District progressing in fight against AIDS/HIV

It was a balmy 54 degrees Saturday morning and 28-year-old Justin B. Smith was on the corner of Pennsylvania Avenue and 14th Street, NW stretching his quadriceps and hamstrings in preparation for a 5K run. This race would be the most meaningful of his life, he said.Smith is HIV-positive and was running to take a stand against HIV and AIDS.

"This is the first time I've ever done this run. I want to keep giving as much as I can," said the Silver Spring, Md., native who contracted the virus at 25. Smith has also maintained a video journal on YouTube, "Justin's HIV Journal," through which he details his life living with HIV.

About 6,000 people gathered at Freedom Plaza to show support for the fight against HIV and AIDS. People of all ages and ethnicities paced down the street proudly wearing blue and white t-shirts with "AIDS Walk Washington" embedded on their upper torsos.

Whitman-Walker Clinic, which has organized the event since 1983, said that over $700,000 was raised to support HIV/AIDS programs in the city this year. The clinic is the largest provider of HIV services in the District, including basic health care, a food bank and counseling.

According to Whitman-Walker, more than 15,000 people are living with AIDS in the District. While one in every 20 adults is infected with HIV, African Americans account for eight out of every 10 AIDS cases. The Centers for Disease Control in Atlanta estimates that nationally, Black women and Black, gay men account for the highest rate of HIV/AIDS cases at 72.4 percent and 74.8 percent respectively. The highest mode of exposure in D.C. is male-to-male sexual contact at 37%.

Ron Simmons, president and CEO of Us Helping Us, an organization that specializes in HIV/AIDS prevention and care services for Black gay and bisexual men in D.C., recalled a CDC study that attributes two dynamics to the heightened AIDS rate in Black communities.

There is a higher prevalence for Black people to have more sexual partners among each other, and a higher prevalence of STDs among Blacks, Simmons said.

"It boils down to saying 'no' more, getting tested more and using condoms even more," Simmons said.

David Mallory, director for the walk, also said the causes behind the rising numbers are multifaceted. "Part of it comes with the state of being young and the feeling of invincibility," he said. "There's still a stigma in a lot of communities around HIV/AIDS."

The DC Appleseed Center for Law and Justice has been monitoring the District's progress in the fight against HIV/AIDS. Last month, the center issued its fourth report card in which it commended the District for its surveillance of HIV and monitoring HIV/AIDS among those incarcerated. But the report strongly recommended adopting system-wide, health education standards in D.C.'s public schools.

"More can be done," said Simmons of the results. "But compared to a year and a half ago, we've come a long way. We need to better educate our youth on the disease so they won't have to struggle with the same thing some of us are struggling with now.