National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day “a day to remember; a day to take action” says Rev. Nipper

WASHINGTON, DC, February 7 2015 — To mark National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day, the National LGBTQ Task Force issued the following statement:

“This is a day to honor and remember many friends, families and loved ones who we have lost to AIDS over the years. And it’s also a day to take action: please get educated, get tested, get treated, and get involved with HIV/AIDS work, as it continues to devastate our Black communities. For example, we know from our report, Injustice at Every Turn: A look at Black Respondents in the National Transgender Discrimination Survey, that black transgender people are affected by HIV in devastating numbers. More than one-fifth of respondents were living with HIV (20.23 percent), compared to a rate of 2.64 percent for transgender respondents of all races. This is a national tragedy. Yet we live at a time when it possible to create an AIDS-free world. We all need to do more — to urgently turn this possibility into a probability,” said Rev. Darlene Nipper, Deputy Executive Director, National LGBTQ Task Force.

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