Please, take a minute to remember that today is World AIDS Day.
Visit some of the following links and educate yourself.
http://www.aids.gov – USA
http://www.worldaidsday.org – UK
http://www.unaids.org/en – United Nations
http://www.cdc.gov/hiv/ – The US Center for Disease Control, Division of HIV/AIDS Prevention
In case you didn’t know why the pandemic of HIV/AIDS means so much to me, here it is. I’m posting my story below. Please feel free to leave a comment for me, by clicking the “comments” link below. I’m happy to hear from you.
My father was born a hemophiliac; his body did not produce a certain blood clotting agent that most people can produce. During a surgery in 1983, he received a transfusion of that blood clotting factor. This serum had been produced from a blood supply to which someone who was HIV+ had contributed. Prior to 1985, donated blood and blood products (plasma, etc.) were not screened for blood-borne diseases like HIV, Hepatitis, etc. My father contracted HIV from this transfusion, and developed AIDS by 1986. He spent the last two years of his life in and out of the hospital. My mother and I spent much of our time there with him.
On February 18, 1988, he passed away due to complications of AIDS. I was eight years old. My life has never been the same. My mother didn’t tell me that it was AIDS that killed my father until I was 12, fearing that I may be looked down upon by other children and their families. In the 1980s, ignorance regarding HIV/AIDS was rampant. I mean, the disease was still called GRIDS (Gay-Related Immune Deficiency Syndrome) the year my father contracted HIV. The strange thing is that, somehow, I knew what had killed my father. AIDS was starting to become news, and I was old enough to begin putting the pieces together. Nobody told me, but I knew. But the confirmation was what I needed to make sure that I would be a lifelong supporter of AIDS charities, and help to spread knowledge and understanding.
Linking and writing every December 1st is the least I can do to honor the memory of my father, a man who has shaped my life so much while only being physically present for so little time. So please, help to battle the stigma that is still associated with AIDS. Be supportive and understanding whenever possible. But most importantly, educate and protect yourself.