World AIDS Day- Tell Congress to Stop Blocking Clean Needle Exchange

Today is World AIDS Day.

In 2010, the PC(USA) General Assembly called on us to become and “HIV and AIDS Competent Church,” to engage in programs that “reduce stigma, discrimination, and fear of persons who have been diagnosed as HIV positive,” and to support public policies that promote treatment and prevention.  Specifically, the Assembly called for increased federal “funding for critical HIV and AIDS research including research focused on (a) infants and children, (b) the risk behaviors of teenagers and comprehensive sexuality education curriculum for teens, and (c) underreported, indigenous, and special-needs populations.”

An overwhelming consensus of research shows that providing clean syringes (needle exchange programs) to injection drug users is a highly effective way to prevent the spread of HIV and Hepatitis C, and is credited with reducing the rate of new HIV infections among injection drug users by 80 percent. Additional research shows that syringe exchange programs do not increase the numbers of injection drug users, and reduces long term health care costs that occur with the medical needs of people with HIV and/or Hepatitis C.

But Congress prohibits federal funds that are already being spent on HIV prevention and treatment from being spent on needle exchange programs. Write to your Members of Congress here.

Needle Exchange is one of the key public health interventions that we need to implement a long-term strategy to end AIDS.  But in 2012, Congress reinstated the ban on using federal funds for needle exchange programs. The ban on federal funding for syringe exchange was originally adopted in 1989 but was finally lifted by Congress in 2009. Without a discussion or legislative debate, the language was slipped into the spending bill before advocates knew what was happening. Contact Congress and tell them to reverse the ban.

The Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) is on the record in support of Needle Exchange Programs – in 2000, the General Assembly approved an overture “advocate[ing]… for lifting the ban on the use of federal funds to support needle exchange programs [and] mandate[ing]… work to remove barriers that keep drug injectors at unnecessary risk for HIV disease and Hepatitis.”

For more information on how to be involved in AIDS ministries, get in touch with the Presbyterian AIDS Network. And download their World AIDS Day packet.

Write to your Member of Congress now to urge lifting the ban on life-saving needle exchange programs.

Decriminalizing HIV and AIDS: A Bill to Provide Justice and Reduce Stigma

(photo courtesy of the North Carolina AIDS Fund)

There are currently laws in 32 states that discriminate against people who are HIV positive. People with HIV may be prosecuted for not disclosing their HIV statuses to their partners - even if no transmission occurred.  In many cases, they are charged with felonies under attempted murder, aggravated assault, and bioterrorism laws, even for simple offenses that would not be considered serious by people who are not infected with HIV.  According to the CDC, it is impossible for HIV to be transmitted through saliva, but many people with HIV have been convicted of crimes for spitting or biting someone because their saliva is considered a "deadly weapon." Here are just a few of the discriminatory sentences that have affected people living with HIV:

•  A man with HIV in Texas is serving thirty-five years in prison for spitting at a police officer;
•  A man with HIV in Iowa, who had an undetectable viral load, received a twenty-five year sentence after a one-time sexual encounter during which he used a condom; his sentence was suspended, but he had to register as a sex-offender and is not allowed unsupervised contact with his nieces, nephews, and other young children;
• A woman with HIV in Georgia received an eight-year sentence for failing to disclose her HIV status, despite the trial testimony of two witnesses that her partner was aware of her HIV positive status;
• A man with HIV in Michigan was charged under the state's anti-terrorism statute with possession of a "biological weapon" after he allegedly bit his neighbor. 

 (photo courtesy of Rep. Barbara Lee)

 People are unjustly convicted today under these outdated laws, which were passed in the 1980s and 1990s when HIV and AIDS were poorly understood by the general population, healthcare providers, and public officials. Click here to check out the discriminatory laws in your own state. This discrimination results in unnecessary hardship for and a perpetuated negative stigma for people living with HIV. Also, fewer people get tested for HIV because only people that have been tested and know their positive status can be prosecuted under these unfair laws. Fewer people getting tested results in more transmissions and a furtherance of the HIV and AIDS epidemic. Since 1 in 5 people living with HIV in the United States don't know they even have the virus, this is an enormous problem.

The REPEAL (Repeal Existing Policies That Encourage and Allow Legal) HIV Discrimination Act (HR 1843) is bipartisan, no-cost legislation that would create a federal guideline for states to review and change their laws that criminalize those living with HIV. If people are not criminalized for their HIV status, then they will be more likely to get tested and to receive the proper healthcare they need, which would drastically lower transmission rates.

Ask your Representative to Support the REPEAL Act now.

As people of faith, we stand with people that are HIV positive and celebrate their dignity as children of God who deserve equal treatment under the law.  The PC(USA) has made a commitment to become an HIV and AIDS competent church, and offers several ways to undertake this ministry in a 2010 statement. As Presbyterians, we support and are supported by the work of the Presbyterian AIDS Network in their efforts to change the face of HIV and AIDS in the world. Stand with us today and contact your representative to support HR 1843, the REPEAL Act.

World AIDS Day 2012

 

HIV AND AIDS HAS NOT GONE AWAY: THE CHURCH STILL HAS WORK TO DO

By J. Herbert Nelson

 

“When he saw them, he said, “Go show yourselves to the priests.” And as they went, they were cleansed.” (Luke 17:14)

Today is World Aids Day! We must remind ourselves that the alarm continues to sound regarding the urgency to address this critical health issue of our time. The Center for Disease Control (CDC) reported this week that out of fifty thousand new cases reported each year - one in four persons infected with HIV/AIDS is a young person between the age of thirteen and twenty-four. Sixty-percent of these persons are unaware that they are infected and most of the cases (seventy-two percent) involve men who have sex with men (MSM). We remain in a crisis regarding HIV/AIDS in the United States and around the world.[i]  The UNAIDS Report on the Global AIDS epidemic (2012) reports that despite variances between the rise and decline among infected people across the world, we are still facing a global crisis.      

 

Globally, 34.0 million [31.4 million–35.9 million] people were living with HIV at the end of 2011. An estimated 0.8% of adults aged 15-49 years worldwide are living with HIV, although the burden of the epidemic continues to vary considerably between countries and regions. Sub-Saharan Africa remains most severely affected, with nearly 1 in every 20 adults (4.9%) living with HIV and accounting for 69% of the people living with HIV worldwide. Although the regional prevalence of HIV infection is nearly 25 times higher in sub-Saharan Africa than in Asia, almost 5 million people are living with HIV in South, South-East and East Asia combined. After sub-Saharan Africa, the regions most heavily affected are the Caribbean and Eastern Europe and Central Asia, where 1.0% of adults were living with HIV in 2011.[ii]

This global crisis demands our attention. I have observed congregations in the United States that fear the judgment of people who believe that HIV/AIDS is a gay disease. Thus, congregations that embrace ministry and advocacy among gay persons are labeled “gay churches.” As Presbyterians and people of faith, our passion to witness healing among persons infected by HIV/AIDS has to be so strong that we are willing to risk being misunderstood for the sake of the Kingdom of God. I am suggesting that a lack of faith is often the greatest impediment to Christians shaping a significant response to persons infected with HIV/AIDS. Faith declares that even if a person or congregation is demonized for its courage, God’s power is enough to turn the world’s criticism into a prolific witness for the Kingdom. Jesus was sent by God to model the “wisdom” of God as recorded by John. (John 1:).[iii]

 

Jesus healed ten persons with leprosy in Luke’s gospel (Luke 17:11-19). Traditionally, this text is preached with a focus on the gratitude that one of these ten persons with leprosy displayed by returning to thank Jesus for his healing. Surely, this is an important aspect of the text. As Christians we are taught to give thanks to God through Jesus Christ in our prayers, worship, and daily life. However, we often overlook the risk that Jesus took regarding his own place in the context of the community by coming into contact with these ten persons with leprosy. Lepers were alienated from community. This dreaded skin disease represented to some a curse from God. Healing was the only means for the lepers to find restoration to a rightful place in the community. Touching or association with these individuals was a societal “no-no.” Jesus was so deeply focused on bridging the communal divide that he risked his own standing to give hope to those who were alienated. Therefore, Jesus’ call to those he healed was not to come and thank him, but to go and show the priest (the community gatekeeper), who had authority to readmit these persons with leprosy into the community. In other words, ‘Go and be restored to your rightful place among the community that God intends for you.’  

I firmly believe this is the role of the Church – the Presbyterian Church – Pentecostal – Baptist – Methodist – or whatever label we bear. We cannot moralize this health crisis in order to avoid engaging the communal impact of HIV/AIDS. We cannot declare we are in Christ Jesus our Lord while distancing ourselves from the responsibility to touch, embrace and heal persons living with HIV/AIDS, who need to be restored to a right relationship with family, friends and their faith.

 

In 1988, the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) adopted a paper, "To Meet AIDS with Grace & Truth," confessing that its response to AIDS had been tardy, despite the 1986 General Assembly's warning that ". . . the rate of infection [is predicted to] double every nine to twelve months," and its declaration that "AIDS and ARC should be viewed as illnesses, and not as the punishment for behavior deemed immoral . . ." (PC(USA), 1986, pp. 495-496). It cautioned the church against making moral pronouncements about AIDS and affirmed, "that all peoples are precious to God and urge congregations, governing bodies, and agencies of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) to renounce the popular notions of God's wrath toward AIDS sufferers . . ." (PC(USA), 1988, p. 362).

This week the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) Office of Public Witness (OPW) is implementing the 2012 General Assembly policy on, “Becoming an HIV and Aids Competent Church: Prophetic Witness and Compassionate Action.”A partnership between the OPW, Johnson C. Smith Theological Seminary (Atlanta, Georgia) and the Presbyterian AIDS Network represents one model for advancing the Kingdom, a calling to believe that the living Christ can witness in a mighty way through our willingness to engage this global crisis. This model provides training/certification for theological students so that they are prepared to address the realities of HIV/AIDS upon entering their prospective areas of ministry. The OPW celebrates the opportunity to stress the importance of prophetic advocacyamong those gathered this week. We pray that this effort can be replicated across the country and globe. All three of the conference sponsors (JCSTS, PAN, and OPW) are willing to assist in efforts among Presbyterians and others across the country to embrace HIV/Aids competency, advocacy and compassion.

Jesus’ moral authority was earned through his willingness to love people who suffered alienation from their community. He models for us the 21^st century role of the Church, if we desire to become viable agents of hope and faith in this world. We must advocate for the oppressed! We must overcome our fear and tendency to demonize persons living with HIV/AIDS! The Church must become a lifeline of hope to people who are drowning in a sea of despair!

This World Aids Day (2012) must be the moment that we pray for the courage to love the infected so that alienation is eliminated in our society and world. The scriptures remind us that There is no fear in love. But perfect love cast out fear. (I John 4:18a)    

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[i]  Reported by Public Broadcasting - Service Reported on November 27, 2012. Young People Make Up More Than a Quarter of New HIV Cases in the U.S.

[ii] The UNAIDS Report on the Global Aids epidemic (2012), 8.

[iii] Word in John’s gospel is translated as wisdom. Ex In the beginning was the word (wisdom) of God…

AIDS Ministry Conference - Scholarships available!

Greetings!

I’m writing to invite you to attend an exciting event later this fall – “Creating AIDS Competent Churches and Church Leaders: Remembrance, Repentance, Responsibility” at Johnson C. Smith Theological Seminary, Nov. 29 – Dec. 1, 2012. 

At the direction of the 219^th General Assembly (2010), the Office of Public Witness (OPW) is partnering with the Presbyterian AIDS Network (PAN) to promote “Becoming an HIV and AIDS Competent Church: Prophetic Witness and Compassionate Action” policy.  We learned earlier this year that Johnson C. Smith Theological Seminary (JCSTS - the PC(USA) constituent seminary in ITC in Atlanta) is launching a new academic certificate program on “Creating AIDS Competent Churches and Church Leaders.”  They are launching the introduction of this new certificate program at this conference Nov. 29-Dec. 1, 2012, in Atlanta.

  

In the OPW, we were so excited about this that we reached out to partner with JCSTS. In addition to contributing to part of the program, we have decided to offer partial scholarships to the general public, with a particular focus on seminary students and folks already engaged in HIV/AIDS ministry.

Rev. Dr. J. Herbert Nelson, Director for Public Witness, and I will join Margaret Aymer Oget, Randall Bailey, Mark Lomax, Guy Pujol, Beverly Wallace, Teresa Fry-Brown, Laurie Robins, and Troy Sanders as speakers at the conference. The Office of Public Witness is proud to join with Johnson C. Smith Theological Seminary and the Presbyterian AIDS Network in promoting this exciting new movement in the life of the church.

If you are already engaged in this ministry, come to share best practices and fellowship with your colleagues in ministry. If you are new to this kind of outreach, come to learn from the veterans in the field.  If you are considering enrolling in the new academic certificate program, you’ve got to be there! Our partial scholarships will cover conference registration and hotel accommodation.  If you would like to apply for a scholarship, please fill out the application. Applications from the general public will be considered based on interest, need, and merit.  If you would like to register directly, you can register online.

I am asking you to do two things:

1.       Attend the conference! Make plans to be there. 

2.       Share the word about this conference and our partial scholarships with others who might be interested in brushing off old skills or building new ones around HIV/AIDS ministry.  A sample Facebook post is included below.

Important links:

Johnson C. Smith Theological Seminary – look under “Featured News”

Conference brochure

OPW Save-the-Date flyer

Scholarship application

I hope to see you in Atlanta in November!

Blessings,

Leslie Woods

Representative for Domestic Poverty & Environmental Issues

PC(USA) Office of Public Witness

Sample Facebook post:

What does it meant to be a “HIV/AIDS Competent Church”?  Join others as we explore “Creating AIDS Competent Churches and Church Leaders”.  Johnson C. Smith Seminary is holding a conference on just that – Nov. 29 – Dec. 1, 2012, in Atlanta, GA.  The PC(USA) Office of Public Witness is offering partial scholarships, so visit OPW’s blog for conference links, a scholarship flyer, and the scholarship application. http://officeofpublicwitness.blogspot.com/2012/08/want-to-learn-more-about-hivaids.html

Want to Learn More About HIV/AIDS Ministry?

The 219th General Assembly (2010) adopted the resolution, “Becoming an HIV and AIDS Competent Church: Prophetic Witness and Compassionate Action,” in exercise of its responsibility to help the whole church address matters of “social righteousness.” The Assembly's action "challenge[d] the PC(USA) to become an HIV and AIDS competent denomination at all levels of the church and in all its ministries, combining emphasis on compassionate care with action to dismantle the social inequalities that create marginalized populations at great risk."

In response to this challenge, Johnson C. Smith Theological Seminary, the PC(USA) constituent seminary of the Interdenominational Theological Center in Atlanta, has developed an educational conference on "Creating AIDS Competent Churches and Church Leaders: Remembrance, Repentance, and Responsibility."  The conference, to be held November 29 - December 1, will include workshops on biblical and theological foundations, education, pastoral care, preaching, asset mapping, and advocacy. Rev. Dr. J. Herbert Nelson and Leslie Woods from the Office of Public Witness will join Margaret Aymer Oget, Randall Bailey, Mark Lomax, Guy Pujol, Beverly Wallace, Teresa Fry-Brown, Laurie Robins, and Troy Sanders as speakers at the conference. The Office of Public Witness is proud to join with Johnson C. Smith Theological Seminary and the Presbyterian AIDS Network in promoting this exciting new movement in the life of the church.

A limited number of partial scholarships are available from the Office of Public Witness. The application can be accessed here and should be returned by September 30 to ga_washington_office@pcusa.org. Download a save the date flier to share with your friends and congregation here.