A recent video conference held to commemorate World AIDS Day, which occurred on Dec. 1, focused specifically on the effect that AIDS has on youth and the significant role they can play in changing it.
AU students joined college students from around the world via satellite to discuss issues surrounding the AIDS epidemic. The conference was hosted by Americans for Informed Democracy. Participating universities included Princeton University, Yale University, the University of Michigan and schools in Ecuador, Uganda, Ethiopia and Germany.
Seth Green, who facilitated the discussion, encouraged students to use their voices to educate their peers about the AIDS epidemic.
"Do something," Green said. "There's too much pessimism out there. ... You're gonna end this."
The students present responded to Green's challenge by sharing stories of their own successful campus initiatives.
At Yale University, students are involved in trying to get a bill passed that will make treatment more accessible and affordable while students from Ecuador talked about promoting the use of condoms and giving young people the challenge that they need to make wise choices about their sexual health.
At Northwestern University, student advocates brought in rap artist Ludacris to talk about AIDS awareness and condom use.
Taking their cause to places where their peers spend a lot of their time, students at the University of Alabama have been holding fundraisers and awareness events in local clubs and theaters.
AU students promoted AIDS awareness during the week of Nov. 27.
Ravenna Motil-McGuire, a freshman in the School of International Service and the director of HIV/AIDS Outreach and Awareness for Women's Initiative, was involved in organizing the week's activities.
"On Monday [Women's Initiative's] HIV/AIDS Outreach Task Force organized an AIDS in D.C. Day of Red to kick off the week, where nearly 300 undergraduates wore red to represent the one in 20 D.C. residents living with HIV, 300 of the roughly 6,000 undergraduates," Motil-McGuire said.
Some of the activities included a discussion of AIDS in Latin America hosted by Carribbean Circle, a rally in Lafayette Park with Student Global AIDS Campaign and free HIV education and testing sponsored by Women's Initiative.
"We had a lot of groups participate in sponsoring a lot of activities this week, and we've all had great turnout," Motil-McGuire said.
The Entertainment AIDS Alliance launched World AIDS Month, which took place Nov. 1 to Dec. 1. On Dec. 21, World AIDS Day, AU students joined other students from around the country via satellite where they discussed issues surrounding the AIDS epidemic.
-Currently 43 million people around the world are living with HIV/AIDS.
-6 million of those living with HIV/AIDS are in dire need of treatment. Only 1.7 million are receiving it.
-Every day 15 thousand people are infected with HIV/AIDS and 800 people die from the virus.
-Globally, only 10 percent of people infected with the virus have taken an HIV/AIDS test and are aware of their status.
-Washington, D.C., has the highest incidence of HIV/AIDS among cities with populations above 500,000. There are 119 cases for every 100 thousand people.
These facts and more can be found at www.fightglobalaids.org and www.thebody.com.
