It’s the largest AIDS-related fundraising event in the Southeastern United States and helps support many services at AID Atlanta, not to mention our partners AIDGwinnett, AIDS Research Consortium of Atlanta, Aniz, Jerusalem House, Living Room, Open Hand, and Positive Impact. These nine agencies provide treatment and medications, prevention education, meals, hospice, mental health services, child care, substance abuse counseling, pastoral care, and clinical research to help thousands of our families, neighbors and friends living with, affected by, and at-risk for HIV/AIDS in Atlanta.
You may have heard the recent news that the first ever home
rapid HIV test, OraQuick, is now
available in stores and online. You may even remember our previous post on this very topic. People are able to purchase the test kit for
about $40 at stores such as Walgreens and CVS, or on the OraQuick website. This
is huge news! Here’s why:
There are approximately 1.2 million people in the U.S. that have HIV and 1 out of 5 of them are unaware of their status. People who don’t know they are HIV+ are much more likely to unknowingly transmit the virus to others. They are also at greater risk for serious health problems and early death with HIV.
A recent study found that 84% of gay and bi men say they would administer a self-test if one were available. Sometimes it feels hard to make time to take care of ourselves, even if it’s something as important as getting tested for HIV. It can also be scary to get tested. For some, the appeal of taking a quick test in the comfort and privacy of home is a deal breaker.
Many people are concerned that without the support of a trained HIV counselor, people who test positive for HIV may be upset, hurt themselves, or ignore the result. Finding out you have any disease is difficult, but an HIV+ diagnosis is crushing to some. Trained professionals can connect folks to resources and explain why being poz isn’t a death sentence today.
While the oral swab test is 98% accurate when conducted by a professional, it’s estimated that the test is only 92% accurate when conducted by an average person. OraQuick recommends that if a person tests positive, they contact a professional for follow up.
This is a controversial issue: will home rapid HIV tests
prompt more people to get tested and learn their status? Will people who test
positive access the resources they need to stay healthy?
What do you think, readers?
If you’d like to get tested for HIV at AID Atlanta, contact us at (800)
551-2728 or visit this website.
Happy October! You’ve probably seen Halloween costumes and
pink breast cancer awareness ribbons adorning storefronts and newsfeeds lately.
Often forgotten is that October is also LGBT History Month, first
officially celebrated in 1994. It coincides with National
Coming Out Day and is coordinated by Equality
Forum,an international LGBT
civil rights organization.
It’s so important that we acknowledge this month because- let’s face it- most of us didn’t learn about history through rainbow-colored glasses. Most history books barely mention queer people throughout history. Some even have the audacity to refer to the gay rights movement in the past tense (Um, hello?! We’re still fighting for equality today!). Others imply that LGBT history just began in the last century. Knowing our history is vital for our future. LGBT History Month also highlights positive LGBT role models,
builds community by embracing
our past, and brings to light our extraordinary
national and international contributions.
We at GO Atlanta
have taken some time to put together some highlights of LGBT history represented
in pop culture. Check it out:
For your viewing
pleasure:
Milk
(2008): The story of Harvey Milk, the American gay activist who became
California's first openly gay elected official.
How
to Survive a Plague (2012): The story of two coalitions -- ACT UP and TAG
(Treatment Action Group) -- whose activism and innovation turned AIDS from a
death sentence into a manageable condition.
Vito
(2011): The story of Vito Russo, founding father of the gay liberation
movement, author of "The Celluloid Closet," and vociferous AIDS
activist in the 1980s.
Celluloid
Closet (1995): A documentary surveying the various Hollywood screen
depictions of the LGBT community and the attitudes behind them throughout the
history of North American film.
Paris
is Burning (1990): A chronicle of New York's drag scene in the 1980s,
focusing on balls, voguing and the ambitions and dreams of those who gave the
era its warmth and vitality.
Raid
of the Rainbow Lounge (2012): A full length documentary film recounting the
events surrounding the widely publicized and controversial raid of a Fort
Worth, Texas gay bar in 2009. Pssst: This film is being screened at Out on Film, Atlanta’s LGBT film festival.
