MetaFilter posts tagged with hiv

the failed ones, the grave disappointments, the apathetic, the careless

andoatnp — Tue, 14 May 2013 09:50:13 -0800

"The Sound of Stigma: An essay by Mark S. King—an AIDS advocate, an author and a blogger living with HIV since 1985—on why HIV stigma among gay men persists."

Not there yet, but cause for hope...

eviemath — Sun, 17 Mar 2013 07:57:08 -0800

Fourteen adults have also been "functionally cured" after they were given combination antiretroviral therapy (cART) for their HIV infection. [Warning: autoplay] They have been able to stop taking the treatment while still keeping their infection under control, according to a new study in the journal PLOS Pathogens.

There is an important distinction between 'functionally cured' and 'HIV negative'.

MedPageToday pointed out that while the 14 adults still technically have HIV in their bodies, it's only barely detectable when using highly sensitive laboratory methods. Therefore, they are considered "functionally cured" instead of being completely rid of the virus.... The findings suggest that anywhere from 5 to 15 percent of people are able to be "functionally cured" of HIV, the study researcher, Dr. Asier Saez-Cirion, told BBC News. "They still have HIV, it is not eradication of HIV, it is a kind of remission of the infection," Saez-Cirion told BBC News.

In other words, it's too soon to know yet if these individuals can still transmit HIV to others (though at least the likelihood of transmission would be lowered), and 85-95% of infected adults in the study were not functionally cured. This report follows that of a baby who was pronounced functionally cured of HIV recently (previously). Some skeptical researchers noted that, while the baby was certainly exposed to HIV, there's some doubt about whether the child had been infected with HIV:

In the case of the Mississippi baby, we know she was exposed to HIV, had HIV in her blood, and that at least some cells in her blood were found with sleeping virus—though we will likely never know if those cells were from the child or maternal cells that had been transmitted during pregnancy or birth. Was the baby infected with HIV and, thus, cured? To many of the researchers at the conference, the answer is "no." It seems more likely that her treatment prevented her, after exposure to HIV, from being infected. The reason we give medicines to both pregnant women and their newborns is precisely to prevent HIV exposures in children from becoming established infections, an intervention that can decrease the rate of transmission from about 30% to less than 1% in optimal conditions.

“How many condoms it is legal to carry in New York City?”

not_the_water — Mon, 18 Feb 2013 11:12:46 -0800

Arrested for carrying condoms? Maybe not any more. Last week, California Assemblyman Tom Ammiano introduced legislation that will prevent police from arresting or charging someone for sexual solicitation based solely on the possession of one or more condoms. Condoms are, in fact, already legal to own in any amount. But police and prosecutors around the country use the possession of condoms as a reason to harass or arrest sex workers. In a report [PDF] released last year, Human Rights Watch found it's a tactic used regularly in New York, Los Angeles, Washington, DC, and San Francisco — cities with some of the high rates of HIV among sex workers. At the same time, those same cities give away an estimated 40 million condoms a year; New York City even has its own brand. “Sex workers in each city asked us how many condoms it was legal to carry,” said Megan McLemore, senior health researcher at Human Rights Watch. “One woman in Los Angeles told us she was afraid to carry condoms with her and sometimes had to use a plastic bag instead of a condom with clients to try to protect herself from HIV.” Last year the Open Society Foundation also released [PDF] a report on the criminalization of condoms in Kenya, Namibia, Russia, South Africa, the United States, and Zimbabwe.

Risk

roomthreeseventeen — Tue, 22 Jan 2013 09:12:14 -0800

Two weeks ago, Lee Thompson ("Uncle Poodle" of Honey Boo Boo fame) gave an interview stating that he had successfully prosecuted his ex-boyfriend for transmitting HIV to him. Now, one blogger has come out saying that Uncle Poodle might actually be lying. Related: Mother Jones: Should Not Disclosing Your HIV Status Be a Crime? Imprisoned over HIV: One Man's Story Center for HIV Law and Policy: Positive Justice Project Consensus Statement on the Criminalization of HIV in the United States, Positive Justice Project/Center for HIV Law and Policy

291 diseases and injuries + 67 risk factors + 1,160 non-fatal complications = 650 million estimates of how we age, sicken, and die

hat — Fri, 14 Dec 2012 11:08:08 -0800

As humans live longer, what ails us isn't necessarily what kills us: five data visualizations of how we age, sicken, and die. Causes of death by age, sex, region, and year. Heat map of leading causes and risks by region. Changes in leading causes and risks between 1990 and 2010. Healthy years lost to disability vs. life expectancy in 1990 and 2010. Uncertainties of causes and risks. From the team for the massive Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors Study 2010. The data visualizations page also includes a large number of static figures from the GBD 2010 study. The GBD 2010 team at the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME), an independent global health research center at the University of Washington, "spent almost 5 years building [the database of causes of death]; we have included almost 800 million deaths from 1950 to 2010, and the data come from different sources," resulting in "the biggest database for cause of death analysis in the world," according to Rafael Lozano at the University of Washington. The GBD 2010 includes:

291 diseases and injuries
67 risk factors
1,160 sequelae (nonfatal health consequences)
Estimates for 21 regions
Estimates for 20 age groups

Takeaway points from the press release (emphasis mine):

Child mortality has dropped by more than 60%, falling "so quickly that it has beaten every published prediction," though diarrhea and other infectious diseases still kill well over a million children under the age of 5 every year.
Deaths among adults aged 15 to 49 increased by 44% between 1970 and 2010, "in part because of increases in violence and the ongoing challenge of HIV/AIDS."
Undernutrition has "successfully been cut by two-thirds," and now physical inactivity and macronutrient overnutrition contribute to a 10%-and-rising fraction of the disease burden.

However,

The trends identified in GBD 2010 occur across regions with one notable exception: sub-Saharan Africa, where infectious diseases, childhood illnesses, and maternal causes of death account for as much as 70% of the burden of disease. By comparison, these conditions account for only one-third of the burden in south Asia and Oceania, and less than 20% in all other regions.

Research findings from the main publication summary (emphasis mine):

In 2010, the three leading risk factors for global disease burden were high blood pressure [...]; followed by tobacco smoking, including secondhand smoke [...]; and alcohol use [...] This reflects a substantial change from 1990 when the leading risk factors were childhood underweight [...]; followed by household air pollution from use of solid fuels [...]; and tobacco smoking, including secondhand smoke [...].
Regional differences are significant. While much of the world is burdened by obesity and high body mass index, underweight is still the leading risk factor in sub‐Saharan Africa. Other prevalent risk factors in the region include household air pollution and nonexclusive and discontinued breastfeeding.
Although child undernutrition has fallen significantly as a risk factor for all ages, it remained the leading risk factor worldwide in 2010 for children under 5, accounting for 12.4% of global DALYs [disability‐adjusted life years], followed by nonexclusive or discontinued breastfeeding at 7.6%.
A number of risks that primarily affect childhood communicable diseases, including unsafe water and sanitation and micronutrient deficiencies, declined in significance in the past 20 years, with unsafe water and sanitation accounting for only 0.9% of global DALYs in 2010.
At the same time, GBD 2010 findings show the importance of household air pollution from solid fuels and ambient particulate matter pollution as major risk factors. One or both rank in the top 10 as causes of disease burden in 13 of the 21 regions. In south Asia, they are the leading cause of burden.

From the Guardian's reporting (more: 1, 2, 3):

Since 1970 the largest gains in life expectancy have taken place in the Maldives (27.3 years for men and 29.4 years for women) and improvements in life expectancy at birth in excess of 20 years were recorded in Bangladesh, Bhutan, Iran, and Peru. But life expectancy fell by one to seven years in Zimbabwe and Lesotho, where populations were severely affected by HIV/Aids, and for men in Ukraine and Belarus, where an alcohol crisis took hold.

If you'd like to read the papers themselves, the full text is currently available for free (but registration required) at The Lancet. In addition to the data visualizations, the IHME provides GBD 2010 publication summaries: Global and regional mortality from 235 causes of death for 20 age groups in 1990 and 2010: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2010

Healthy life expectancy for 187 countries, 1990–2010: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2010

A comparative risk assessment of burden of disease and injury attributable to 67 risk factors and risk factor clusters in 21 regions, 1990–2010: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2010

Age‐specific and sex‐specific mortality in 187 countries, 1970–2010: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2010

Years lived with disability (YLDs) for 1,160 sequelae of 289 diseases and injuries, 1990–2010: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2010

Disability‐adjusted life years (DALYs) for 291 diseases and injuries in 21 regions, 1990–2010: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2010

Common values in assessing health outcomes from disease and injury: disability weights measurement study for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2010
Each of the data visualizations again:

Causes of death by age, sex, region, and year
Heat map of leading causes and risks by region
Changes in leading causes and risks between 1990 and 2010
Healthy years lost to disability vs. life expectancy in 1990 and 2010
Uncertainties of causes and risks

The Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation adds,

The findings are being announced at the Royal Society in London on Dec. 14 and published in The Lancet, the first time the journal has dedicated an entire triple issue to one study.

The Lancet includes The story of GBD 2010: a “super-human” effort:

“Running the programs to map the data to our cause list of 291 causes and correcting the bias can take days, even using a powerful cluster of more than 100 computers. The data that we have to store after the modelling process can take 3 terabytes.” [Rafael] Lozano estimates that the storage needed for the causes of death data was 400 times bigger than that for GBD 1990 [...] Majid Ezzati, chair in global and environmental health at the School of Public Health, Imperial College London, UK, told The Lancet, As researchers, we tend to believe that more ‘data’ are better than less. I still believe so. But more data, but not all the perfect data we could wish for, means that we need to fundamentally think differently about when to stop searching for more and how to use it [...] The study brought out the well-known but far too frequently overlooked issue that people of different scientific traditions—clinicians, basic scientists, epidemiologists, and quantitative scientists—think and speak differently about the same problem. This can of course be a very powerful resource for bringing together different ways of looking at a problem and solving in the most comprehensive and interesting way—a true systems approach. It can also be a challenge, and at times a source of tension.

(Previously on the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation: Is there a market for years?)

An AIDS-Free Generation?

honeybee413 — Fri, 30 Nov 2012 22:09:12 -0800

December 1st is World AIDS Day On World AIDS Day in 2011, President Obama spoke broadly of an “AIDS-free generation." How are we doing? This week, Madame Secretary Clinton released a blueprint via PEPFAR (the Presidents Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief) that aims to eliminate new HIV infections among children by 2015, improve access to testing and treatment to reduce AIDS-related mortality and enhance HIV prevention, and increase the number of circumcised males. Globally, 2011 saw an estimated 2.5 million people newly diagnosed with HIV and 1.7 million people died from AIDS-related illnesses, rates significantly decreased compared to figures from the previous decade. United Nations 2012 World AIDS Day Report United Nations World AIDS Day 2012 Fact Sheet However, there are some parts of the world in which the rates of new diagnoses have risen, including Greece, which saw a 35-fold increase in new cases of HIV in IV drug users, and 1049 new cases in the first 10 months of the year. Health care spending there has been cut because of the continuing fiscal crisis, and charities that serve populations affected by HIV have struggled to raise money. Access to antiretroviral therapy is improving globally, but there are still nearly 7 million people who are eligible for treatment and cannot access ARV medications (WHO 2011 statistics). On November 20, 2012, the United States Preventive Services Task Force released draft recommendations stating that clinicians should routinely test people from ages 15 to 65 for HIV infection, as well as older patients who are determined to be at increased risk. An unacceptable fraction of people infected with HIV don’t know they are infected. Do you know your status? If not, see where you can get tested here.

"Especially with the country in great need of donation, science should speak louder than stigma in determining who can help."

flex — Mon, 12 Nov 2012 07:10:29 -0800

Tainted: Why Gay Men Still Can't Donate Blood - "Since 1983, Food and Drug Administration (FDA) guidelines have disqualified men who have ever had sex with men (MSM) from donating blood... Uneven application of exclusion to at-risk individuals suggests that risk aversion disproportionately impacts MSMs. For example, a non-MSM individual who has had sexual contact with a commercial sex worker or HIV-positive partner is deferred for only twelve months... The fact that the U.S. upholds a lifetime ban on MSM donation while Australian policy allows MSM individuals to donate a year or less after contact reveals a glaring discrepancy. Both ethics and science point to a flaw in FDA policy. That I could have had sex with 365 partners this year and be a perfectly fine candidate for donating blood, while the MSM next to me wouldn't qualify, betrays a faulty line of logic." *Macleans - Who's afraid of a gay man's blood? We are:

"Starting in November [2011], the United Kingdom will join South Africa, Australia, New Zealand, Japan and other countries that have lifted the lifetime ban on blood donations from men who have sex with other men (MSM) and instead impose a 12-month deferral period after oral or anal sexual contact with a same-sex partner has occurred. This rule will apply whether or not a condom was used. The policy change is based on the findings of the independent Advisory Committee on the Safety of Blood, Tissues, and Organs, which reviewed the evidence on donor selection criteria, taking into account improvements in blood testing, monitoring from countries with shortened deferral periods, and donors’ compliance with the ban. They concluded that the science “no longer support[s] the permanent exclusion of men who have had sex with men.” ...In Sweden, Japan, and Australia, the wait is one year. In New Zealand, it’s five. In South Africa, six months from a man’s last same-sex encounter is enough. In Italy, the restriction lasts for four months after sex with a new partner. Canada—along with the US, France and many other countries—continue to refuse MSM donors all together. Why this variation?"

*Wikipedia - Gay male blood donor controversy *Red Cross Favors Amending Blood Donation Policy by Gay and Bisexual Men: "The FDA maintains that gay and bisexual men should not be allowed to donate blood, but the Red Cross believes there should only be a 12 month deferral" *CNN - As blood donations decline, U.S. ban on gay donors is examined:

While he is a gay man, Adam Denney thinks he would be the perfect candidate to donate blood. He doesn't use IV drugs. He practices safer sex. He even educates people on how to prevent new HIV infections as a regular volunteer educator with AIDS Volunteers Inc. in Lexington, Kentucky. He thinks his exclusion is unfair. "Yes, gay men are still a high-risk community, but so are minority women, and there are no standards prohibiting them from donating. There would be rightful outrage against that kind of blanket population ban," Denney said. "I am banned based on one reason only, my sexual orientation. It's totally discriminatory."

*Buzzfeed - Hurricane Puts A Blood Ban Back In The Spotlight: "Hurricane Sandy means an urgent need for blood donations. But gay men still can't donate." (previously: the ban on blood donation)

"Watch closely. This is how gay men have sex now. That is where semen belongs. Fuck AIDS."

andoatnp — Thu, 16 Aug 2012 10:34:56 -0800

"The Most Important Gay Porn Film Ever Made?" [NSFW Warning: Pictures of a naked guy, no sex or penis shown.]
"Dawson's 20 Load Weekend redefined bareback porn and the men who appear in such porn. It influenced subsequent videos and expanded the availability of bareback films. It depicted a prevailing truth about gay sexual behavior "post-AIDS" and arguably encouraged risky sexual adventure-seeking. It led to the saturation of bareback porn online, making unprotected sex normative to whomever might be watching. To dismiss this film, to minimize its social and cultural impact, would be to demonstrate a profound misunderstanding of gay sexuality today."

Good HIV/AIDS news

roomthreeseventeen — Thu, 19 Jul 2012 14:08:26 -0800

Just as the 19th Annual International AIDS Conference is set to convene in Washington DC (the first IAC in the United States since 1987, when a travel ban was instituted and not lifted until 2009), President Obama has announced that his administration has invested $80 million in new grants for HIV/AIDS services, essentially eliminating the AIDS Drug Assistance Program waiting lists, which currently hold the names of 2,030 Americans waiting for access to HIV-related health care.

The "Unstoppable Gay Jew"

zarq — Thu, 07 Jun 2012 18:30:03 -0800

In 1971, "decades before any state had seriously considered legalizing gay marriage, long before anyone had thought of creating—never mind repealing—a policy called “Don’t Ask Don’t Tell,” before Reagan, before AIDS, before the American Psychiatric Association determined that homosexuality was not a mental illness, and before half the people currently living in America were even born, a man named John Singer stepped into the King County marriage license office in Seattle." Meet Faygele ben Miriam, the radical activist who pioneered the fight for same-sex marriage in Washington State, 41 years ago. Via.

The pills are $2,000 every month. The doctor visits never end. And there's always the possibility the virus could spread. Otherwise, it's not so different.

liketitanic — Thu, 29 Mar 2012 09:23:18 -0800

Odd Blood: Serodiscordancy, or Life with an HIV-Positive Partner

AIDS Quilt - 25 Years Later ...

ericb — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 15:07:29 -0800

AIDS Quilt - 25 Years Later: Yesterday marked the end of the "largest showing of the AIDS Memorial Quilt in [San Francisco] since the NAMES Project Foundation -- the quilt's caretaker -- closed its original Market Street location in 1999 and relocated to Atlanta the following year."^♥ What started 25 years ago "as a single 3-foot-by-6-foot fabric panel has grown to a more than 54-ton tapestry with more than 47,000 panels remembering the [90,000] names of those lost to HIV/AIDS."

The Announcement

hippybear — Mon, 20 Feb 2012 17:46:12 -0800

Mr. George said in a telephone interview that his goal for “The Announcement” was not only to tell the inside story of Mr. Johnson’s personal deliberations but also to “make people aware this thing hasn’t disappeared.” He added: “People are still dying of the virus. People are living very tough lives because of it. It’s falling off the national agenda, I believe, and this in some way helps us reintroduce it.”*

On March 11, 2012 at 9pm Eastern, ESPN will air the documentary The Announcement, about Magic Johnson's diagnosis with HIV and his decision to go public with his diagnosis. The film is directed by Nelson George, a award-winning author and noted filmmaker whose sister is Andrea Williams, an HIV+ activist for AIDS causes in Brooklyn (and who inspired George's HBO movie Life Support, which won Queen Latifah several awards for her role as a fictionalized version of Williams).

People with AIDS on Stamps

incomple — Fri, 17 Feb 2012 08:47:43 -0800

Freddie Mercury, Anthony Perkins, Rock Hudson, and other people with AIDS on stamps

"An extremely significant milestone".

mhoye — Wed, 21 Dec 2011 14:37:34 -0800

Researchers from the University of Western Ontario have announced the launch of human clinical trials of a preventative HIV vaccine.

25 to Life, A Documentary

Silo004 — Wed, 07 Dec 2011 16:07:37 -0800

25 to Life: William "Reds" Brawner In 1980 after being burned as an infant, William Brawner received a blood transfusion with HIV tainted blood. Learning of his illness five years later, his family decided to keep his status a secret. Later as a popular gregarious Howard University undergraduate, "Reds" would have lots of sex without informing his partners of his status. In 2006, he decided to tell his story and become an HIV activist. 25 to Life follows Will, interviews his family, spouse, friends, enemies and former lovers. Responses to Will Brawner have been varied. Here, here and here.

Life After Death

jquinby — Fri, 02 Dec 2011 17:48:36 -0800

"The best way I can describe our predicament to someone outside our culture is to call up the sensation of orgasm. You lose control of your destiny, and you are grateful for the loss. Time dissolves. Nothing that came before matters. You lose all sense of consequences and would sacrifice anything to safeguard the moment. Then, just seconds later, the blighted past and an uncertain future rush back in to drown you." Michael Harris writes in Walrus Magazine about coming of age in the long shadow of the AIDS epidemic. via utne. [...] “You have to understand,” he said. “AIDS was gay culture. All the big events were AIDS fundraisers. All the plays, all the movies were AIDS plays and AIDS movies. It was a complete and total obsession, driven by a barely managed hysterical fear on everybody’s part.” The rallying call was simple: “Silence equals death.” The woefully inadequate response to AIDS in the early years was due largely to the invisibility of gay culture. AIDS forced its prey to fight for their lives and dignity, which in turn spurred a rapid acceleration of gay rights. I nodded quietly as Bryan told me about friends he had buried, as one must when hearing other people’s war stories, attention being the only appropriate contribution. One of his greatest friends had died just weeks before the drugs became available. “What happened in 1996, then? ” I asked. “How did things change when the drugs came out? ” Bryan sputtered, the way he does when three books are trying to exit his mouth at once. “Everything changed! The whole body of assumptions everyone carried around was gone. The death sentence was gone, virtually overnight, and the disease immediately went underground. Within a breathtakingly short period, it went from being a thing everybody talked about to a thing nobody talked about.”

Magic Johnson remains a living symbol of hope

2manyusernames — Tue, 08 Nov 2011 07:46:37 -0800

Magic Johnson still beating HIV 20 years later 2 decades after being diagnosed with HIV - the virus that causes AIDS, Magic Johnson is still going strong. His foundation is helping others, giving them hope while educating people about the disease.

Hard Times for Porn (Seriously)

bardic — Thu, 29 Sep 2011 23:28:03 -0800

"In the last few years, the rise of free online porn — content-rich sites that tease viewers to subscribe for more — and pay-site juggernauts like Brazzers have put the L.A.-based adult-video industry against the ropes. Its answer, in part, has been the high-dollar parody, designed to attract ComicCon nerds, science fiction fans and other pop culture aficionados who must collect everything within their target oeuvre." -- The troubled US economy affects pornstars too, so "Porn Defends The Money Shot" (NSFW) "And so many adult actors, particularly the women, are devolving to work as 'escorts,' a kinder term for prostitutes. Former performer Gina Rodriguez says that if the girls last one year in porn movies — most last only three to six months — they get hooked on the relatively big money and gravitate toward prostitution when the film producers seek fresh new faces and bodies. 'It's a money trap,' Rodriguez says. 'They take in the 18-, 19-year-olds, and within a year they'll be into escorting.'"

...and this one actually looks respectable.

jaduncan — Sun, 25 Sep 2011 15:03:34 -0800

Researchers have apparently found a way to prevent HIV from damaging the immune system. Johns Hopkins and Imperial reseachers have developed a chemical that breaks down the cholesterol membrane around HIV. This stops the virus intererfering with immune response, and may allow a vaccine that prevents infection. For those that can get to it: Adriano Boasso, Caroline M. Royle, Spyridon Doumazos, Veronica N. Aquino, Mara Biasin, Luca Piacentini, Barbara Tavano, Dietmar Fuchs, Francesco Mazzotta, Sergio Lo Caputo, Gene M Shearer, Mario Clerici, David R. Graham. Over-activation of plasmacytoid dendritic cell inhibits anti-viral T-cell responses: a model for HIV immunopathogenesis. Blood, 2011 DOI: 10.1182/blood-2011-03-344218 I am curious what the MeFi hive mind thinks of this research; consider this a bat signal, people with expertise in the area.

(click) OH HAI

XQUZYPHYR — Tue, 13 Sep 2011 07:23:53 -0800

Yeah so here are some kittens we made that glow in the dark something something cure for AIDS science.

To help thousands of people in over 200 countries diagnose, treat and prevent common illnesses

zarq — Tue, 26 Jul 2011 20:25:39 -0800

Hesperian is a non-profit publisher of books and newsletters for community-based health care, mostly aimed at the third world. Their first book, Where There Is No Doctor, A Village Health Handbook, has been translated into 88 languages and is one of the most widely used training and work manuals for community health care in the world. They have now made 20 of their publications available for free download, many of which can now also be browsed online through their website using an "Ebrary" in-browser interface. Available publications:

Where There Is No Doctor: Download or Browse Online
Where Women Have No Doctor: Download or Browse Online
A Book for Midwives: Download or Browse Online
Where There Is No Dentist: Download or Browse Online
A Health Handbook for Women with Disabilities: Download or Browse Online
Disabled Village Children: Download or Browse Online
Helping Children Who Are Deaf: Download or Browse Online
Helping Children Who Are Blind: Download or Browse Online
A Community Guide to Environmental Health: Download, or Browse Online
Helping Health Workers Learn: Download or Browse Online
A Workers' Guide to Health and Safety
Women's Health Exchange
Cholera Prevention Fact Sheet (PDF)
Sanitation and Cleanliness for a Healthy Environment (PDF)
Water for life (PDF)
Pesticides are poison (PDF)

Safe Handling of Health Care Waste (PDF)
Fighting Factory Fires: 100 years after the Triangle Fire

Some of the listed publications are also available for free download / browsing in French, Spanish and other languages. Previously on Mefi (in 2007): mrbill had uploaded some of their publications to scribd.

"AIDS at 30: A time capsule," by Bill Hayes

docgonzo — Tue, 07 Jun 2011 19:12:47 -0800

Look back in wonder.
Prepare for the next time.
Do not forget us. "We decided to create a time capsule. But it would not contain kitschy souvenirs—gadgets and record albums and the like. Instead, the AIDS Time Capsule would house answers to a simple question: What message would you send to people 50 years from now about your experiences during the epidemic? In June of 1990, we set up a booth at the San Francisco Gay and Lesbian Pride Parade. Crowds cheered marchers nearby on Market Street, yet the mood was somber within our humid vinyl tent. Whenever I looked up from our table, arrayed with pencils and paper, I saw a steady flow of men waiting patiently in a line that did not shorten until the parade ended and the fog rolled in. Single men, couples, and groups of friends, pumped-up, sun-burned, half-undressed, young men propped on canes and leather-daddies in wheelchairs: all waiting to send a note to the future."

The queers won the battle, but the war will go on

MT — Wed, 01 Jun 2011 15:59:48 -0800

Adshel is an Australian company that provides advertising on street furniture, such as shelters at bus stops or bins. In the last 48 hours they have been at the centre of a public fight between the Australian queer community and the Australian Christian Lobby. In dispute was a Queensland Association of Healthy Communities (QAHC) campaign that encourages safe sex and features same-sex couples embracing. (facebook link) After an orchestrated campaign of complaints about the ads from conservative Christians the ads were removed. Adshel initially denied that they had caved to pressure from the ACL, and asserted that they had reacted to numerous complaints from unconnected individuals. This prompted the queer community to launch their own campaign to get the ads reinstated. The queers won.

Short Films Against Global and Social Injustice

zarq — Tue, 24 May 2011 07:17:35 -0800

In 2009, Ctrl.Alt.Shift, the "youth initiative of Christian Aid," held a national competition in the UK for aspiring filmmakers aged 18 to 25. Their mission: create a short film treatment based around three key issues: "War + Peace," "Gender + Power" and "HIV + Stigma." The results were then screened to an audience at the 2009 Raindance Film Festival. The films: 1000 Voices, HIV: The Musical, Man Made, No Way Through and War School. (All YouTube links. Vimeo links and descriptions of each film are inside this post.) These films deal with adult subject matter and may be disturbing for some viewers. Some may also be nsfw. The Films

1000 Voices: "A verbose and politically correct bureaucrat gives a lecture to a group of teenagers on the merits of the UK's efficient and humane asylum system, whilst meanwhile, in the same building, detainees, imprisoned indefinitely in different 'Removal Centres' across the UK, leave messages in vain on an abandoned telephone answering machine in the ministry basement. Their messages detail the horror of the life that they have escaped due to conflict."
HIV - The Musical: "The main aim of Patrick & Woodall's film is to expose the ridiculous attitudes towards HIV. A series of video blogs posted by a young playwright, James McKenzie (played by Martin Freeman from The Office), whose artistic integrity is being challenged by the ignorance of a film company determined to hijack his script, represented by a producer played by Julian Barratt (The Mighty Boosh)."
Man Made: "This two-minute short, based around gender + power, tackles the treatment of women as property and the lack of self worth and identity women feel due to the gender inequalities prevalent in many societies."
No Way Through: "No Way Through highlights mobility restrictions imposed in the West Bank, that are limiting its habitants’ access to health care, thus violating a fundamental human right."
War School: "Opting for a short based around war + peace, Ben Newman came up with one of the most popular entries, gaining praise across the board by re-creating a military training camp for child soldiers in a British school. The teacher at the beginning is played by Kate Ashfield from Shaun of the Dead."

Review of the screening from Little White Lies Magazine's blog. Movie Posters Wikipedia has more on Ctrl.Alt.Shift.