Know Your Status

Even in 2013, there are individuals who like to think that they are above this disease. They believe there is no way they can contract it, therefore it isn’t a concern of theirs. Some associate it with a particular group of people, considering themselves safe because they don’t practice that “lifestyle.” When in reality, this disease has no boundaries and cross lines of race, class and sexual orientation. While unsafe practices (sexually and with use of recreational drugs) make you more vulnerable to this disease, unfortunately, not falling into those categories doesn’t automatically exclude you either.

We’ve come a long way from the AIDS epidemic of the 80s and 90s, yet we still have a long way to go. Thanks to advances in medicine, people are no longer dying from the disease the way they were 20-25 years ago. However, this is also distorting the realness of it to many people, as they no longer see it as a death sentence, but something that can be lived with (such as diabetes and hypertension).

World AIDS Day was on Sunday, but we don’t have to wait until Dec. 1 to talk about hope, prevention and a cure.  Just because Americans are no longer dropping like flies from this disease, doesn’t mean others aren’t suffering. Get involved, know the facts and know your status.