Aids walk LA 2010: Our future, our fight
Local young adults pull together to fight epidemic darkening our future
We are all too familiar with the statistics, can even recite them from memory. We know the preventative methods, and many of us have lost someone to the disease. Yet, many young adults still participate in the acts that can endanger their lives and decapitate our existence.
However, this year two growing companies rallied all their cohorts and decided to take a stand and join the battle against AIDS.
This Sunday, millions with gather in unity on the streets of Los Angeles and walk 6.2 miles in the memory of those they have lost, those who are battling and those who may battle this disease.
Darryl Threatt, a local clothing designer, and Adib Salim, owner of an entertainment company in L.A. generated a team consisting of their families, friends and colleagues.
Threatt of Blow Clothing Collection and one part of team 0818 decided that it was important to raise awareness about the disease.
“As a brand owner, I found that I would be able to make a direct connection with my customers at this event. Making this connection was necessary, because at this time we developed a new campaign for my company inspiring youth, building knowledge and increasing awareness (of AIDS/HIV)… I believed it would be a great relationship. So many young people disregard the fact that this disease can affect them, and that they are not invincible from catching HIV.”
Currently, the team has more than 150 people signed up for this Sunday’s walk.
“We have successfully executed five different events in which we have generated funds and increased knowledge,” said Threatt. “I think that there were a lot of people (who) were not really involved with what was going on with the AIDS Walk because they didn’t have the information about the event, and they were not as encouraged. They didn’t know that much about the AIDS Walk. I believe more people could have signed up, and we could have raised more money. But we did increase knowledge. Next year we will definitely be able to generate more funds and get more people involved. I think it is very important for young adults to stand up and participate in causes like this. We are a very powerful resource, and if more youth were involved it would draw more attention to the cause… That is our goal.”
Malcolm Harvest a young male signed up with team 0818 felt this was a very good cause and a way to promote healthy living within the community. Harvest also has a personal connection, because his grandfather was diagnosed with a terminal illness when he was too young to truly understand the concept of a terminal illness and the type of money that is truly needed to research a cure.
“I think the biggest thing that young adults can give right now is our time. Not all of us are in a situation where we can donate tons of money. It shows (our concern) that we are willing to stop what we are doing to make a difference.”
If you are not already aware African-Americans make up more than 4 percent of new cases of AIDS and HIV every year. It is a deadly disease that is, in most cases, preventable.
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Thirty years after the HIV/AIDS epidemic was officially recognized by the United States medical establishment, the impact the disease has had on the African American community is profound.
In fact, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) has described the situation as a crisis. Consider these facts:
1) Although Blacks represent only about 14 percent of the U.S. population, they account for almost half the people living with AIDS in the nation—46 percent, or an estimated 545,000 people.
LOS ANGELES, Calif.—A $25 million federal grant will help Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science add faculty and do research over the next five years, the university announced today.
The money comes from the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities.
“This funding allows the university to build upon our success in conducting research on health disparities, as well as for attracting new students and faculty,” said Dr. David Carlisle, the school’s president.
LOS ANGELES, Calif.—Thirty years ago, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released the first study on the severity of what would become the AIDS epidemic, based on research that focused on five men in Los Angeles who contracted a rare type of pneumonia with no apparent cause.
“The elation of the discovery of a new disease was soon replaced by sadness,” Dr. Michael Gottlieb, who headed the 1981 study, said Friday at a City Hall news conference.
(dedicated to Anthony)
IRVINE, Calif.—A UC Irvine researcher says a spice that is common in Indian curries and other Asian dishes may be so packed with anti-oxidants and other good chemicals that it might extend the lifespan of humans.
Curcumin is an ingredient in turmeric, a golden spice that is a staple in Asian cuisine, and used in many American kitchens for its peppery flavor as well. Mahtab Jafari, an associate pharmacuetic sciences professor at UC Irvine, says the spice keeps fruit flies alive 20 percent longer than normal, improves their mobility, and prevents tumors in them.
