NEWS

Sistahs Getting Real About HIV

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LOS ANGELES -- National Coalition of 100 Black Women (NCWB), National Council of Negro Women and the Black AIDS Institute are hosting the 2nd Annual It’s All About M.E.E.! (Mobilization, Education & Empowerment) Sistahs Getting Real About HIV conference is scheduled from Feb. 7-11, 2007 at the Omni Hotel, 251 S. Olive St., Los Angeles.

Invited hosts include Byllye Avery, Donna Brazile, Cong. Donna Christian-Christensen (D-VI), Dr. M. Jocelyn Elders, Dr. Helene Gayle, Tawanna Gordon, Cookie Johnson, Cong. Carolyn Cheeks Kilpatrick (D-Mich.), Cong. Barbara Lee (D-Calif.), Cong. Juanita Millender-McDonald (D-Calif.), Linda Johnson Rice, Bev Smith, Iyanla Vanzant, Cong. Diane Watson (D-Calif.), Pauletta Washington, and Cong. Maxine Waters (D-Calif..

The conference is sponsored by amfAR, MAC AIDS Fund and the U.S. Office on Women’s Health. The honorary host committee is Marcia and Michael Dyson, Dr. Dorothy Height, Jewell Jackson McCabe, Michelle and Marc Morial.

•AIDS remains one of the leading causes of death for African Americans in the United States. With regard to Black women in the U.S:
•AIDS is the leading cause of death for Black women between the ages of 24-34.
•Black women account for 69 percent of new HIV/AIDS cases among women.
•Black women are 19 times as likely as white women to have HIV/AIDS and 13 times more likely to die from the disease.

While race itself is not a risk factor for HIV infection, among African Americans, stigma, denial and the lack of culturally appropriate information and resources for support, all serve as barriers to early HIV testing, diagnosis and treatment. Involving Black women in education, empowerment and mobilization, and developing a network of women from diverse backgrounds that can speak “peer-to-peer” about the myths and the facts around HIV/AIDS is critical to ending the AIDS epidemic in Black communities.

WHAT TO EXPECT AT THE CONFERENCE
The purpose of this conference is to:
•Educate Black women across multiple sectors about the impact of HIV/AIDS in the Black community.
•Stimulate concrete and effective action to prevent the spread of HIV/AIDS among Black women in America.
Each day will focus on a different theme:
•Thursday is dedicated to treatment and prevention.
•Friday is dedicated those living with HIV/AIDS
•Saturday is dedicated to advocates.

The impact of HIV/AIDS on our community; women, men & youth. Health outcomes are influenced by many factors including genetics, behavior, use of health care services and the circumstances under which we live and work. While the pathways by which these factors exert their influence on health status are complex, they are all linked to the fabric of community. It’s All About M.E.E.! will focus on the critical role Black women play in raising awareness about he magnitude of HIV/AIDS in Black communities, and the need for reducing new infections, and increasing the number of Black people who know their HIV status.

Registration Selection
Registration:

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• Basic General Registration -- $100

• Basic Student Registration: $50

• VIP "All Access" Registration: $400
(Includes all registration materials, meal functions, receptions and Gala Dinner)

ADDITIONAL REGISTRATION OPTIONS
• It’s All About M.E.E.! Awards Gala on Friday, February 9, 2007 -- $100
• Closing Brunch on Sunday, February 11, 2007 -- $ 50
•I want to support the work of the Black AIDS Institute with a tax-deductible donation. -- $___________

Workshop Proposal Information

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It’s All About M.E.E.! seeks to provide the most challenging and rewarding learning experience possible for all attendees and presenters. You can help shape the conference content by submitting a proposal for a workshop. We are looking for a variety of turn-key workshop formats including roundtable discussions, panels, interactive presentations, individual lectures and group exercises.

Topics

We are interested in a wide array of HIV/AIDS and closely related topics affecting Black women across our three strategic areas: mobilization, education and empowerment. We are particularly interested in sessions that combine a programmatic focus on a HIV/AIDS or related health issue with operational or strategic approaches such as:

• Effective strategies for working with different community partners: schools, faith-based organizations, businesses, government and other community-based organizations
• Developing effective prevention messages for Black women
• Leadership development
• Evaluation strategies that work at the local level such as empowerment or participatory evaluation
• Replication of models that work
• Expanding utilization of HIV treatment services by Black women
• Increasing HIV testing among Black women
• Crossing stakeholder lines among women organizations to address social determinants of health (e.g., work with organizations focused on economic development, education or civic engagement)
• Building community coalitions and partnerships
• Community-driven efforts to change public policies
• Effective prevention campaigns
• How to develop social marketing campaigns that mobilize Black women
• Community-based participatory research Sample Topics

• How HIV relates to our relationships and health
• Stopping HIV/AIDS one community at a time
• Feeding our minds, body and soul
• Developing an effective HIV/AIDS prevention strategy for Black women
• Increasing utilization of HIV/AIDS treatment by Black women
• Designing and implementing effective HIV/AIDS programs for Black women organizations
• Creating a mass Black HIV/AIDS mobilization across all sectors in the Black community

Policy Guidelines

The conference planning committee is interested in providing a maximum of diversity in workshop subjects, form and structure. Individuals, groups as well as organizations are invited to sponsor or facilitate a workshop. Preference will be given to turn-key workshops that focus on mobilization, personal responsibility, personal power and taking action. Workshops that address practical and theoretical issues from Black female perspectives are preferred.

To the extent possible, workshops should seek to include practitioners, community leaders, academics, activists and individuals infected or affected by HIV/AIDS. We encourage interactive workshops were appropriate. We encourage you to design a learning experience that goes beyond the standard lecture format.

Your proposal should reflect the conference goals: to mobilize, educate and empower Black women to take action against HIV/AIDS. We will evaluate proposals based on how well a proposed workshop would allow participants to address cutting-edge issues facing HIV/AIDS in the Black community today.

You may submit more than one workshop proposal, but each proposal must be prepared and submitted separately.

The conference planning committee is excited to offer discounted room rates for all workshop presenters. However, please note that no compensation or honoraria will be provided. All workshop presenters will be responsible for their own air, hotel arrangements and ground transportation.