Philadelphia FIGHT: Demonstrating "Brotherly Love"
What does Philadelphia FIGHT do?
Affectionately known as FIGHT, the comprehensive AIDS-service organization provides testing, primary care, HIV/AIDS treatment, health-literacy education, advocacy and research on potential treatments and vaccines to more than 500 people each month. It serves a diverse demographic from throughout the Philadelphia metropolitan area, including the LGBT community and young MSM and women of color. FIGHT also offers self-empowerment services, such as free-to-the-public computers on weekday afternoons, Internet-literacy training and classes on topics ranging from blogging to digital storytelling to Microsoft Word.
What challenges does FIGHT face?
Even though the HIV/AIDS epidemic is 30 years old, convincing people to get tested remains difficult. "Get tested; know your status" is how educator and peer-support specialist Teresa Sullivan encourages those she counsels. "The lack of knowledge puts people at risk," she adds.
But even though most people test negative for HIV, many folks don't get tested for fear of testing positive. Yet this keeps people stuck in denial and fear. "Once an individual knows his or her status, they can move forward in their reality," Sullivan says.
Even if a person learns that he or she does have the virus, "HIV/AIDS is no longer a death sentence," Sullivan reminds us. Diagnosed early and treated properly, HIV can be managed similarly to any other chronic disease: with education, medications and lifestyle changes. Still, many people fear the stigma associated with the disease.
FIGHT also faces challenges in helping its clients overcome obstacles--from securing housing to finding employment to re-entering society after serving time for a felony. The organization supports its clients through community-justice efforts and relationships with activist organizations. FIGHT participated in the successful implementation of "Ban the Box" legislation, which prohibits Philadelphia employers from asking applicants about their criminal history before their first interview. "There are enough obstacles in our clients' way; this shouldn't be one of them, especially for those who are truly reformed," Sullivan says.
Funding cuts are also presenting obstacles. "Non-profit organizations are feeling the pinch of a receding economy; we're not exempt from economic hardships," Sullivan says. "Federal programs have been cut, and people just aren't donating the little bit of disposable income that they have." But even before the downturn, FIGHT was conducting donation campaigns; lobbying in Washington, D.C.; and holding an annual dinner gala and art auction to raise money.
Is there anything that FIGHT's staff feels particularly hopeful about?
The promise of an "AIDS-free generation" that the new biomedical interventions, such as PrEP and microbicides, offer makes the team smile. Sullivan urges everyone to "join the fight. We are all a community, and when the community is affected, we are all affected."
Dawn Thomas is a Philadelphia-based writer.