U.Va.? AIDS Free! STUDENT GROUPS DISPEL HIV MYTHS by Estela Marin graphic by Scott Herman A couple of weeks ago, while wandering around Grounds absorbed in pre-registration angst, I realized I was standing on Ryan White. Sidewalk-chalked names of people who had died from AIDS-related causes surrounded me. Some were nationally known names, like White, who fought to obtain an education despite the bigotry and opposition he met in his community after being diagnosed with HIV contracted from a blood transfusion. But most names were unfamiliar. As I stared at the chalkings, my stomach tightened, and I could not help but wonder why it had to be this way. A handful of dedicated students feel that it doesn't. Every year, hundreds of 'Hoos head to Madison House to volunteer their time to the community. About two dozen students choose to work for one of the Service Alternatives programs, such as the AIDS/HIV Services Group, ASG, in Charlottesville. Amanda Lanham, a fourth-year CLAS student, is the Program Director this year, as well as the Development Intern at ASG. Close contact with AIDS patients has made Lanham appreciate her own mortality, which is one reason why she feels that the Speaker's Bureau, a new initiative by ASG, is so important. The Speaker's Bureau is a community outreach program where specially-trained U.Va. students and other volunteers go to schools, churches, and other groups to educate people about preventing the spread of AIDS. Madison House volunteers also serve ASG as office assistants or by taking part in Helping Hands, which provides transportation, babysitters, and other services for ASG clients. In previous years, ASG volunteers participated in a buddy program. After training, they were paired with AIDS patients to provide them with emotional support and company. The elimination of this program results from a positive change: new research developments have changed AIDS from a death warrant to a serious condition. Due to technological and medical advances like AZT, people are beginning to feel that hope is justified, that there may be a cure five or ten years down the line. The objective of groups like ASG is shifting from helping people cope with the prospect of death to assisting them with ways to live with the disease. AIDS patients are becoming more empowered and less in need of outside support, especially short-term efforts of college students. Fourth year college student Amber Vines is volunteering at ASG for the first time this semester. "I've never been around a group of people who honestly just care about what they are doing as much as these people do ... [they] are willing to put themselves out there." Vines is particularly interested in the Speaker's Bureau because she wants to help others understand the dynamics of the disease. After graduating, Vines hopes to continue her volunteer work in Africa for the Peace Corps. Third year CLAS student Mike Dix has been involved with ASG since last year. His experience in volunteering with AIDS patients has been "amazing ... the first person you meet has AIDS and is full of life at the same time." Although students are aware of the need to volunteer in the community, AIDS appears to be an issue far-removed from the university. Student Health has never had a positive HIV test result. While this seems like it should be great news, it's statistically improbable that there are no HIV/AIDS cases on a campus this size. Perhaps people are bypassing Student Health in preference of anonymous testing available at the Public Health Department, but Dix and Lanham fear that the real reason for the lack of HIV positive cases is that people are simply not getting tested. "I think everyone here thinks they're invincible," says Lanham. "Take a look at what happens at Rugby." She went on to quote a favorite saying of Biology Professor Rolf Benzinger's, "Monogamy or die." While this may seem extreme, and even draconian for some, AIDS is not a distant threat, but the sixth leading cause of death among 15- to 24-year olds in the U.S. Car accidents, however, are the first, and that hardly prevents people from speeding or driving under the influence -- why expect this seemingly remote threat to alter people's lifestyles? In a bizarrely Freudian nightmare, libidinal urges tango with the death instinct and people succumb to unsafe sexual practices. Intellectually, we all realize that AIDS is out there and does not discriminate, but many people still feel that it's a gay disease. Everyone must truly realize that no one is immune; justice might not be blind, but the world's largest epidemic is. That is where educational outreach projects like the Speaker's Bureau come in. Dix felt the need for an on-Grounds organization to increase awareness about AIDS, so he founded Promoting Negativity this semester. "We're completely separate from [ASG], but I think that our role here is basically [to be] their link to the U.Va. community. I feel like Promoting Negativity and ASG are very intertwined and always will be." One of the group's major undertakings is World AIDS Week, which takes place this week. In recognition of the week, the group recently painted Beta Bridge, only to find it covered in antagonistic graffiti a few hours later. This incident reveals the hostility that exists on Grounds towards HIV and AIDS, and highlights the need for a group like Promoting Negativity. Lanham, Dix, and other people involved with ASG and Promoting Negativity would like to see a change in the U.Va. community not just towards the AIDS issue, but a greater acceptance of individual differences in general. Lanham spoke about students' lack of understanding of the experiences that others live through. Both experienced embarrassment and outrage at the poor reception that Jeanne White, Ryan White's mother, received when she came here last semester. Only 30 people showed up to the lecture of one of the most nationally acclaimed spokespeople for AIDS. Evidence such as White's reception and Beta Bridge graffiti exhibit a definite lack of concern about HIV on Grounds. Do people look in the mirror and see an anti-viral Superman? Maybe we should start thinking of unprotected sex as our Kryptonite. We know this, it has been pounded into our heads ten zillion times, yet it does not deter many of us. AIDS/HIV Services Group, Promoting Negativity, and the Speakers Bureau are actively opening dialogue, promoting education, and raising awareness about AIDS. We are kidding ourselves if we choose to blindly rush to class over chalked-in names instead of supporting their efforts.

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