The Illinois HIV Action Alliance is a new statewide coalition of legal, health, policy organizations, and other advocates - launched today in an organized effort to end HIV criminalization in Illinois.
Currently, Illinois law criminalizes people living with HIV who are aware of their status and engage in condomless anal or vaginal intercourse (or who shares needles, donates blood,...
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By Jamie Hock
Barely being able to contain his smile, Dyonte explains the significance of the tattoo on his lower forearm. The verse from Romans 8:18 reads “The pain you feel today can’t amount to the joy that’s coming”. Beaming he explains “It means a lot to me because I go through a lot, you know? So it’s like I got that tattoo you know so when I do...
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On Sunday, the Illinois General Assembly concluded its spring legislative session in Springfield. This Session, Illinois had a new governor and many new faces in the state legislature tackling some of the most complex and impactful issues in the state.
“AFC is proud to see Illinois take the necessary steps to invest in the services all Illinoisans need to be healthy and thrive,”...
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Do you admire our t-shirts from our previous Advocacy Days ? If so, you have the Ohio-based company Nightsweats & T-Cells to thank.
We have utilized their services as our main t-shirt vendor for this event for the past seven years because of their commitment to the HIV community. We have an ongoing commitment to support vendors that give back to our community and vendors led by...
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The Trump administration kicked off the holiday weekend with new attempts to strip away the rights of LGBTQ+ people by proposing rule changes that will create more barriers for them to access housing and health care. First, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) issued a proposed rule change that would make it easier to discriminate against transgender people experiencing...
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Let’s say you went out yesterday for a night on the town, but you didn’t use a condom, the condom broke or something else unexpected happened during your night out like sharing needles while injecting drugs. Or perhaps you feel bad or confused about the sex you had in the moment or the morning after or you were a victim of sexual assault. Now
5 Fast Facts About...
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On May 14 , Governor JB Pritzker, Mayor Rahm Emanuel, the Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH), the Chicago Department of Public Health (CDPH), and the AIDS Foundation of Chicago (AFC) introduced the Getting to Zero Illinois (GTZ-IL) five-year comprehensive plan that details actions to end the HIV epidemic in Illinois by 2030. As part of the Getting to Zero Illinois collaboration,...
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By Raven Feagins
HIV affects people of all genders, sexualities, races and ethnicities, but Black Americans in particular are overrepresented in the numbers. While Black Americans only make up about 12% of the US population, 43% of people with new HIV diagnoses and approximately 42% of people living with HIV in the U.S. are Black . Multiple factors contribute to this enormous health disparity,...
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On May 9, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and Gilead Sciences announced that Gilead will provide free PrEP to 200,000 uninsured people on an annual basis. While there are many details to be determined, the AIDS Foundation of Chicago (AFC) is cautiously optimistic that this move will expand access to PrEP for people who are most vulnerable to HIV.
Free...
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This week, the Illinois General Assembly will be back in session after two weeks of spring break where legislators have been in-district. The AIDS Foundation of Chicago (AFC) is looking forward to being back in Springfield to continue our advocacy. In the meantime, here are some brief updates substantive legislation AFC is championing, the budget and the Fair Tax.
Substantive Legislation ...
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