World AIDS day
Because AIDS affects all of us
MELISSA HIEBERT STAFF
In many different countries throughout the world, Canada included, the AIDS virus all too frequently has a negative stigma associated with it.
People with AIDS can be ostracized and avoided, mostly due to people’s misconceptions about the virus. Though information about AIDS is becoming more prevalent, there are some people who still believe that the only people who get AIDS are drug users, homosexuals, and prostitutes. However, World AIDS Day is working to rid people of these misconceptions about the AIDS virus, and bring light to just how serious a problem AIDS has become worldwide.
There are over 40 million people around the world that are HIVpositive. Of this number, over 3 million are children. In Canada alone, there are an estimated 60,000 people in Canada that are living with the HIV virus.
The first World AIDS Day was held in 1988, and it has since become an international day of awareness. One of the purposes of the day is “to spread awareness, especially concerning some of the stigma of AIDS and how it is a problem here as much as it is in places “over there,” such as Africa,” said Lawrence Kei, the president of the University of Manitoba World Vision Club. “Education about AIDS is important because it is a worldwide issue and the best way to slow its spread is by prevention and knowledge.”
But what is the best way to help the fight against AIDS? “The best thing that people can do to fight against AIDS is to learn about programs in your community and around the world that engage in prevention efforts and support people affected by HIV/AIDS, how you can donate time or money to the programs, and about the medical, psychological, social, economic, and other impacts of HIV/AIDS in our world today,” said Rebecca Coish, president of the U of M branch of Amnesty International. She also said that it is important for people to learn their status (HIV positive or negative) in order to seek treatment and take the necessary precautions to prevent further spread of the infection.
If you are looking for a way to get involved in the fight against AIDS, there are a number of groups around campus that are participating in World AIDS Day: Amnesty International, Rainbow Pride Mosaic, UMSU, U of M Circle K, and the U of M World Vision Club, as well as alumni from the HIV/AIDS committee at Grant Park High School have all been involved in planning events. There are numerous events going on around campus, including documentaries that will be screened all day long in the fireside lounge area, red AIDS ribbons being sold by donation, and a food drive for people affected by HIV/AIDS in the community in conjunction with UMSU and the Nine Circles Community Health Centre (drop boxes located around campus), among many others. Myrna Ronald of the Uganda Orphan Fund will also be speaking in the fireside lounge area of University Centre from 11 to 12 p.m. on Dec. 1. She will be talking about teenagers who have been affected by HIV/AIDS in Kampala, Uganda.
So this Dec. 1, take some time to reflect on the millions of people who have lost their lives to AIDS, and do your part to join the fight to stop it.
