Ebony J's blog

Although, it was cold outside, it was hot in the hearts of CHAMP Prevention Justice advocates, consumers, agency heads, community leaders, and other friends. Signs waved in the air, loud chants for comprehensive care-increased funding-expansion of services-justice-and empowerment.

The energy was wild and the speakers lifted the crowd wild calls for increased funding, increased consumer involvement, voices for under-served communities....

The rally and march was transformed from a Champ activity to a living organism.... There was a synergy of people's passion and will for change. The vibe was so human. This Champ Rally and march was the unifying event for the HIV Prevention Conference. It was not overly empirical or too simplistic.. it was perfectly balanced!

 

 

“We need to stop making Black Men the enemy... this happens in society in general.”

Socio-Cultural and contextual Barriers to HIV Prevention Among African American MSMS – Emerging Perspectives on the “Down Low” from Young Black Men Who Have Sex With Men in the South  read more »

 SEX SALES....

In an era where everything from a cold beverage to electronics are all introduced to consumers through SEX... where do we find a place for abstinence-based prevention education. The air waves, billboard, commercials, television shows and videos are saturated with images of flesh, intimacy, provcative movement and dialogue, sexual inuendo and overtures... yet somehow, their are places of disconnect wherein people forget or fail to realize the need for ocmprhensive repoductive health education, services and messages for all communities.

How does that work? Now when we add poverty, low self-esteem, lack of reporductive health information, limited self-efficacy and negotiation skills, gender-inequality and raging hormones...

I sat there in a workshop today hearing things like,

Women are over-represented in incidence of new HIV infections  read more »

The air has been charged with that spirit of advocacy, empowerment, progressive empowerment and force of change... Familiar faces and collegial reunions...

 How do we sustain the energy to take back to our agencies and communities. How do we sustain that electricity when we leave and transfer it into our service delivery?

 Conferences, trainings, summits and the like... often produce a euphoric and  magical light. We become ready to engage new population, create local and/or national partnerships, implement new interventions and take HIV Prevention to new heights... So what happens when we get home?

 How do individuals from the front-line outreach and advocacy workers to board chairs and CAB members take the information from theory to practice?  read more »

The SafeTalk Research study strived to reduce transmission of HIV in participants ranging from 18-59. The study did a series of four motivational interviews (affirming particpant's power to effect change around their HIV prevention practices with the personal tools that they already have innately, stress inclusion, encourage a safe environment for sharing and fostering a non-judgemental environment).  Particpants were allowed to choose the topics around HIV prevention from a