From left to right, Melyssa Ford, Shanebrae Price, Sheryl Lee Ralph, Robert E. Bailey II & Dr. Kathleen Green Ruth

Yesterday, I attended the 20th year celebration of “For Sisters Only,” which is hosted by V-103 and WAOK radio stations. It’s hard to believe that I started going to this event( a cornucopia of businesses, exhibits, concerts, celebrities and more directed toward women) as a recent college graduate, and it is still going strong! I remember being so excited when one year I literally ran into Dré of OutKast, and he took a picture with me. Back then, he could freely walk around without too much of a ruckus…but that was back in the day when I was young, I’m not a kid anymore…don’t act…you know the lyrics

And since I have grown up since then, I’m not as drawn to the celebrity/concert component of FSO….I’m more drawn to the activism component of this great event now. So I decided to attend a HIV/AIDS panel discussion moderated by Robert E. Bailey II of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The panel discussion was held as a part of Act Against AIDS, a five-year national communication campaign launched by the CDC and the White House to combat complacency about the HIV/ AIDS crisis in the United States.

Robert E. Bailey II speaking with the audience.

The panel discussion included actor and singer Sheryl Lee Ralph, who is an AIDS activist in her own right and my soror; model Melyssa Ford, Shanebrae Price, an HIV Prevention outreach specialist with SisterLove Inc. and Dr. Kathleen Green Ruth with the CDC. The discussion was held on the main stage just before the concerts kicked off so many younger people had started congregating –  a prime opportunity to have a real discussion about HIV/AIDS prevention.

Some of the startling statistics revealed in the panel discussion:

• Although the annual number of new HIV infections has remained stable overall from 2006 to 2009, there was an estimated 21 percent increase in HIV incidence for people aged 13-29 years old.
• About a million people are living with HIV, and one in five of them don’t even know they are affected.
• About half of the million of people living with HIV are black.

Some of the helpful initiatives and tools revealed in the discussion:

Price told the audience about Healthy Love parties the organization hosts with small groups of women in various settings to discuss HIV/AIDS prevention. Price said she helps the women to learn their ABCs. A is for Abstinence as complete abstinence from sex is a surefire way to prevent the spread of HIV/AIDS. And if you cannot be abstinent, she advocates choosing option B which stands for being faithful or monagamous in a committed relationship. And if you choose option B, you must also choose C for constant, consistent and correct condom use.

Ford said she carries around her status papers with her and has launched a non-profit organization LESS (Literacy, Etiquette, Strength, Self) is More to educate young women formally and informally abour various issues such as HIV/AIDs prevention.

Ralph said that although the AIDS Memorial Quilt, a quilt which includes the names of

Of course, I had to get the soror shot in...lol...Sorors Holness & Lee Ralph on deck...

those who have lost their lives to AIDS, is 55 miles long, only a half of a mile of the quilt is dedicated to people of color. She advised audience members to go to aidsquilt.org to have the names of their loved ones added.

For more information, please go to Act Against AIDS.

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