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For Immediate Release – Pittsburgh – January 30, 2015 – Pittsburgh AIDS Task Force (PATF) will host a dance event in the Strip District on Friday, Feb 7 and community outreach the week of Feb 2 – 8 in observance of National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day.
“National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day is so critical in the fight to make new infections of HIV rare and the Black community has been so significantly affected with HIV/AIDS for many years for many reasons,” said PATF Executive Director Charles Christen, “Stigma still runs high and efforts such as this awareness day help break down the barriers of stigma.”
According to the Pennsylvania Department of Health’s most recent Integrated Epidemiologic Profile of HIV/AIDS in Pennsylvania, African Americans comprise 11.4% of Southwestern Pennsylvania’s total population, but 44 to 46 percent of those living with HIV/AIDS. According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, young Black men aged 13-24 years are driving a resurgence in youth HIV infection rates with nearly 1,000 new infections a month in that age group.
The dance event will be coordinated through PATF’s M2M Program targeting young Black gay and bisexual men who have sex with men as well as trans individuals of all races. The event will feature a vogue dance competition, HIV/STD testing, and an interactive digital lounge courtesy of the #standOUTpgh campaign.
PATF will be canvassing neighborhoods in Pittsburgh to spread awareness of the health disparities facing the Black community in the face of the HIV/AIDS epidemic. PATF will be presenting printed materials with health information and statistics as well as offering HIV and STD testing at its offices in East Liberty.
As the oldest and largest AIDS service organization in Southwestern Pennsylvania, Pittsburgh AIDS Task Force (PATF) is dedicated to supporting and empowering all individuals living with HIV/AIDS, and to be relentless in preventing the spread of infection. PATF is a leader in providing comprehensive support services that improve the health and quality of life for those living with HIV/AIDS in Allegheny, Armstrong, Beaver, Butler, Cambria, Greene, Fayette, Indiana, Somerset, Washington, and Westmoreland counties.
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For more information contact Jason Herring at 412-345-0596 or jherring@patf.org.