World AIDS Day, a time to mourn those who have died and celebrate medical advances

December 3, 2021

The County Commissioners Council proclaimed Thursday December 1, 2021 World AIDS Day 2021 in Multnomah County. The annual commemoration marks 40 years since the first cases of HIV were reported in the United States. Since then, more than 700,000 people have died from HIV-related illnesses.

“World AIDS Day is a solemn occasion. It is also a celebration of resistance, community and resilience, ”said Erin Grahek, Community Services Manager for County of North Rhine-Westphalia. Services for the elderly, people with disabilities and veterans Division. “Activism has led to advances in treatment. And, she said, these community leaders have shaped and improved services, including serving on local advisory bodies such as the Aging Services Advisory Council, and the County HIV Service Planning Council.

When HIV is managed, it ceases to be a fatal disease and becomes a chronic disease. Someone with a low viral load may not have a higher risk of other diseases than the general population. And people living with HIV who take antiretroviral therapy can maintain an undetectable viral load that allows them to have healthy intimate relationships.

But the great racial inequalities in society extend to racial disparities in HIV and AIDS.

To consider:

• About 13% of people in the United States are black, but 41% of people living with HIV in the United States are black.

• About 18 percent of people in the United States are Latinx, but Latinxes account for[23percentofnewdiagnoses[23percentofnewdiagnoses[23pourcentdesnouveauxdiagnostics[23percentofnewdiagnoses

• The whites are six times more likely as blacks to be prescribed pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP), the drug that helps prevent the transmission of HIV.

Multnomah County programs seek to reduce these disparities through its programs, including culture-specific case management, meal deliveries, housing navigation, medical case management and peer support.

Jenny Greenberg, Housing Navigator for Multnomah County HIV health service center, said when the first cases of HIV were reported in the United States, the federal and state governments did nothing to sound the alarm bells.

“Forty years ago, it was silence. But the communities fought to be seen and heard, ”she said. And it was this community activism that prompted the federal government to fund welfare clinics for people seeking comprehensive, low-barrier HIV and AIDS care. Clinics like the Health Services Center.

Scott Moore, Community Affairs and Policy Officer at Integrative Health Research Center said that as a white man he received good health care and that it kept him healthy for decades despite being diagnosed with HIV.

“As a cisgender white male, I have had the privilege of receiving medical care without stigma or discrimination. My immune system is stronger than it’s ever been, ”he said. “But I will always be a person living with AIDS. “

He applauded the advances in science in the treatment and prevention of HIV, but gaps remain in access to health care, especially for aging people with HIV. A person with Medicare, for example, may not be able to get treatment for a substance use disorder or chronic pain.

The community is also healing, and local and nonprofit associations have sprung up to support people living with the virus. Organizations like Cascade AIDS Project, Quest, and Portland Two Spirit Society.

Lorne James, President of Society of the Two Spirits of Portland and member of HIV Service Planning Council, said compassionate communication is essential for empowering people to take care of their own health and care for others.

James is originally from New Mexico and a member of the Diné Nation.

“In my Navajo language there is no word for art or beauty. A word, snow snow, encompasses everything: beauty, order, harmony. Every aspect of life is linked to this word, ”he said. “Appropriate use of language can raise awareness, prevent damage, and strengthen the spirit. Compassionate use of language is a healing medicine.

Commissioner Lori Stegmann said it was a privilege to participate in the National Day of Remembrance and to see over time that medical advances allow people living with HIV to live fully. “I am grateful for the scientific advancements and the services provided by Ryan White (funding grant),” she said. “And there is still so much work to be done… a tremendous amount of work to be done. “

“Thank you Loren for being here and for sharing your full identity with us. And Scott, thank you for sharing your story,” said Commissioner Sharon Meieran.

Among those who spoke at Thursday’s proclamation was Jim Clay. At 74, Clay is the Aging Well Program Coordinator at Cascade AIDS. He lost her husband to AIDS in 2007.

“Thank you for the support you have given long-term survivors. The recognition is wonderful, ”he said and handed the Commissioners a card signed by other longtime survivors. Clay has been celebrating World AIDS Day for 33 years now. Now is the time to celebrate new treatments and drugs that allow people with AIDS to live long and healthy lives, to focus on “Ending the epidemic”.

But he encouraged the Council to remember the original intention of World AIDS Day.

“It started as a solemn moment of remembrance, an occasion to mourn our losses,” he said. “It seems appropriate that we are setting aside a day to remember the horror and those who are gone. “

He quoted the end plawyer William Hoffman, who described the AIDS epidemic as a time of mass death, brutality and human indifference.

Commissioner Susheela Jayapal recalled the early years of the epidemic, when she worked as a young litigator in San Francisco. “I remember the friends and colleagues I lost. The miasma of fear and stigma, ”she said. “I’m grateful that 40 years later we are in a different place. “

She thanked Clay for speaking out against the horrors of the First Response: death, brutality and indifference.

“I find myself thinking that human indifference is the worst of all. It is the most difficult to fight, ”she said. “And the antidote is activism.”

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