Fight HIV in DC

The popular POZ party is growing. In addition to having POZ nights every Tuesday at Motley Bar, there is now a monthly POZ event at MOVA (formerly HALO) the fourth Saturday of every month.

The goal of POZ is to give the HIV+ community of the DC metro area, and those who are supportive, a safe place to gather, socialize, find new friends, maybe even a date, and of course, morale/emotional support.

For more information check out the POZ Facebook Group, or read this article about Jacob Pring and the POZ Party.

The next CAVE meeting will take place February 10th at 7:00 PM at the DC Center, 1810 14th St, NW. Our meetings normally take place the second Wednesday of each month.

One of the roles of CAVE is to review protocols for new HIV vaccine studies and to provide input to the researchers from a community perspective.  We will be reviewing a protocol for the Military HIV Working Group in January.  If you've never done anything like this, don't worry.  The meeting will include an overview of how to review protocols.

CAVE is the community advisory board for the Vaccine Research Center and the US Military HIV Research Program. Capital Area Vaccine Effort is a volunteer panel of individuals from the general public and from the diverse communities affected by AIDS. CAVE is organized to assist and advise AIDS vaccine trials in the metropolitan DC area.  For more information visit www.aidsvaccine.org.

February 7 is National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness and Information Day (NBHAAD). This annual observance day was created to raise awareness among African Americans about HIV/AIDS and its devastating impact on African American communities. The day is part of a national mobilization effort to get African Americans to learn more about the threat posed by the disease, get tested, get treated and make a commitment to fight HIV/AIDS.

Here in Washington, DC there is no question that African Americans are disproportionately impacted by HIV/AIDS. According to our surveillance report, African Americans make up about 55% of the DC population, but constitute 80% of District residents living with HIV. Further, of the 842 cases of HIV/AIDS among men who have sex with men from 2001 to 2006, 63% were among black men.

National Black AIDS Awareness Day is a great opportunity to raise awareness of how HIV/AIDS impacts Black gay and bisexual men. If you're interested in helping organize a National Black AIDS Awareness Day event in Washington DC, please let me know.

To learn more about the National Black AIDS Awareness Day, visit www.blackaidsday.org.

Jacob Pring is featured in this Examiner Article talking about the POZ Mixers that take place every Tuesday at Motley.

This is not your typical happy hour social. And it is not quite an old-fashioned support group. It is a mixer for gay, positive men in D.C. Why does such a mixer need to exist? Jacob Nathaniel Pring created such a mixer to help ease the tension when one must disclose his status to a potential partner. It’s POZ night on this sublimely frigid Tuesday and it’s been going on now for six weeks. Chris, a regular patron, shares “It’s hard. You have two or three amazing dates and then you have to come to them and say ‘I have something to tell you’. At least here you don’t have to be so dramatic”.

continue reading this article in the Washington Examiner.

Calvin Gerald, a member of the DC Center HIV Working Group, has been chosen to serve on the DC HIV Prevention Community Planning Group (CPG). Calvin will join current CPG member Dan O'Neill, chair of the HIV Working Group.

The HPCPG is the group that guides HIV prevention in the District of Columbia, along with the DC Department of Health's HIV/AIDS Administration (HAA).

Members of the HPCPG include residents of the District who are interested in HIV prevention, researchers and academics, healthcare providers, and staff from community-based organizations. CPG members reflect the diversity of the HIV/AIDS epidemic in the District.

The HPCPG is responsible for determining which populations are in greatest need of HIV prevention services, as well as deciding what are the best ways to meet those needs. HAA, in turn, is responsible for implementing and funding programs and services that match the HPCPG’s recommendations.

Four other new members were approved to serve on the CPG. They are: Chris Bryant, Rev. Dana Tolliver, Sharmus Outlaw, and Pernell Williams.

An Interdisciplinary Look at Drug Policy: A Case Study

Wednesday, Jan 20

6:00 PM - 8:30 PM

George Washington University
Media & Public Affairs Building, Jack Morton Auditorium
805 21st St NW

What responsibility do we have to craft drug policies and implement treatment programs that address medical, public health, economic, and foreign affairs considerations?

Join us for this town hall-style seminar as we discuss this question using Heroin-Assisted Treatment (HAT) as a case study. HAT is a treatment option that has been implemented in the Netherlands and Switzerland and inspired research trials in Canada, Germany, the United Kingdom, and Spain.

Contact: Julie Archer, 202.306.0048, jularcher@gmail.com 

To see the complete agenda: http://www.drugpolicy.org/events/event.cfm?eventID=884

Refreshments will be served

The DC Community AIDS Network (DCCAN) HIV Support Group is coming to the DC Center! The HIV Support Group will meet on the first and third Wednesday of every month in the activity room at the DC Center.

The first meeting will take place on Wednesday, January 20th from from 5:30 PM to 7:30 PM at the DC Center.

The DC Center is located at 1810 14th St NW, convenient to the U Street/Cardozo Metro Stop, and on the 14th St Bus Lines.

Interested in volunteering? Join the Cherry Fund for a packing party on February 25th and pack safer sex kits for the HIV Working Group.

The packing party takes place Thursday February 25th at the DC Center, 1810 14th St NW, from 6:30 PM to 8:30 PM.

Cherry Fund, established in 1999, and located in Washington, DC, is an independent, all-volunteer 501(c) 3 foundation. The sole purpose of the Fund is to raise funds for the HIV/AIDS youth service community. The Fund focuses on organizations combating the spread of HIV infection & AIDS through prevention, treatment, and education in the nation’s youth community.

d-up: Defend Yourself! is a community-level HIV prevention intervention designed for and developed by black men who have sex with men (MSM). d-up! is designed to promote social norms of condom use and assist black MSM to recognize and handle risk related racial and sexual bias. This training will show participants how to adapt the intervention to reach young men who have sex with men. This intermediate level training is best suited for community-based professionals who work with young men who have sex with men.

For additional information on this intervention : click here.

Training Objectives
By the end of this training, participants will be able to:
• Understand the purpose and theory behind the “d-up!” intervention.
• Adapt “d-up!” to reach young men who have sex with men
• Identify ways to integrate “d-up!” into existing programs

The training is free and will be held Friday, January 22 from 9:30-3:30 p.m. Lunch is provided. To RSVP for the training, email iwebster@metroteenaids.org.

Are you a man between 18-45 years old and HIV negative? Volunteer for a local HIV vaccine study and turn hope into action.

Every 10 minutes, someone in the United States is infected with HIV. A preventive vaccine against HIV offers the best long-term hope to end this worldwide epidemic. Finding a safe and effective HIV vaccine that will protect people is a huge task. We cannot do it without your help.

Learn more and get updates on the study. Join the Hope Takes Action DC Facebook Group.

click here to join the Hope Takes Action DC Facebook Group.

The next meeting of The DC Center's HIV Working Group takes place Wednesday January 20th at 7:00 PM at the new location of The DC Center, 1810 14th St, NW.

This months meeting will include a presentation and discussion on medical marijuana, HIV/AIDS, and the District of Columbia.

Wayne Turner will be our guest speaker. Wayne Turner spearheaded a referendum on medical marijuana in DC more than a decade ago. The measure was approved by DC voters, but Congress put on a rider, prohibiting the city from implementing the law, and renewed that rider every year -- until this current budget year. With the federal restrictions gone, Wayne will discuss why medical marijuana is an important issue to people living with HIV/AIDS in the District, and how this issue may move forward.