HIV/AIDS/STD Prevention Demonstration Projects for Historically Black Colleges and Universities and other Minority-serving Institutions

By Naima Morales Cozier, AIDS.gov Training Adviser

Naima Morales Cozier, AIDS.gov

The cultural diversity of communities of color is to be celebrated. We have overcome adversity and barriers at every turn with the hope of change. With this same determination, we face the HIV/AIDS epidemic. Communities of color disproportionately account for an alarming number of HIV/AIDS cases. As an Afro-Latina, HIV/AIDS prevention advocate, and public health professional, I am very familiar with our challenge. The statistics and numbers constantly run through my head: African Americans account for almost half the number of people living with HIV; Latino/Hispanics account for 17% of new HIV infections in the U.S. in 2006; rates for new infection among Native American/Alaskan Natives are higher than whites, though American Indians and Alaska Natives make up 1.5% of the total U.S. population. There is much work to be done.

Pew Internet & American Life Project: Leveraging Social Media and the Mobile Internet in Health Messaging

by Miguel Gomez, AIDS.gov Director

Susannah Fox, Pew Internet & American Life Project

Last week the Pew Internet & American Life Project published a report about mobile access . They found that more and more people are using their mobile phones, laptops, and other wireless devices to access the Internet. People who own a cell phone are also more likely to use it for activities other than talking, such as taking photos, sending text messages, playing games, recording videos, playing music, and sending or receiving email. The report also states that African-Americans and English-speaking Latinos continue to be among the most active users of the mobile web. More African-Americans (87%) and Latinos (87%) own a cell phone compared with whites (80%) and they are more likely to access the Internet from their phones.

The Pew Internet & American Life Project continues to be a source of information and guidance for AIDS.gov’s new media activities. Susannah Fox , Pew’s Associate Director for Digital Strategy, recently gave a presentation to the HHS Web Council. View her slides and listen to a recording of her presentation, Leveraging Social Media and the Mobile Internet in Health Messaging. Download the transcript. (PDF 184.2K)

Search and Share: Taking Action with One Simple Tool for National HIV Testing Day

By Michelle Samplin-Salgado, AIDS.gov New Media Strategist

Paul Kawata, National Minority AIDS Council

National HIV Testing Day (NHTD)— June 27— is less than a week away and it's not too late to take action. As we heard last week from NASTAD's Murray Penner, NHTD is a powerful opportunity to promote testing and increase HIV awareness throughout the year.

One simple thing we've asked our colleagues to do for NHTD is to help get the word out about the HIV/AIDS Prevention & Service Provider Locator Widget. As we mentioned earlier in June, we developed the locator with HUD, SAMHSA, HRSA, CDC, and others, to help people locate HIV prevention, housing, mental health, substance abuse, testing, and treatment services in their area through one simple tool. We've seen it show up on websites and blogs from Denver to Michigan . The API Wellness Center has the widget on their site, as does HRSA, SAMHSA, the White House, and the National Association of People with AIDS . And the list keeps growing!

Using Video to Share Your Story: Some Tips on National Caribbean HIV/AIDS Awareness Day

By Tseli Mohammed, AIDS.gov Project Coordinator

National HIV Testing Day is June 27th. For the last two years we've used widgets as a way to share testing messages, resources and stories. This year we launched the HIV/AIDS prevention and services locator widget to help connect people not only to HIV testing sites, but to other support services, like housing, mental health, substance abuse, and treatment.

For National HIV Testing Day last year we used a widget to share personal stories about getting an HIV test and people from Denver to Louisiana shared their stories and the director of AIDS.gov, Miguel Gomez, created and shared his video about what taking an HIV test meant to him. Even President Obama shared a video of he and Michelle getting an HIV test in Kenya back in 2006 and also reiterated the importance of getting a test today.

Personal stories are very powerful, whether it's a written story, a video, or simply a photo. I'm from Trinidad and telling one's own story is a large part of Caribbean culture and my own heritage. Since today, June 8th, is National Caribbean American HIV/AIDS Awareness Day (NCAHAAD), I've put together this video to show you some of the steps to creating a video that can tell YOUR story.

Working to Break the Silence and Raise HIV/AIDS Awareness in Caribbean American Communities

By Dr. Garth Graham, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Minority Health at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (Cross-posted from the Office of National AIDS Policy Blog)

Caribbean American communities are incredibly diverse and have contributed greatly to the growth of this Nation. I learned from watching my mother, who worked as a nurse taking care of sugar cane plantation workers, not only the importance of hard work and dedication but also the importance of family and community. As a community, we face a significant challenge in tackling HIV. Even though Caribbean Americans comprise less than 10 percent of the total U.S. population, they are included in the disproportionately high rate of new HIV/AIDS diagnoses that occur in Black Americans. As a clinician and a professional in the field of public health, I have seen those challenges first hand. Yet as member of the community, I also know what we can accomplish if we work together. Caribbean American leaders can play an especially important role in the community to promote HIV awareness to address this public health issue. To help prevent HIV/AIDS, community leaders and care providers need to communicate about HIV in culturally relevant and linguistically appropriate ways.