Breaking The Silence ‘a Collection of Personal Stories by HIV-Positive Latinos and Latinas’.
February 6, 2002
To address HIV disclosure and help prevent the spread of HIV in the Latino community, AIDS Project Los Angeles (APLA) recently published “Breaking The Silence… Rompiendo El Silencio.”
The twenty stories in the booklet are self-authored accounts from Latino and Latina HIV/AIDS survivors. The authors write about their personal experiences of disclosing their HIV status, testing positive, and facing serious illness.
“The issue of HIV in the Latino community is still very much taboo,” said Angel Fabian, a staff member of APLA’s POWER (Positive Wellness & Renewal) Program. “HIV prevention is often the result of clear and frank discussion. We must make that a possibility in our community.”
“Breaking The Silence… Rompiendo El Silencio” is available at AIDS Project Los Angeles and can be accessed on-line at www.apla.org .
The booklet was produced by APLA’s POWER Program and funded through a grant provided by the California AIDS Clearinghouse. Other individuals and agencies who contributed to this project include APLA’s Case Management, Treatment Education and Women’s Services programs, Bienestar Human Health Services Inc, AltaMed, The Wall-Las Memorias, Women Alive, AIDS Service Center, East Valley Community Health Center, County of Los Angeles Department of Health Services Office of AIDS Programs and Policies, Asi Creative Consulting and Sinclair Printing.
AIDS Project Los Angeles, one of the nation’s largest AIDS service organizations, provides direct services to more than 10,000 men, women and children living with HIV and AIDS in Los Angeles County. Services include prevention education, a food bank, professional dental care, housing assistance, mental health counseling, women’s services and case management. APLA is a leader in the provision of bilingual HIV treatment information, in print and on the Internet, and advocates for effective AIDS-related policies and legislation on the local, state and federal level. For more information, please visit http://www.apla.org .
