Road to AIDS 2012 Makes Stop in New York

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Media Contacts:
Krishna Stone | 212.367.1016

NEW YORK, NY — With more than 105,000 people living with HIV/AIDS in the New York metropolitan area, members of the region's HIV/AIDS community will have an historic opportunity to discuss the successes and challenges in their fight against the epidemic at a town hall meeting Thursday, March 22. The event is the eighth stop on the ROAD TO AIDS 2012, a nationwide tour that is engaging communities across the country in a conversation about the state of the HIV/AIDS epidemic in America.

The event will be held at GMHC, at 446 West 33rd Street, New York, NY, from 5 pm to 8 pm. Local residents are urged to register for the free event at www.roadtoaids2012.org.  Guest speakers will include:  Monica Sweeney, MD, Assistant Commissioner, and Blayne Cutler, MD, Director, Bureau of HIV/AIDS Prevention and Control, NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene; Sam Rivera, Chair, The Urban Coalition for HIV/AIDS Prevention Services;  Ed Shaw, Chair, GMHC's Consumer Advisory Board and New York Association for HIV Over 50; Phill Wilson, Founder and Executive Director, Black AIDS Institute; and Janet Weinberg, GMHC's Chief Operating Officer.  The panel discussion will be moderated by A. Toni Young, Executive Director of Community Education Group, one of the event's organizers.

"We are 30 years into the epidemic," said Ms. Young. "We're less than a year away from full implementation of health care reform, we have a National HIV/AIDS Strategy and we have the International AIDS Conference on the U.S. shore for the first time in more than 20 years. It's a unique opportunity for community engagement."

Like the town halls before it, the New York Town Hall will let community residents hear from leaders among government, the medical establishment and community-based organizations about national and regional efforts to ramp up HIV/AIDS prevention, care and treatment. However, of equal importance during the town hall will be the collecting of opinions, ideas and suggestions from community residents about what has worked in the fight against HIV/AIDS, and how New York residents can be better served. Insights gleaned from the community conversation will be presented at the XIX International AIDS Conference (AIDS 2012), to be held in Washington, DC July 22 through July 27.

ROAD TO AIDS 2012 is being organized by Community Education Group, The Urban Coalition for HIV/AIDS Prevention Services and AIDS 2012. The project is supported by a grant from The Merck Company Foundation. Its focus is on 17 U.S. cities that are adversely impacted by HIV. The other stops on the ROAD TO AIDS 2012 tour are San Francisco; Washington, D.C.; Chicago; New Orleans; Birmingham, Ala.; Fort Lauderdale, Fla.; Houston; Philadelphia; San Juan, Puerto Rico; Dallas; Los Angeles; Las Vegas; Seattle; Denver; Atlanta, and Baltimore.

For the latest information about the town halls, please log on to the tour's official Web site at www.roadtoaids2012.org. People are also urged to join the conversation by taking an electronic ROAD TO AIDS 2012 survey at www.surveymonkey.com/s/K2MPWRL.

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About The Community Education Group
Founded in 1993 as the National Women and HIV/AIDS Project (NWAP), the Community Education Group (CEG) seeks to stop the spread of HIV and eliminate health disparities by training community health workers, and educating and testing the hard-to-reach population. CEG also regularly shares its expertise with other organizations through national networks and local capacity building efforts. Today, CEG operates eight mobile testing units in Wards 7 and 8 in the District of Columbia and conducts HIV counseling and testing while linking clients to care.

About The Urban Coalition for HIV/AIDS Prevention Services
The Urban Coalition for HIV/AIDS Prevention Services (UCHAPS) is a partnership of community members and health department representatives from urban jurisdictions most heavily impacted by HIV/AIDS. UCHAPS member jurisdictions represent over one-third of the nation's epidemic, are among the epicenters of the urban HIV epidemic, and are often at the forefront of piloting new intervention strategies. Members come from such locations as Chicago, Fort Lauderdale, Houston, Los Angeles County, New York, Miami-Dade County, Philadelphia, San Francisco and Washington, DC.
 
About AIDS 2012
The biennial International AIDS Conference is the premier gathering for those working in the field of HIV, as well as policymakers, people living with HIV and others committed to ending the epidemic. AIDS 2012 will take place in Washington, DC July 22 through 27.
 
About GMHC
GMHC is a not-for-profit, volunteer-supported and community-based organization committed to national leadership in the fight against AIDS.  We provide prevention and care services to men, women and families that are living with, or affected by, HIV/AIDS in New York City.  We advocate for scientific, evidence-based public health solutions for hundreds of thousands worldwide.