Take a look!

[Click for slideshow (above) and larger images (below)]

Home > Programs > World AIDS Day

World AIDS Day

Annually, BSM joins forces with over 20 other AIDS service organizations, arts programs, dance troupes, and other social service organizations, and individuals as we Commemorate, Educate, and Re-dedicate ourselves and others to learning more about protecting our own health and the health of our loved ones in the face of HIV and AIDS.

We also remember those who have lost the battle to this deadly virus during the past two and a half decades.

World AIDS Day was started in 1988 by the World Health Federation, as a way to focus global attention on the devastating impact of HIV/AIDS on the entire world.

Once known as A Day Without Art, due to the heavy toll AIDS had taken on the arts community, AIDS no longer recognizes "boundaries," instead reaching across all occupations, nations, all races and genders; indeed, every part of the globe.

On December 1st, we conduct rapid HIV testing onsite in a Mobile Testing Unit, which is parked right in front of the church on Broad Street. Inside, there is also a ton of information available about HIV/AIDS and social services.

This event brings back the art, with dramatic readings, dance, spoken word poetry, as well as visual representations of what AIDS means to us today, as seen through the eyes of our children.

Special Book Event

Wednesday February 20th, 2008, 7pm
An Evening with Jonny Steinberg Author of SIZWE'S TEST

SIZWE'S TEST

When the history of the great AIDS epidemic that struck down millions in sub-Saharan Africa is written, will it be said that an untold number of people died, not because the plague was unstoppable, but because they were mortally ashamed?

Acclaimed journalist Jonny Steinberg journeys into the heart of the South African AIDS crisis to find out why, even when they are within walking distance of treatment, people are staying home and dying. He writes about the experience in SIZWE'S TEST: A Young Man's Journey Through Africa's AIDS Epidemic

In SIZWE'S TEST, Steinberg tells the story of two South Africans:

Sizwe, a young, successful man from a poor village who refuses to be tested for AIDS
Dr. Hermann Reuter, a Western doctor on a mission to provide decent treatment for all.

Through each man's story, Steinberg reveals the perspectives of those who are infected, those who are trying to help, and those who refuse the help provided. In the heart of the story is deeply dividing culture clash. From under-trained nurses and implacable bureaucracies to tales of HIV-bearing demons who have sex with villagers in the middle of the night, Jonny Steinberg reveals a powerful true story of superstition, stigma, and the cultural gap at the center of Africa's AIDS crisis.