Blog

January 27, 2012

When I was young, I used to think HIV/AIDS was a blood transfusion problem and I feared doctors and needles.

When I was older, I thought HIV/AIDS was a gay-man problem and I felt safe and not very sympathetic.

Later, I thought HIV/AIDS was an African problem and I felt compassion and anger at injustice.

But I’ve never knowingly known someone with HIV/AIDS.

I’ve only known and feared and made assumptions about the “problem” and whose fault it was.

Until now.

A Face to Reframe is working on a partnership with the Northern Colorado AIDS Project to facilitate two projects with the folks they work with: youth living a high risk life-style of contracting HIV and those currently living with HIV/AIDS. The beginning discussions have already tested what I “know and fear and make assumptions about!”

Interestingly, this week I have encountered two media pieces about those living with this disease. One was written by a friend with the Orange County Register who interviewed youth with HIV taking part in a support group. These kids are what we might consider innocent victims of a stigma that they carry with them daily, and in secret. The support group offers things like art therapy as well as a place to be truly transparent as many of their teachers, friends, and relatives do not know they have HIV. My friend protected their identities by changing their names and photographing from the neck down. They are hiding and they live in California.

Two days later, I watched our local news splash on screen the faces of a number of prostitutes who had been arrested in Denver and then focus on one cross-dresser, his name, and his BIG RED A- AIDS. Repeatedly using his name and showing his face, they declared that he has AIDS. I realize that there is much discussion over the criminal transmission of HIV (and here is an interesting article on it). I don’t plan on getting into that. What was disappointing is how our local news further perpetuated the stigma of AIDS in the way they handled the story.

This Spring, we hope to give a visual voice to those who live with this stigma in our country; to challenge the assumptions that we have when we fail to actually encounter a real face with a real name and a real story.

If you would like to make a donation to help this project happen, please go here.