World AIDS Day

Dedicated to raising awareness of the AIDS pandemic caused by the spread of HIV infection and mourning those who have died of the disease.

Observed globally on December 1 every year, World AIDS Day has become one of the best-known international health days. Its aim is to raise awareness of HIV/AIDS, honor and remember those who have died from the disease, and commemorate progress, such as better access to prevention and treatment services. So much progress surrounding the prevention and treatment of HIV AIDS has been made in recent years. However, maintaining sexual health is as important as ever. Getting tested regularly and knowing your status has never been more important than it is now. In addition to safe sex practices and testing prescriptions like PrEP can make a big difference in ensuring your and your partners’ safety.Like many issues, HIV AIDS does not affect all individuals the same. Intersectionality plays a huge role in how people are affected. Race, gender, socio-economic status as well as sexuality play a large part in determining an individual's risk factor. It also plays a role in how likely an individual is to receive treatment or to have access to preventative measures.If you want to help, there are many organizations that do incredible work. Locally the San Francisco AIDS Foundation and SF AIDS Walk help raise awareness and the individuals with HIV AIDS. On a larger scale, RED and the UN AIDS Division also do a lot of good. By Anna Colibri, Board Member and Co-Chair of Communications