February 15th, 2010
LGBT ally Rep Diane Watson will not run for re-election
by Karen Ocamb
February 11, 2010
Longtime LGBT ally Congressmember Diane E. Watson (D-CA) formally announced Thursday that she is not seeking re-election. She wants Karen Bass, the outgoing Speaker of the California Assembly and another pro-LGBT ally, to replace her representing California’s 33rd Congressional District.
Watson’s openly gay legislative deputy Charles Stewart describes below how his boss told her staff she was retiring. But first something about Watson.
I first met Diane Watson in the early 1990s at AIDS activist Phill Wilson’s house for a meet and greet with the California State Senator, where she’d been serving since 1978. First thing that struck me was how tall she was – statuesque and elegant and smart. Turns out she had a M.A. in School Psychology from California State University, Los Angeles, and a Ph.D. in Educational Administration from the Claremont Graduate School. She’d already broken barriers – becoming the first Black woman elected to the LA Unified School Board in 1975.
But Watson could also be both intense and feisty. She could get this very intense serious look that instantly brought forth dark clouds when talking about people with HIV/AIDS and then, like Zeus wielding lightening blots, she would smile and threaten to deal sharply with anyone who got in the way of helping people with AIDS. In those days, when being diagnosed as HIV positive seemed like an instant stigmatized death sentence and friends were dying every week – such strident advocacy was like a cool drink of water in the scorching desert.
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Posted in HIV prevention justice alliance, LA city AIDS coordinator's office, McCAB, McNC, aging and HIV/AIDS, aids, aids.org, americans for safe access / la, apla, asian-pacific hiv/aids, barak obama, beingALIVE-la, big pharma, black msm gay hiv/aids, black women with aids, citizen journalism, criminalization of HIV/AIDS, cultural activism, faith-based activism, first nations indigenous hiv/aids, gay guys with aids, gay issues, global aids, harm reduction coalition, health justice, healthcare for veterans, hepatitis c, hiv, hiv & assisted care, hiv and veterans, hiv disease, hiv in prison, hiv/aids, hiv/aids in california, hiv/aids stigma, hiv/aids vaccine, hivers over 50, la county ca hiv/aids, latina-latino hiv/aids, lgbt, marriage equality, medical marijuana, national AIDS strategy, pan / patient advocacy network, politics, public health policy, same-sex marriage, schac, shamanism, social justice, social marketing, transgender hiv/aids, weho--city of west hollywood, women & girls w/hiv/aids, women's issues | No Comments »
February 12th, 2010
new media toolkit
one-pagers
chers—
this is an excellent set of posts on the new media from the AIDS.gov blog. they are intended to give you an overview of just what we’re talking about when we say “new media,” with links to more information and resources as you want and/or need them.
plan spending some time with these pages,
namaste
—rk
Resources and Information from the AIDS.gov blog:
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Posted in 2010 hiv/aids summit & training 2-2010, HIV prevention justice alliance, LA city AIDS coordinator's office, aging and HIV/AIDS, aids, aids.org, apla, asian-pacific hiv/aids, awo call to action, beingALIVE-la, black msm gay hiv/aids, black women with aids, champ, citizen journalism, community blogger, criminalization of HIV/AIDS, cultural activism, elder HIV/AIDS summit & training 2010, faith-based activism, first nations indigenous hiv/aids, gay guys with aids, gay issues, global aids, health justice, healthcare for veterans, hepatitis c, hiv, hiv & assisted care, hiv and veterans, hiv disease, hiv in prison, hiv/aids, hiv/aids in california, hiv/aids stigma, hivers over 50, la county ca hiv/aids, lag&lc, latina-latino hiv/aids, lgbt, link report, los angeles city, national AIDS strategy, pan / patient advocacy network, politics, public health policy, schac, shamanism, social justice, social marketing, transgender hiv/aids, weho--city of west hollywood, women & girls w/hiv/aids, women's issues | No Comments »
February 12th, 2010
Posted in 2010 hiv/aids summit & training 2-2010, LA city AIDS coordinator's office, aging and HIV/AIDS, aids, aids.org, apla, asian-pacific hiv/aids, awo call to action, beingALIVE-la, black msm gay hiv/aids, black women with aids, blogging & writing, champ, citizen journalism, community blogger, criminalization of HIV/AIDS, cultural activism, elder HIV/AIDS summit & training 2010, faith-based activism, first nations indigenous hiv/aids, gay guys with aids, gay issues, global aids, harm reduction coalition, hepatitis c, hiv, hiv & assisted care, hiv and veterans, hiv disease, hiv in prison, hiv/aids, hiv/aids in california, hiv/aids stigma, hivers over 50, la county ca hiv/aids, lag&lc, latina-latino hiv/aids, lgbt, link report, los angeles city, national AIDS strategy, pan / patient advocacy network, politics, public health policy, schac, shamanism, social justice, social marketing, transgender hiv/aids, weho--city of west hollywood, women & girls w/hiv/aids, women's issues | No Comments »
February 12th, 2010
new media toolkit
resources
Here are some new media resources we’ve come across at AIDS.gov. Please note that this list is just a sample of the many new media resources available on the web.
Please leave a comment if you have other suggestions.
Click on the topics below to see resources:
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Posted in 2010 hiv/aids summit & training 2-2010, HIV prevention justice alliance, LA city AIDS coordinator's office, aging and HIV/AIDS, aids, aids.org, apla, asian-pacific hiv/aids, awo call to action, beingALIVE-la, black msm gay hiv/aids, black women with aids, blogging & writing, champ, citizen journalism, community blogger, criminalization of HIV/AIDS, cultural activism, elder HIV/AIDS summit & training 2010, faith-based activism, first nations indigenous hiv/aids, gay guys with aids, gay issues, global aids, harm reduction coalition, health justice, hepatitis c, hiv, hiv & assisted care, hiv disease, hiv in prison, hiv/aids, hiv/aids in california, hiv/aids stigma, hivers over 50, la county ca hiv/aids, lag&lc, latina-latino hiv/aids, lgbt, link report, los angeles city, national AIDS strategy, pan / patient advocacy network, politics, public health policy, schac, shamanism, social justice, social marketing, transgender hiv/aids, weho--city of west hollywood, women & girls w/hiv/aids, women's issues | No Comments »
February 12th, 2010
new media toolkit
strategy
Here are two tools to help you develop your new media strategy:
Posted in 2010 hiv/aids summit & training 2-2010, HIV prevention justice alliance, LA city AIDS coordinator's office, aging and HIV/AIDS, aids, aids.org, apla, asian-pacific hiv/aids, awo call to action, beingALIVE-la, black msm gay hiv/aids, black women with aids, blogging & writing, champ, citizen journalism, community blogger, criminalization of HIV/AIDS, cultural activism, elder HIV/AIDS summit & training 2010, faith-based activism, first nations indigenous hiv/aids, gay guys with aids, gay issues, global aids, health justice, healthcare for veterans, hiv, hiv & assisted care, hiv and veterans, hiv disease, hiv in prison, hiv/aids, hiv/aids in california, hiv/aids stigma, hivers over 50, la county ca hiv/aids, latina-latino hiv/aids, lgbt, link report, los angeles city, national AIDS strategy, pan / patient advocacy network, politics, public health policy, schac, shamanism, social justice, social marketing, transgender hiv/aids, weho--city of west hollywood, women & girls w/hiv/aids, women's issues | No Comments »
February 11th, 2010
Researchers find ‘broad spectrum’ antiviral that fights multitude of viruses
By Enrique Rivero
February 01, 2010
Compound could be used against HIV-1, Nipah, Ebola and other deadly viruses
Viruses are insidious creatures. They differ from each other in many ways, and they can mutate — at times seemingly at will, as with HIV — to resist a host of weapons fired at them. Complicating matters further is that new viruses are constantly emerging.
One potential weapon is a small-molecule “broad spectrum” antiviral that will fight a host of viruses by attacking them through some feature common to an entire class of viruses. For example, there are two categories of viruses: lipid-enveloped and non-enveloped. Enveloped viruses are surrounded by a membrane that in effect serves as a mechanism through which a virus inserts its genome into a host cell, infecting it. Is there something out there that might disrupt that action in as many viruses as possible — and not produce unwanted side effects?
A group of researchers led by a team from UCLA and including others from the University of Texas at Galveston, Harvard University, Cornell University and the United States Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases may have found just such a compound.
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Posted in HIV prevention justice alliance, LA city AIDS coordinator's office, aging and HIV/AIDS, aids, apla, asian-pacific hiv/aids, beingALIVE-la, big pharma, black msm gay hiv/aids, black women with aids, champ, citizen journalism, criminalization of HIV/AIDS, cultural activism, elder HIV/AIDS summit & training 2010, faith-based activism, first nations indigenous hiv/aids, gay guys with aids, gay issues, global aids, harm reduction coalition, health justice, healthcare for veterans, hepatitis c, hiv, hiv & assisted care, hiv and veterans, hiv disease, hiv in prison, hiv/aids, hiv/aids in california, hiv/aids stigma, hiv/aids vaccine, hivers over 50, la county ca hiv/aids, lag&lc, latina-latino hiv/aids, lgbt, los angeles city, natap, pan / patient advocacy network, public health policy, schac, shamanism, social justice, social marketing, transgender hiv/aids, weho--city of west hollywood, women & girls w/hiv/aids, women's issues | No Comments »
February 11th, 2010
Scientists say [they've] crack[ed] HIV/AIDS puzzle for drugs
By Kate Kelland
January 31, 2010
Study solves puzzle that eluded scientists for 20 years
* Finding should help development of new HIV/AIDS medicines
* Allows scientists to see how Merck and Gilead drugs work
LONDON, Jan 31 (Reuters) - Scientists say they have solved a crucial puzzle about the AIDS virus after 20 years of research and that their findings could lead to better treatments for HIV.
British and U.S. researchers said they had grown a crystal that enabled them to see the structure of an enzyme called integrase, which is found in retroviruses like HIV and is a target for some of the newest HIV medicines.
“Despite initially painstakingly slow progress and very many failed attempts, we did not give up and our effort was finally rewarded,” said Peter Cherepanov of Imperial College London, who conducted the research with scientists from Harvard University.
The Imperial and Harvard scientists said that having the integrase structure means researchers can begin fully to understand how integrase inhibitor drugs work, how they might be improved, and how to stop HIV developing resistance to them.
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Posted in LA city AIDS coordinator's office, aging and HIV/AIDS, aids, apla, asian-pacific hiv/aids, beingALIVE-la, big pharma, black msm gay hiv/aids, black women with aids, champ, citizen journalism, criminalization of HIV/AIDS, cultural activism, elder HIV/AIDS summit & training 2010, faith-based activism, first nations indigenous hiv/aids, gay guys with aids, gay issues, global aids, health justice, healthcare for veterans, hiv, hiv disease, hiv/aids, hiv/aids in california, la county ca hiv/aids, lag&lc, latina-latino hiv/aids, lgbt, natap, pan / patient advocacy network, politics, public health policy, schac, shamanism, social justice, social marketing, transgender hiv/aids, weho--city of west hollywood, women & girls w/hiv/aids, women's issues | No Comments »
February 10th, 2010
Zelda Rubinstein Dead at 76
by Neal Broverman
Posted on Advocate.com
January 27, 2010
Zelda Rubinstein, the Poltergeist actress and HIV activist, died Wednesday at the Barlow Respiratory Hospital in Los Angeles. She was 76.
The 4-foot, 3-inch actress had various health problems following a mild heart attack she suffered late last year.
Rubinstein will be remembered by gays for being one of the first celebrities to lend her name and face to an HIV/AIDS public awareness campaign aimed at gay men. In a series of billboards and posters that blanketed Los Angeles in the mid ’80s, Rubinstein portrayed “Mother,” a sweet maternal figure who urged her “sons” to play safe. The posters soon spread nationally and then internationally.
The actress spoke to Advocate.com recently about her role in the L.A. Cares campaign and the hit her career took for participating in it (see attached video).
Born in Pittsburgh in 1933, Rubinstein worked as a lab technician until getting into acting in her 40s. Her performance as the psychic Tangina in Poltergeist was hailed by critics, and she later nabbed roles in that movie’s sequels and the quirky television show Picket Fences.
Rubinstein spoke out not only for safe sex but for the rights of gays and little people.
Posted in HIV prevention justice alliance, LA city AIDS coordinator's office, aging and HIV/AIDS, aids, aids & bubonic plague & 1918 flu, apla, asian-pacific hiv/aids, beingALIVE-la, black AIDS institute, black msm gay hiv/aids, black women with aids, champ, citizen journalism, criminalization of HIV/AIDS, cultural activism, elder HIV/AIDS summit & training 2010, faith-based activism, first nations indigenous hiv/aids, gay guys with aids, gay issues, global aids, harm reduction coalition, health justice, healthcare for veterans, hiv, hiv & assisted care, hiv and veterans, hiv disease, hiv in prison, hiv/aids, hiv/aids in california, hiv/aids stigma, hivers over 50, la county ca hiv/aids, lag&lc, latina-latino hiv/aids, lgbt, los angeles city, marriage equality, national AIDS strategy, pan / patient advocacy network, politics, public health policy, same-sex marriage, schac, shamanism, social justice, social marketing, terry le grand internet talk radio, transgender hiv/aids, weho--city of west hollywood, women & girls w/hiv/aids, women's issues | No Comments »
February 10th, 2010
Terry LeGrand’s
The Alternative
Internet Radio
Channel 1Sunday nights 6:00-7:00
http://www.latalkradio.com/
chers—
click below to listen or download the audiofile
namaste
—rk
Broadcast date: Sunday, January 31, 2010
Guests Richard Kearns, a poet, journalist, activist, organizer for the LA Grassroots Elder HIV/AIDS Advocacy Summit, and long time AIDS survivor, and Elliott Katz discussed LA Grassroots Elder HIV/AIDS Advocacy Summit along with a special visit from LATalkRadio’s Greg Rempe discussing BBQ.
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Posted in 2010 hiv/aids summit & training 2-2010, HIV prevention justice alliance, LA city AIDS coordinator's office, McCAB, McNC, aging and HIV/AIDS, ahf, aids, americans for safe access / la, apla, asian-pacific hiv/aids, beingALIVE-la, big pharma, black msm gay hiv/aids, black women with aids, champ, citizen journalism, criminalization of HIV/AIDS, cultural activism, elder HIV/AIDS summit & training 2010, faith-based activism, first nations indigenous hiv/aids, gay guys with aids, gay issues, global aids, harm reduction coalition, health justice, healthcare for veterans, hiv, hiv & assisted care, hiv disease, hiv in prison, hiv/aids, hiv/aids in california, hivers over 50, la county ca hiv/aids, lag&lc, las memorias / the wall, latina-latino hiv/aids, lgbt, los angeles city, medical marijuana, national AIDS strategy, pan / patient advocacy network, politics, public health policy, same-sex marriage, schac, shamanism, social justice, social marketing, terry le grand internet talk radio, transgender hiv/aids, weho--city of west hollywood, women & girls w/hiv/aids, women's issues | No Comments »
February 4th, 2010
Meta-analysis of health and demographic correlates of stigma towards people living with HIV.
by Logie C, Gadalla TM.
Factor-Inwentash Faculty of Social Work, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada. carmen.logie@utoronto.ca
AIDS Care. 2009 Jun;21(6):742-53
ABSTRACT
HIV-related stigma may negatively impact the health, quality of life, social support and well-being of people living with HIV (PLHIV). Previous studies have used diverse samples and a multitude of measurement instruments to examine demographic and health correlates of HIV-related stigma, highlighting the importance of synthesizing findings across different studies to gain a better understanding of these associations. This study examined the relationships between HIV-related stigma and a range of demographic, social, physical and health characteristics. A meta-analysis was conducted to assess the overall strength and direction of these relationships. Twenty-four studies of PLHIV, conducted in North America and published in peer-reviewed journals between January of 2000 and November of 2007, were examined and their findings integrated. The heterogeneity of reported results was also assessed and examined. Our review revealed substantial variability in the ways researchers measure participants’ HIV-related stigma as well as their physical, emotional and mental health. In spite of this variability, high stigma level was consistently and significantly associated with low social support (r = -0.369, p<0.0005), poor physical health (r = -0.324, p<0.0005), poor mental health (r = -0.402, p<0.0005), age (-0.066, p<0.05) and income (-0.172, p<0.005). These correlations were of a medium size, which would be recognized by the individual in daily life. Health and mental health professionals working with individuals and families impacted by HIV could benefit from an enhanced understanding of correlates of HIV-related stigma, which will inform assessments, interventions and treatment plans. The association between HIV-related stigma and physical health has potential implications for treatment, care and support for people at different stages of HIV infection. AIDS Service Organizations are also encouraged to integrate findings into HIV stigma interventions and social support programs. Additionally, HIV-related stigma scales should be developed and validated, so that future studies using them are able to report findings that are operationally and conceptually consistent.
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Posted in HIV prevention justice alliance, LA city AIDS coordinator's office, McCAB, McNC, aging and HIV/AIDS, aids, aids & bubonic plague & 1918 flu, aids.org, americans for safe access / la, apla, asian-pacific hiv/aids, beingALIVE-la, black msm gay hiv/aids, black women with aids, champ, citizen journalism, criminalization of HIV/AIDS, cultural activism, faith-based activism, first nations indigenous hiv/aids, gay guys with aids, gay issues, global aids, harm reduction coalition, health justice, hepatitis c, hiv, hiv & assisted care, hiv disease, hiv in prison, hiv/aids, hiv/aids in california, hiv/aids stigma, hiv/aids vaccine, hivers over 50, join the impact, la county ca hiv/aids, lag&lc, latina-latino hiv/aids, lgbt, los angeles city, medical marijuana, national AIDS strategy, pan / patient advocacy network, politics, public health policy, same-sex marriage, schac, shamanism, social justice, social marketing, transgender hiv/aids, women & girls w/hiv/aids, women's issues | No Comments »
