This year’s World AIDS Day event is on December 1st , and given recent comments by former rugby player Gareth Thomas and Drag Race participant Charity Kase regarding the stigma that still lingers around the condition, Rising East’s Mike Butler takes a closer look.
Looking Back With Anger
In the film below Mike speaks about how HIV affected people back in the 1980s and makes a case for engaging with World AIDS Day. He also reminds everyone that in 2019 forty six percent of UK infections were among the ‘straight’ community. This and other stats can be found here.
Tresca Wilson From Positive East Shares Her Insights
Tresca Wilson, a volunteer and worker for Positive East, talks about the work of the East London Charity, and about how stigma still attaches itself to HIV positive people. These include external and maybe inadvertent examples such as describing someone as ‘clean’; the internalised stigma we create ourselves; and also the stigma that survives in certain cultures.
Rema Khan from UEL Pledges Support
Rema Khatun says that AIDS information should be more widespread and shares her vision for the future. The University of East London where she is based is already working with Positive East to provide training and to support events. The UEL World AIDS Day stall will be in the atrium of the university’s East Building between 11 and 4 on Wednesday the 1st, and staffed by Positive East. Visit the stall to find out whether what you think you know about AIDS is true, or a myth.
Wear a Red Ribbon to show your support for those with HIV
