Southeastern LGBTQ Activist Camp Wraps Up in
Little RockKudos to CAR whom served as the host organization and co-organizer of the inaugural session of the first regional camp held July 18-21, 2012. The camp which consisted of 50 LGBTQ youth from various points throughout the South was designed to focus on the needs and concerns of LGBTQ youth living in the region. The purpose of the camp was to provide intensive community building, increased skill sets, political education, and leadership training with a focus on youth participating in Gay Straight Alliances (GSA) and other youth/young adult activists activities.
CAR partnered with GSA Networks, Southern Poverty Law Center, Mississippi Safe School Coalition, Georgia Safe School Coalition and PFLAG Maryville, TN. Many local individuals and organizations provided volunteer hours and financial support. The Lucille Marie Hamilton Drop-In Center (for LGBTQ and ally youth) as well as the CAR offices served as a ground zero for those visiting the camp during the four day event. For more info contact: artchangesu@yahoo.com
Afterhours
Networking Launches
The Board of Directors of The Living
Affected Corporation has announced the launch of a "Afterhours
Networking" event to begin August 1 from 6 to 9 pm at the organizations offices,
401 Maple Street, Suite A (First Presbyterian Church of North Little Rock). The
event is designed to invite allies, supporters and sponsors to further
understand LA Corp's vision and mission of "transforming communites through
holistic health by providing education and advocacy." Chief Operating Officier,
C. Mabin stated, " It very important that we share our organizational story
which is ripe with lessons learned." He continued, " Our goal is to make a
connection with our allies and supporters that will allow us to bring others
into wanting to help us effectively impact our clients with holistic outcomes."
Currently the organization has been in a re-tooling phase which included
creating this event to scale up its strategic planning initiatives such as
future board development, assessing funding streams, donor acquistion and
retension plus further defining its position as a statewide organization that is
informed and connected to changing the social construct of the community served
by providing basic human rights. As a Arkansas Department of Health sub-grantee,
The Living Affected Corporation has been the premiere organization addressing
HIV /AIDS in the Black MSM community through its impending D-Up intervention
diffuison, individual free HIV testing, serving as a community service outlet
for those in the judical system and offering technical assistance throughout the
city. The event is free. For more information contact:
501.379.8203 or 877.902.7HIV
New Media in Changing the Response to HIV
L-R: Miguel Gomez, Michelle Samplin-Salgado, Todd Park, Deron Perkins, Venton Jones, Ken Williams, Eunice Gnay Namirembe, Oriol Gutierrez, Ingrid Floyd, Susannah Fox
), participants recited the following declaration:“We call upon the HIV community to declare that new media and emerging technologies are critical in helping us connect, create, listen, learn, and engage as we move towards and AIDS-free generation.”
Todd Park
, Chief Technology Officer for the White House, kicked off the session by describing how, two months ago, President Obama released the U.S. Digital Government Strategy. He noted that exactly two years and ten days ago the President also released the U.S. National HIV/AIDS Strategy. In his remarks, Mr. Park said, “I’m convinced these two Strategies have a synergy that really can make a difference in people’s lives. They are roadmaps to ensure positive response to the needs of all Americans, and we hope a useful tool to our colleagues outside the U.S.”In the introduction to the new Digital Government Strategy, President Obama states, “I want us to ask ourselves every day, how are we using technology to make a real difference in people’s lives?” Todd added, “That’s why we’re here. To make a difference in people’s lives…to make a difference as we move towards an AIDS-free generation.”
Panelists each shared how they are using new media to strengthen their respective actions on HIV/AIDS.
It’s never too late to learn
Susannah Fox
of the Pew Internet & American Life Project cited statistics that 1 in 4 people living with a chronic health condition connect with peers via social networks. She highlighted how engagement leads to better health outcomes. New media can be that platform. Susannah shared the story of her bright and curious grandmother, who when seeing the internet for the first time towards the end of her life, responded with discouragement, “I was born too late.” In fact, she quickly learned that she could connect with others, and even into her mid-90’s, participated in online communities. Susannah said, “we all have something to learn and we all have something to teach.”Eunice Namirembe
from Uganda, who manages the initiative Text to Change , talked about the simplicity and power of mobile text messaging to drive people to get tested and change their behavior. In Uganda, 15,000 text messages encouraging HIV testing yielded a 20% response rate. As those who responded to the text waited in line to be tested, a community was built; an overwhelming response to a simple text message.Why it’s important to listen
Ingrid Floyd
of Iris House spoke about using social media to listen and using platforms such as Facebook and Twitter to interject messages related to HIV prevention into online interactions. She emphasized the importance of listening before engaging and of using events and pop culture references to inspire conversations about safer sex and HIV prevention.Connect and engage
Venton Jones
of the National Black Gay Men’s Advocacy Coalition described his experience growing up as a child of the digital generation. He noted how each step in his life has been marked by a change in technology, and described the importance of disclose his own HIV status. By sharing his status online, Venton helps gives a face to HIV/AIDS, creating a space for broader conversations about stigma and disclosure. Following Venton’s presentation, an audience member shared his own story about disclosing his HIV status on Facebook. It was a testimony to the power of new media to connect people.Oriol Gutierrez
of POZ has lived as a digital pioneer, using new media and building a collection of best practices around video, blogging, and social media. “New media allows me to share my story,” Oriol said. Consistency builds community, he said, regardless of how you share your message. Each platform requires a specific skill set and approach, but consistency over time is a key discipline.The power of video and the spoken word
The session began and ended with creative expressions using new media to educate and inform. Deron Perkins of Real Talk DC
, a project of Metro Teen AIDS , set the tone of the session with an eloquent and energetic spoken word in which he referred to AIDS as the “DC Viper”, striking far too many people living in Washington, DC. Deron uses social media as a platform to engage with DC youth, thereby raising awareness of HIV risk in the city.Ken Williams
of the Test Positive Awareness Network and Ken like Barbie created a video for the satellite, which described how he has used new media (specifically YouTube) to share his story of living with HIV.
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