"July 2012 has been designated as National HIV Awareness Month. The goal of National HIV Awareness Month is to re-ignite our national discourse on the domestic HIV/AIDS epidemic in order to create broad-scale public awareness of HIV/AIDS, end HIV stigma and discrimination and engage new stakeholders in the fight against the disease, with the ultimate goal of ending the epidemic." Learn more HERE.
Firesteel Blog
Have you met BABES? HIV & homelessness meet their match
"I was homeless, abusing substances and making very poor choices when I was diagnosed with Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) in May of 2007. I thought being homeless was hard enough, but receiving an HIV+ diagnosis while homeless was completely unbearable......." Brenda is a Peer Advocate with the BABES Network of the YWCA Seattle I King I Snohomish. In honor of National HIV Awareness month, she shares her personal story in which stable housing was the first big step to securing treatment.
5 Social Media Tips from WA legislators
I attended my very first Seattle/King County Coalition On Homelessness meeting last Thursday. The Coalition invited state legislators to attend the meeting so that we could thank them for their hard work in 2012. Having legislators present also provided us with the opportunity to ask questions and have a frank policy discussion with decision makers. I posed a question asking how we can better use social media to communicate with and influence policymakers. I received a 5 step answer in response.
Photo Friday: What Can I Do? Campaign
I'm on a campaign kick these days. The WHAT CAN I DO? CAMPAIGN is located in LA. A grass roots movement raising awareness and compassion about homelessness through art and social action, every month a unique and beautiful piece of art inspired by homelessness is featured in the campaign. Here are a few of their pieces and featured artists.
Photo Friday: Campaign for Potential
Campaign for Potential - Promoting understanding and empathy
Raising the Roof is a Canadian organization providing strong and effective national leadership on long-term solutions to homelessness. The national public education campaign has been part of Raising the Roof's commitment to help build understanding and empathy around the issue of youth homelessness and create momentum for change.The campaign focused not on how homeless youth got to where they are, but where they can and want to go in life – their potential. View their print ads here!