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New Report Hightlights Gender Dimensions of DC HIV/AIDS Crisis |
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Thursday, 01 October 2009 |
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Washington, D.C. is facing a modern epidemic, with the highest HIV/AIDS rate in the United States. In its response to this crisis, the D.C. government has failed to recognize the way policies, and structural factors have interacted to increase women’s vulnerability to HIV/AIDS. As a result, women have one of the fastest growing rates of HIV infections in D.C. Yet, the District has no integrated and multi-sectoral HIV Policy and its Care and Prevention plans lack a concerted government strategy to address the HIV/AID crisis for women.
This human rights report, entitled A Capitol Offense: The Gender Dimensions of Washington D.C.’s HIV/AIDS Crisis, was written with the goal of beginning a dialogue in the District about women’s unique needs in the HIV/AIDS epidemic and the way in which a human rights framework can best address the current gender gaps in District’s approach to HIV/AIDS. The report is the result of a partnership between The Women’s Collective – an organization run by and for HIV-positive women in the District – working on the front lines of the HIV/AIDS crisis, and the International Women’s Human Rights Clinic at Georgetown University Law Center.
Working together, the partners have highlighted and reported on key areas in which government programs, or the lack thereof, compromise women’s health and rights and contribute to their greater exposure to HIV, or fail to serve the needs of women already living with the virus in the District. The report will focus on 1) the increasing and disproportionate impact of HIV/AIDS on women, and Black women in particular; 2) barriers to accessing preventive health services, particularly mental health and substance abuse resources; 3) lack of affordable housing options placing women at risk of HIV transmission and creating barriers to care; and; 4) failure to link HIV/AIDS prevention and treatment efforts to address pervasive rates of gender-based violence in the District.
Access the report. |
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TWC is Offering "Welcoming Women" -- A FREE 2-day Training! Welcoming Women—Creating Inclusive, Supportive and Uplifting HIV/AIDS Programming and Services, is a unique opportunity rarely offered. Often service providers do not recognize the specific difficulties women and girls face in the HIV/AIDS epidemic—whether living with or at-risk for HIV/AIDS. Find out more! |
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