“World AIDS Day is an opportunity to focus on strengthening support
for people living with HIV and AIDS — and to take action to deliver a
world free from AIDS. The National LGBTQ Task Force believes that we can
be most effective by fighting for policies
that will improve the lives of people who are the most vulnerable and
whose voices are often ignored. For example, we need better access to
sterile syringes for people who inject drugs and transgender people who
use street hormones. We need better access
to HIV and AIDS-related care for people in prisons, jails, and
immigrant detention centers who are particularly at risk for
transmission. We need better law enforcement practices, as many people
engaged in sex work have stopped carrying condoms out of fear
of prosecution, and as a result are engaging in behaviors that put them
at increased risk of transmission. As this year’s theme suggests, we
all need to think positive and rethink HIV and in doing so decisively
act to create a world where people living with
HIV and AIDS do not face stigma and have full access to all the care
they need. We are so close to achieving an AIDS-free world. We must
seize the opportunity together and we can make it happen. The time to
act is now,” said Rea Carey, Executive Director,
National LGBTQ Task Force.
