ICW Global Advocacy Officer, Beri Hull - World AIDS Day Speech

It is an honor to be invited to speak here today.
I am a woman living with HIV for over 22 years. I am a proud member of the International community of Women living with HIV and AIDS also known as ICW. ICW is the only international network run for and by HIV positive women. ICW was founded in 1992 in response to the desperate lack of support, information and services available to women living with HIV worldwide and our need to have influence and input on policy and program development.

I am also a board member and volunteer at Prevention Works, Washington DC’s premiere needle exchange program. Prevention Works is one of the most powerful programs for preventing new and secondary HIV infections amongst men, women and children in the DC area and they are doing it without any support from the federal government. Had there been needle exchange in Chicago in the early 80’s I probably would not be standing here today a woman living with HIV.

We must all work to undermine racism, sexism, classism, homophobia, addictaphobia, stigma and discrimination in order to stop the way in which these things are fueling this disease so that we can end this pandemic.

• We know how to prevent HIV and treat PHA’s so why aren’t we doing it…Incidence rates of HIV infection in the US are too high and access to health care are is too low!
• Politics nor money should not stand in the way of doing what needs to be done to stop the damage caused by this disease!
• Our lives are not dispensable…
• Not including PLWHIV in policy and program development is unacceptable!
• HIV and AIDS is not the place for judgment and intolerance
• Stop coerced Testing
• Stop the immigration ban and all forms of blatant discrimination
• End the prostitution pledge that is expected of organizations serving the vulnerable despite the fact that some of the sex workers in the DC area’s best customers are frequent visitors to the white house across the street and thoughout the halls of congress
• Punishing people living with HIV in the states that vote against the party of the next president is unacceptable!
• Stop the war on harm reduction

The list goes on and on…
The commitment to people living with HIV must be based on more than kickbacks to the pharmaceutical industry, and religious right opportunistic organizations!
People over politics lives over livelihoods!

I would like to thank all organizations and public servants that have been doing tremendous work in support of stopping violence against women, and providing prevention, treatment, care and support services to people living with HIV and people vulnerable to HIV infection. Many of you have been doing this work from the beginning of this pandemic and will continue doing this work for as long as this disease causes anguish.

There have been two differing manifestations of the response to HIV and AIDS throughout the years. One manifestation is of love, tolerance and compassion especially for the less fortunate and vulnerable guided by the belief in a loving god, higher power or divine system of justice. The other manifestation is that of judgment, damnation and intolerance guided by a punishing god, higher power or a selfish system of justice. For those of us living with HIV there is only a place in the response to this disease for people that are guided by love and compassion.

Unfortunately HIV and AIDS and how to act in response to it has become more about money and political ideology and less about preventing HIV and supporting the lives and survival of people living with HIV. There are entities out there that have emerged in recent years that are opportunistic organizations who are taking tax payer money meant to prevent the spread of HIV and provide care and support for people with HIV. These entities do not have the interest of people living with HIV or the most vulnerable groups to HIV infection at heart. Neither do we need politicians that launch HIV/AIDS initiatives that sound good to the people but are not supported with resources and follow up or that rob vital resources from other much needed programs. For such “Organizations and politicians” we know who you are, you know who you are and so does karma and God.

I implore all organizations and governmental agents that are a part of the “AIDS industry” to include us, people living with HIV and Aids, in all that you do at all levels of decision making that have an impact on our lives. Do not discount the god given insight and intuition that comes from experience in order to make programs and policies better. Help support us to accept living with HIV and to let go of shame and self stigmatization. It is fear, stigma and discrimination that is fueling gender based violence and fueling the AIDS pandemic and it is indeed those of us living with HIV that have accepted our disease that will lead the way out of the greater suffering from violence, stigma and discrimination that comes as a part of the package beyond this disease alone.

Beri Hull
Global Advocacy Officer - Access to Care, Treatment and Support

Speech given outside the White House, Washington DC