Windy City Media Group Frontpage News

THE VOICE OF CHICAGO'S GAY, LESBIAN, BI, TRANS AND QUEER COMMUNITY SINCE 1985

home search facebook twitter join
Gay News Sponsor Windy City Times 2023-12-13
DOWNLOAD ISSUE
Donate

Sponsor
Sponsor
Sponsor

  WINDY CITY TIMES

AFC prepares for 30th anniversary
by Gretchen Rachel Blickensderfer
2014-11-20

This article shared 133 times since Thu Nov 20, 2014
facebook twitter pin it google +1 reddit email

      More Photos


It was an evening draped in celebration, excitement and reflection as staff members, supporters, volunteers and donors crowded into the Chicago Cultural Center Nov. 13 for the AIDS Foundation of Chicago ( AFC )'s 29th annual meeting and reception.

When AFC began its mission in 1985, 13-year-old Ryan White was told he could not attend school because he had become infected with HIV/AIDS, the death of actor Rock Hudson fueled the hysterical fires of the mainstream media who set about terrorizing the public into believing that AIDS could be contracted by sitting on the same toilet seat or drinking from the same cup as an infected individual. Evangelist Pat Robertson was raving about the virus "polluting the nation's blood supply" and demanding civil rights for "those of us who do not engage in certain practices."

Then, there were fewer than 16,000 reported cases in the United States. By the end of the '80s, those numbers had increased by 700 percent.

In the fall of 2015, 30 years will have passed for the AFC. What began with a group of four individuals who cut through the chaos with an organized methodology of coordinated care has led to many achievements. Among this year's feats are the support and case management of more than 2,800 people in the state infected with the disease; a partnership with the Chicago Department of Public Health designed to increase knowledge and availability of pre-exposure prophylaxis ( PrEP ); the recruitment of an army of advocates who successfully pushed Springfield to increase HIV/AIDS state funding by $1 million; the AFC's Center for Housing and Health putting a permanent roof over the heads of more than 40 homeless households; and the participation of 3,500 people in the AFC's 2014 AIDS Run & Walk.

The former interim and now permanent president/CEO, John Peller, has his work cut out for him. "I really feel like I have been entrusted with a gem that has to be nurtured, cared for and grown," he told the audience before noting each of the organization's 2014 landmarks and pledging to build upon them.

To that end, Peller announced numerous projects and events to be launched in order to "strengthen communities at risk from HIV."

Two of those projects will focus upon women, be they transgender, of color or those living with HIV. The organization recently received a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention ( CDC ) grant—the first in its history—in order to help the AFC and its partners the Chicago Department of Public Health, Lurie Children's Hospital, Chicago Public Schools and Planned Parenthood begin Project Elevate—an innovative Sexually Transmitted Infection ( STI ) prevention and treatment program targeting young women and transgender women of color.

The second project is a Midwest prevention and pregnancy planning initiative. "Women who are vulnerable to HIV or living with HIV don't get enough information from providers about cutting edge prevention strategies like PrEP and don't learn about options other than male condoms," Peller stated.

Armed with funding from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the AFC will be partnering with the Pediatric AIDS of Chicago Prevention Initiative and EverThrive, among others, to equip healthcare providers with the information needed to assist people living with HIV with prevention and contraception decisions.

"No matter what a woman's health or HIV status is, she is entitled to state-of-the-art information and services for prevention and safe contraception," Peller said. "We look forward to working with our partners to advance sexual health and reproductive justice for women living with HIV and vulnerable to HIV."

The AFC is also committed to tackling the issue of homeless LGBTQ youth through a housing alliance with the Humboldt Park advocacy organization Vida/SIDA. "We are working to provide a safe housing and case management program for LGBT youth with HIV in Chicago," Peller said. "We recognize the importance of interrupting the cycle of homelessness and ensuring that young LGBT people have access to safe and stable homes."

The project will launch in January.

Peller also revealed some news that the AFC has previously been reticent to talk about publically—how the HIV case management system can work most effectively with healthcare reform. "We think we have a winning strategy," Peller said. "We're now in the process of contracting with Medicaid managed care companies to provide coordination for people with HIV and chronic diseases. We have a lot of work to do to find members with HIV, link them to services, educate them about the importance of HIV medications and monitor their care."

Before setting out upon that work, Peller—alongside the staff and board of the AFC—took the occasion to honor those people and organizations who "have made significant contributions in the fight for HIV/AIDS awareness and funding."

Accepting awards to standing ovations were representatives from the Illinois Department of Public Health's Ryan White Part B Program and AIDS Drug Assistance Program as well as longtime AFC supporters Walgreens.

Receiving special recognition was Rev. Doris Green—now retired from the AFC after a 13-year tenure—who accomplished groundbreaking work in helping former prison inmates living with HIV return to society. She also launched a tireless campaign against unjust incarceration policies.

Sidney Thomas received the AFC's Impact Award for over three decades of advocacy and leadership in the HIV and black LGBT communities.

For more information about the AFC's work, please go to www.aidschicago.org/ .


This article shared 133 times since Thu Nov 20, 2014
facebook twitter pin it google +1 reddit email

Out and Aging
Presented By

  ARTICLES YOU MIGHT LIKE

Gay News

HIV criminal laws disproportionately impact Black men in Mississippi 2024-02-21
--From a press release - A new report by the Williams Institute at UCLA School of Law finds that at least 43 people in Mississippi were arrested for HIV-related crimes between 2004 and 2021. Half of all arrests in the state ...


Gay News

'West Side Story' gets a sex-positive spin with new burlesque show 2024-02-19
- In partial observance of National Condom Day, which was Feb. 14, Los Angeles-based AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF) presented A West Side Story Burlesque at the Harris Theater for two hour-long performances on Feb. 17. The show, ...


Gay News

$200,000+ raised at AIDS Foundation Chicago's World of Chocolate Fundraiser to fight HIV/AIDS 2024-02-13
--From a press release - (Chicago, IL) More than 950 guests gathered at Chicago's famed Union Station (500 W. Jackson) for Chicago's Sweetest Fundraiser, AIDS Foundation Chicago's (AFC), World of Chocolate on Friday, February 9. ...


Gay News

Munar prepares to step away from Howard Brown leadership 2024-02-11
- After 10 years of leadership at Howard Brown Health, President and CEO David Ernesto Munar has decided to step down from his post on Feb. 29. Munar, who'd previously been president and CEO of AIDS Foundation ...


Gay News

National Black Justice Coalition commemorates National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day 2024-02-07
--From a press release - WASHINGTON — Today, Feb. 7, marks National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day (NBHAAD). In commemoration, Dr. David J. Johns, CEO of the National Black Justice Coalition (NBJC), a leading Black LGBTQ+/same-gender ...


Gay News

NATIONAL Wis. report, gender dysphoria, HIV research, Stonewall exhibit, gay CEOs 2024-01-19
- A new annual report from Wisconsin's Office of Children's Mental Health shows that the state's minors—especially girls, children of color and LGBTQ+ youth—continue to struggle with anxiety, depression and thoughts ...


Gay News

WORLD Activist honored, marriages in Estonia, Madrid law, trans sports item 2024-01-05
Video below - The National AIDS Commission (NAC) recently honored Caleb Orozco—a leading figure in the fight for LGBTQ+ rights in Belize—for his instrumental contributions to the national HIV response, BNN reported. According ...


Gay News

SAVOR World of Chocolate, Jaleo and 'Superhot' 2023-12-31
- World of wonder: I am excited to announce that I will be a judge at AIDS Foundation Chicago's World of Chocolate fundraiser! Join me in sampling delicious chocolate from local chefs and help support a great ...


Gay News

PASSAGES Frankie Franklin-Foxx 2023-12-18
- Frankie Franklin-Foxx (born Waverlynn Franklin), a resident of Chicago's North Side, passed away peacefully Dec. 13 at St. Francis Hospital in Evanston. She was 68. Born at Cook County Hospital, Frankie graduated from South Shore High ...


Gay News

NATIONAL Dr. Rachel Levine, World AIDS Day, trans deaths, Philly bar art 2023-12-08
- United States District Court for the Northern District of Alabama Liles C. Burke ruled that emails and other records from U.S. Assistant Secretary for Health Dr. Rachel Levine are relevant to a lawsuit challenging Alabama's ban ...


Gay News

STRUT marks World AIDS Day with 14th Annual Fashion Show 2023-12-05
- On Dec. 3, John Fleming and Madman Productions presented the 14th annual STRUT fashion show at Joe's on Weed Street, 940 W. Weed St. As in previous years, the standing room only show was a fundraiser, ...


Gay News

World AIDS Day commemorated at AIDS Garden Chicago 2023-12-03
- On the rainy morning of Dec. 1, Chicago Parks Foundation and the AIDS Garden Chicago Board of Directors hosted a World AIDS Day commemoration at AIDS Garden Chicago, just south of Belmont Harbor on the Lakefront. ...


Gay News

GLAAD marks World AIDS Day with launch of global resource hub, new HIV report 2023-12-01
--From a press release - New York, New York — Friday, Dec. 1 — GLAAD marked World AIDS Day this year by sharing the results of its fourth annual State of HIV Stigma Report, a national survey among U.S. adults measuring ...


Gay News

Wrightwood 659 to present 'Daniel Goldstein: The Marks We Leave Behind' on World AIDS Day 2023-11-29
- (CHICAGO, Nov. 29, 2023) —Alphawood Exhibitions will present Daniel Goldstein: The Marks We Leave Behind, an exhibition of works from the San Francisco-based artist & HIV/AIDS activist's iconic "Icarian Series," ...


Gay News

WTTW doc chronicles the activism of Danny Sotomayor 2023-11-03
- Practically everything the late Chicago AIDS activist Danny Sotomayor did was "a fight." So says fellow activist Victor Salvo in the new WTTW documentary The Outrage of Danny Sotomayor, which is part of the station's Chicago ...


 


Copyright © 2024 Windy City Media Group. All rights reserved.
Reprint by permission only. PDFs for back issues are downloadable from
our online archives.

Return postage must accompany all manuscripts, drawings, and
photographs submitted if they are to be returned, and no
responsibility may be assumed for unsolicited materials.

All rights to letters, art and photos sent to Nightspots
(Chicago GLBT Nightlife News) and Windy City Times (a Chicago
Gay and Lesbian News and Feature Publication) will be treated
as unconditionally assigned for publication purposes and as such,
subject to editing and comment. The opinions expressed by the
columnists, cartoonists, letter writers, and commentators are
their own and do not necessarily reflect the position of Nightspots
(Chicago GLBT Nightlife News) and Windy City Times (a Chicago Gay,
Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender News and Feature Publication).

The appearance of a name, image or photo of a person or group in
Nightspots (Chicago GLBT Nightlife News) and Windy City Times
(a Chicago Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender News and Feature
Publication) does not indicate the sexual orientation of such
individuals or groups. While we encourage readers to support the
advertisers who make this newspaper possible, Nightspots (Chicago
GLBT Nightlife News) and Windy City Times (a Chicago Gay, Lesbian
News and Feature Publication) cannot accept responsibility for
any advertising claims or promotions.

 
 

TRENDINGBREAKINGPHOTOS







Sponsor


 



Donate


About WCMG      Contact Us      Online Front  Page      Windy City  Times      Nightspots
Identity      BLACKlines      En La Vida      Archives      Advanced Search     
Windy City Queercast      Queercast Archives     
Press  Releases      Join WCMG  Email List      Email Blast      Blogs     
Upcoming Events      Todays Events      Ongoing Events      Bar Guide      Community Groups      In Memoriam     
Privacy Policy     

Windy City Media Group publishes Windy City Times,
The Bi-Weekly Voice of the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Trans Community.
5315 N. Clark St. #192, Chicago, IL 60640-2113 • PH (773) 871-7610 • FAX (773) 871-7609.