by Ashley Slupski
HIV is not an easy topic to discuss for many of us. However, misinformation about HIV and the people living with the disease continue to fuel stigma. We must talk openly about HIV to increase awareness in our communities and decrease stigma and shame often associated with HIV.
AFC staff pulled together 10 movies we think will get the conversation started about HIV...
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by Eryn MacNeil
If you’re a young woman who has experienced hiring discrimination and a lack of resources, it would be easy to give up. Instead, Meghan Williams has turned her past experiences into a way to help others.
As a 21-year-old transgender woman, she works with AFC’s Project Elevate, a peer-led STI prevention campaign, on its Youth Expert Advisory Board,...
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by Jasmine Tucker, AFC Associate Board Co-chair and HIV advocate
As I was riding the Pink Line to 200 W. Jackson Blvd at 5 a.m., I had no clue what HIV Advocacy Day was going to bring. I was nervous, because this was my first time having a chance to potentially meet face-to-face with my legislators, Representative (and Majority Leader) Barbara Flynn Currie and Senator Kwame Raoul. I knew...
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by Mirhanda Alewine
CommunityLinks, a program of the AIDS Foundation of Chicago (AFC), contracts with managed care health insurance plans to offer a variety of services to their members. One of the services CommunityLinks offers is Reach and Locate, which aims to find and engage members in their health care plans, ultimately offering them services intended to improve care and health outcomes...
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by Mirhanda Alewine and Eryn MacNeil
In Plain Sight, from Chicago’s History Moves “mobile museum” project , aims to engage communities in conversation about the history of women living with HIV in Chicago by highlighting the stories of participants in the Women's Interagency HIV Study (WIHS). Eryn MacNeil and Mirhanda Alewine, two AFC staff members, had the opportunity...
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by Eryn MacNeil
For many women affected by HIV, it’s easy to feel alone and unsupported. There isn’t always a community welcoming you with open arms — or at least it can feel that way sometimes.
Poppy Morgan took matters into her own hands and created her own community. Poppy, 40, is a leader in the nonprofit sector in the western suburbs of Chicago (due...
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by Mirhanda Alewine
Hilda Richards, Ed.D., RN, FAAN, an AIDS Foundation of Chicago (AFC) Board member for 15 years, discusses her experience on the Board and what she hopes for the future of AFC.
When Dr. Hilda Richards moved to Chicago in 2000 at the age of 64, she arrived with a lifetime's worth of credentials and accomplishments — including several “firsts”...
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by Dan Frey, Director of Government Relations
Good afternoon, everyone! This week in Springfield was the last of the House’s session days before the March 15 primary and an elongated spring break. While there was some movement surrounding an appropriations bill for human services and higher education, ultimately it appears that we are no closer to a resolution to our current...
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For decades, Walgreens has supported the AIDS Foundation of Chicago in its quest to make HIV infections rare and support people living with HIV and related chronic diseases.
Walgreens' Senior Director of Virology Glen Pietrandoni shares his story of serving the HIV community for 30 years. He also explains how Walgreens is uniquely positioned to support people...
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by Mirhanda Alewine
John Pizaña, the Promotor of the Salud y Orgullo Mexicano (SOM) campaign, uses his unique position to encourage and mentor other Mexican men living with HIV.
"We knew that HIV was something that was going to continue to grow."
In September 2014, John Pizaña accepted the position of Promotor of Salud y Orgullo...
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