The session “New Frontiers in HIV Prevention Sciences” offered a riveting array of models and lessons learned from the ever-evolving field of research on HIV prevention technologies and interventions.
HIV vaccine and microbicide researchers at the International AIDS Conference emphasized the need for truly novel ideas in moving forward in discovery.
African and African-American youth are almost nowhere to be found at the IAC. This lack of representation was extremely surprising considering that sub-Saharan Africa is widely recognized as the most HIV affected and infected region in the world.
Does HIV/AIDS still require an exceptional response? That question framed the interactive discussion hosted by the Caucus for Evidence-Based Prevention.
At a panel session on sex work and human rights, advocates called for the implementation of effective HIV program and policy interventions based on the respect for the human rights of sex workers.
U.S. advocates are asking for the creation of a National AIDS Strategy (NAS) and it was a recurrent them in the various IAC sessions.
It is not by chance that children and young people in India and countries in Asia, Africa, the Caribbean, Europe, and other regions of the world, are being denied comprehensive, evidence-based sexuality education.
If we stand for basic human rights, we should stand for the rights of those living with HIV and AIDS, not because we hope they will have fewer children, but because they also deserve sexual and reproductive health and justice.
As young people, we are fighting not only for access to information that will save our lives, but also to information that will help us better understand ourselves and explore sexuality safely, as a healthy and natural part of who we are.
Male circumcision can be an important tool in the fight against HIV and AIDS, but the panel I attended today only confirmed my fears over the way it will be used.
