Voices ... from the XVI International AIDS Conference
By Alice Thomas-Tisdale
TORONTO -- Levon Ford, 23, has connected himself to almost every HIV prevention program in New York and recently attended his first International AIDS Conference. Ford said he wanted to do even more to help prevent youth from experiencing the loss of a friend to AIDS like he did a decade ago. Today, Ford teaches sex education at New York University Medical Center and spearheads Project Youth, a collaborative effort between four HIV youth prevention programs. Among the conference’s approximately 2,000 youth delegates, Ford said he’s found a new global network. “It is so powerful seeing youth from around the world coming together to learn how to reach people about AIDS. We’re not all that different, but just have different strategies.” Levon embraces is hip hop music as one tactic for reaching youth. As a volunteer with Life Beat, an arts-focused HIV outreach program. Levon comes in contact with local and national artists. “Two weeks ago LL Cool J performed and we gave out condoms and literature.” And faster than “Gunsmoke’s” Matt Dillon, Levon can whip out the latest copy of “Shared Wisdom,” a publication of Sisterhood Mobilized for AIDS/HIV Research and Treatment, Inc. or SMART, where he also volunteers.