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Minority HIV Prevention Group Targets Mon Valley
By Jason Togyer
The Tube City Almanac
June 10, 2015
Posted in: Announcements
In the 1980s, human immunodeficiency virus, or HIV, and acquired immune deficiency syndrome, or AIDS, seemed to be in the news on a daily basis.
HIV and AIDS don't seem to be grabbing many headlines, but that doesn't mean the problem has gone away, says Sabira Bushra, founder and executive director of the Partnership for Minority HIV/AIDS Prevention. In fact, more than 140 new cases are diagnosed in Allegheny County every year.
What has changed, she says, is that being diagnosed HIV positive is no longer the death sentence that it seemed to be 20 years ago. Early detection, and proper health care, can enable people who have contracted HIV to live a life largely free from symptoms.
But in the Mon Valley, Bushra says, it can be difficult to be tested—and there's still a stigma around HIV, especially among people of color, because it's still perceived to be a "gay men's" disease.
In fact, women make up 25 percent of HIV sufferers, and most of them contracted the disease through heterosexual contact.
HIV also continues to disproportionately affect people of color, including African-Americans and Latinos.
The HIV/AIDS partnership will hold an informational event at 1 p.m. Saturday, June 27 at Zion Baptist Church, 1300 Locust St., to explain the importance of testing and try to answer questions. Speakers will include Dr. Sherida Williams, a women's health specialist; and program manager John McClellan.
WPXI-TV (11) reporter Brittney McGraw will be a special guest.
We talked to Bushra last week on "Two Rivers, 30 Minutes." You can hear the program at 9:30 a.m. Fridays on WEDO (810), 8 a.m. Sundays on WZUM (1550), or subscribe and listen on your computer or smartphone using the free Stitcher or iTunes apps.
Originally published June 10, 2015.
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