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Reflections on World AIDS Day
Tomorrow, December 1st, is World AIDS Day, a time when organizations and individuals work to heighten awareness about the global AIDS epidemic.
AIDS and Black Youth
I thought this might be of interest to
peeps in the DC area. IIt is important that we all understand the
importance of safe sex. AIDS is now an epidemic in the African-American
community. We all need to become more aware of our surroundings, who we
pledge our allegiance to in regard to love-relationships, and
protecting our lives.--kYm
From SeeingBlack.com
RERINT
Family/Youth
AIDS and Black Youth
By Brittany Hutson�SeeingBlack.com Contributing Writer
Apr 11, 2008, 10:48
Activist Actress 'Cries' for Change
I thought it was important to highlight this article. Many Americans do not believe that African-Americans in the upper circles of life understand what is actually happening in the real world. I believe that many of them do, though the cameras follow them around there are several in particular who demand that they be respected and given the opportunity to give back.
This is my treat to you this week. I always like real journalism--and Ms. Love hit the keys nicely.
-------------------------kYm
Getting my hands dirty in Africa
It is easy to take the statistics, even one of an epidemic,
and never fully understand them as anything else other than numbers. No emotion
goes into reading numbers, no humanity is necessary to analyze graphs, charts,
or percentages. But there is some emotional baggage that comes with hearing the
stories of those individual people who are affected by something like HIV AIDS.
There is something deafening, something biting, something ultimately
frustrating and scary that comes with choosing to take a walk on the human side
of a figure like: "Some 15 million children under age 18 have lost one or
both parents to AIDS," or "...new projections that expanded access to
Seeing (Red): Why Buying a T-Shirt Will Never End AIDS
[asset|aid=300|format=image|formatter=asset|width=256|height=177|align=right|resizable=true]
By Laura Hadden
It sounds innocent enough.
Bono & The (Red) Campaign simply want to "empower" us as consumers to use our dollars to create change. Hand over your credit card and in exchange, they will hand back an overpriced t-shirt/cell phone/iPod and the knowledge that "a portion of the profits" will help buy medicine for AIDS patients in Africa.
But all this feel-good philanthropy simply fails to address the real issues. Rather than question and challenge the price of America's overconsumption and exploitation in those "developing" countries, we embrace our product-obsessed culture, buy a t-shirt, and feel like we've done our part and erase our collective guilty conscience. Instead of talking about community organizing or political action to end AIDS, we're encouraged to take a trip to the mall and celebrate our "power as consumers" in solidarity with our "dying brothers and sisters in Africa".
Like, totally awesome...