act and then had a private screening of Blackbird by Patrik-Ian Polk.

  Throughout the next day and a half we discussed health disparities, policy, advocacy, HIV prevention among Young Black Men Who Have Sex with Men (YBMSM), research, leadership, Feminism and its importance to Black Gay Men, and personal development & personal branding. The always-fantastic Testing Makes Us Stronger Team gave a presentation on their program to us before the Twitter Town Hall that will forever remain one of the most interesting experiences of my life.

On the final day, we had two very special events and both of them I will cherish for the rest of my life. We had the pleasure of having Dr. Theo Hodge, whom is a provider in DC, yet shared his story about his experiences in the district during the AIDS epidemic. Hearing him tell the stories of having clients taking HIV medications in the handfuls, the effects of AZT that were physically noticeable, and more importantly reviewing the timeline of then to here. The recording of the presentation needs to happen so it has the opportunity to play for every Young Black Gay Man (heck everyone) who is not familiar with the history of HIV. Our group truly enjoyed his charisma and his ability to convey such a serious story in a way to continue to engage us throughout our time together. Finally, the last session of the summit was one where Dr. David Malebranche, Dr. Sheldon D. Fields, Robert Miller, and Mr. Bernard Owens each gave us their stories and additional encouragement. I cannot tell you how much I saw the future me in these men. Each of them made me feel so comfortable I was able to break down my walls of protection and cry on their shoulders. I finally was able to let out my internalized stress and express my frustrations in a space where I felt as if I did not have to be either politically correct or forced to give some bullshit pageant reply like “I just want world piece.” It is truly a blessing to be in this position; however, it sometimes makes me feel extra diligent to stay on my Ps and Qs (even if that means saving those conversations for ‘kitchen table talk’). Immediately they offered their experiences and friendships and I am happy to say that post YGBLI’s Policy and Advocacy Summit we are still in contact and their words and perspectives have been invaluable. Having this opportunity would have been very difficult to achieve outside of this space.

This summit was definitely a success and far exceeded my expectations. The participants were very diverse and came from different geographical areas and professional (not just HIV). Topics were set but we had the ability to truly dissect what we were discussing, even if it transitioned off-topic for a bit. Having the ability to speak to representatives of our government agencies (CDC, HRSA, SAMHSA, and the Georgia Department of Public Health) gave us the ability to voice our concerns, thoughts, and ideas. The lack of job vacancies/internships and leadership positions, slow approval times for marketing materials, lack of funding to rural and other low socioeconomic communities that are seeing a rise in HIV, lack of cultural competency, and a vast array of others issues that were mentioned during this time period. I concern I had was that many of the representatives on the panel were white and only two members participating were Black. This is a perfect reminder that we need to have more opportunities to have Young Black Men Who Have Sex with Men (to include those who are HIV-positive) to fill these seats in the future to ensure that decisions made for us are created by and come from us. A huge shout-out though goes to Mr. Harold Phillips of HRSA who saw a need to address our questions due to the lack of time/ability of those reps on the panel to answer them. He graciously volunteered his own time to say back lack from 12am-1am to answer any of the questions he could. During this time, our awesome Organizing Committee Members took who concerns down and later brought them up with Douglas Brooks, the New Director of the Office of National AIDS Policy (ONAP). Feeling as if we had a voice was very empowering. Having that experience has and will continue to ensure engage my government on concerning issues.

The Policy and Advocacy Summit allowed for the formation of new relationships and partnership .It was like a beginning of a new brotherhood. From my end, there were phenomenal conversations and I cannot wait to announce fantastic news in the coming weeks! Addressing surviving as an YBMSM professional, leadership, and more importantly branding made me look at myself and analyze ways I can still to this day continue to seek self-improvement. This summit created a space where we could exchange stories, ideas, experiences, and more importantly continued support for one another. To this day, I am still in contact with many of my new friends and colleagues as we check in or support each other through the struggles of being an YBMSM in a society that has serious issues accepting us as social norms.

Coming to a close of the summit Daniel Driffin, Chair of the Organizing Committee for YBGLI said something that we all took back to our homes, careers, and everyday lives. This was that our voice does matter, no matter where we were, no matter how hard the struggle was, and no matter how much we felt like our voices were unheard. This can seem very frustrating at jobs or ASOs where our advice or knowledge isn’t used; we continue to be disenfranchised; we deal with disrespect or ignorance from Cisgender white men (even gay) who do not truly understand the struggles and barriers of being a young Black Man who loves Men. These men still face a huge war within our own communities, to include mainstream society. His words really were soothing and helped to bury anger and resentment I had from some of those situations. In the end, I truly hope that this summit continues and wish that many more could take place across the country. If we can get more YBMSMs to go through a program like this, our community would see an increase in advocacy, activism, enlightenment, and progression toward more solidarity.

 

---

A very special thank you goes out to NGBMAC, NASTAD, The City of Atlanta, AID Atlanta, The Evolution Project, Testing Makes Us Stronger, Sphere Lab, The Red Door Foundation, Inc., AIDS.gov, Gilead, San Francisco AIDS Foundation, Georgia Department of Health, Impulse Group, AHF, Hudson Grille, Patrik-Ian Polk, HRC, Broadway Cares, Levi Strauss Foundation, Renaissance Atlanta Midtown Hotel, Summit Faculty, OC Members, and more importantly the participants for making this event happen.  For more information check out www.ybgli.org

From Blog.AIDS.Gov- Black Voices: Having (And Using) My Voice To Address Stigma

BLACK VOICES: HAVING (AND USING) MY VOICE TO ADDRESS STIGMA

 

My name is Patrick, I am a gay man of color, and I currently reside in Fredericksburg, Virginia. I was diagnosed with HIV at a health department in Virginia on December 1, 2011, which happened to be World AIDS Day.

Turning my life into my life’s mission

From the moment I tested positive, I have dealt with stigma and discrimination. I dealt with friends saying they wanted nothing to do with me because of my new status.  A person who I thought was my best friend said he would be there for me when I disclosed to him. That was not the case as he began to no-show on events, activities, or previous plans to spend time together.  This made me feel unwanted and pretty much like I was transformed from a best friend to a stranger in just a 72-hour period. I turned to Facebook and YouTube to learn more about HIV and find someone to talk to, but couldn’t find someone I identified with. There seemed to be a lack of HIV-positive young people of color talking about what it’s like to live with the virus, so I started my blog, PozLifeofPatrick . I use this site to journal my life living with HIV and address other topics related to HIV, like stigma, disclosure, and dating.

In addition to my website, I am the Testing Coordinator at the rural community-based organization, Fredricksburg Area HIV/AIDS Support Services (FAHASS) . Through my blog, work in prevention, and advocacy I hope to reach as many people as I can to bring more focus on HIV.

 It’s so important that we have a voice.

 Stigma and rural communities

When I started at FAHASS, I was briefed on the challenges I might face trying to recruit, educate, and provide prevention services like testing to the Black community in rural Virginia. But nothing could prepare me for the reality which was how people would react to me when they found out I was HIV+. “You don’t look sick,” was something I heard a lot. Staff working for years tell me that HIV-related stigma stops so many people, particularly in rural communities, from utilizing our services because so many people that test positive in our community don’t end up successfully linking to care.

I continue to hear that stigma prevents people from testing, disclosing their status or testing frequency, coming into our agency for prevention tools like condoms, or going to the doctor and asking for a prescription for Post-Exposure Prophylaxis (PEP) or Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP). Also, I’ve seen how stigma can prevent individuals who are either lost to care or newly diagnosed from being successfully linked to and remaining in care.

Engaging the community where they are

We work hard to educate and empower our Black community about HIV through outreaching to local colleges, community based organizations that serve our target populations, churches, and local health fairs. We have continued to work with the community through our Community Advisory Boards, asking clients for suggestions to better our services, coming up with additional opportunities to test, and working to engage and involve more young people of color. We have a mobile testing vehicle that we can use to reach more people in our service.

 Having (and using) my voice

In my time at FAHASS I have tested and educated many young black same gender-loving men. Through our outreach and testing efforts we have tested more people who ended up being HIV positive, the majority are people like me, men under the age of 25.

As a person living with HIV, I talk to providers on what it’s really like to live with the HIV and help debunk myths or misconceptions, including information about PrEP and PEP. I also work with the providers about how to effectively work with the LGBTQ, HIV-positive, youth, Black, and Hispanic communities to provide them with the tools to meet them where they are at on a more personal level by sharing my story through my blog and videos. Because I am a part of this community, I can help normalize HIV and equip people with the knowledge to help prevent new HIV infections and get people into care.

By being so open about my status, I’ve been able to establish “roots”. Like roots on a tree, I have a strong system network of friends. Friends they now stand up for me. Friends that support me. Together we fight stigma. And they give me strength to share my voice and share my story.

We all have a voice and something to share. Will you stand alongside me? Will you share your voice? Will you help me to be part of the solution?

This article was originally from Blog.AIDS.Gov

Do you swallow

Great work by Venton Jones and the Aids.gov team! Check out http://blog.aids.gov/2014/04/swallow-a-pill-for-hiv-prevention.html for more information

Twitter Town Hall: Portrayal of Black Gay Men in Media

Young Black Gay Leadership Initiative’s 2014 Policy and Advocacy Summit

Community Educational Training on PrEP – DC

 

 

 

 

Save the Date! 

Community Educational Training on PrEP April 22nd!

The National Minority AIDS Council (NMAC) will host a community education training on Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP) this April 22, 2014 from 9am-4:30pm at Washington, DC’s DENIM. We’ll provide the most current and accurate information about PrEP, its efficacy, and how it can be an important tool to help young gay men stay HIV-negative. As new infections continue to rise among young gay men of color, we’ll discuss the unique opportunity PrEP presents for young gay, bisexual, and same-gender loving men. These trainings will also allow participants to engage with PrEP educational videos and cultivate skills to better implement and/or replicate the educational videos for a particular community.

Topics covered in the training include:

• Current landscape of HIV for young gay men
• Biomedical HIV prevention
• PrEP, access, and the Affordable Care Act
• Comprehensive prevention
• PrEP risk and benefits
• Health literacy for both providers and patients
• PrEP and stigma

Location: DENIM
6925 Blair Road, NW
Washington, DC  20012
http://www.uhupil.org/denim

Click here to RSVP! 

Young Black Gay Men’s Leadership Initiative’s 2014 Policy and Advocacy Summit

 

This year has already started off busy as ever.  My blogging has definitely taken a hit but I assure you I am not out (rather just trying to get the word out about Pozlife).  Tomorrow I will be flying in the skies above again and touching down in Atlanta, Georgia for the 2014 Policy and Advocacy Summit, which comes via the Young Black Gay Men’s Leadership Initiative.

Alongside 55 other young Black Gay, Bisexual, Same Gender-Loving Men (MSMs) we will spend 2 and 1/2 days of an great opportunity.  The summit will have over 12 sessions ranging from the Affordable Care Act and its impact on young Black gay men to how to survive as a young Black gay professional.  This summit in my opinion definitely helps to address many issues that Black gay men are dealing with, and plant the seed for more continued invest by Black gay men to be better leaders in their communities.

There will also be a Twitter Town Hall  t to ensure all who cannot make it are included and to spread awareness on the topic at hand which is the portrayal of Black gay men in media.  The Twitter Town Hall will be held on Thursday, April 3, from 7:30 – 9:30 p.m. (ET), as part of a panel discussion with a live audience. Twitter users can join this conversation using the same #ybgli . Online viewers can watch the panel discussion via visiting YBGLI YouTube Channel  for a live feed.  So tune in and continue to keep an eye out on my Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram for content and information.

 

For information on YBGLI check out http://ybgli.org

 

 

 

 

 

HIV in Rural Communities (pt.1)

Check out my new series that discusses HIV in rural communities. I interview individuals who are actually on the ground leading the fight against this growing epidemic in rural Virginia. Please share and spread the word!

Ebony.com The Real Faces of HIV

Ebony.com The Real Faces of HIV

I was featured in a piece by ebony.com titled “The Real Faces of HIV.  Myself and other friends I work were involved in the project and it is exciting seeing more African-American news articles bringing more focus to HIV on National Black HIV&AIDS Awareness Day.