WOMEN’S DAY AND HIV/AWARENESS
Tuesday, March 8th marked the 100th anniversary of International Women's Day, which was commemorated throughout America and the world. To celebrate this, the Women's Federation for World Peace was invited to a panel discussion at an event hosted by the United Nations Association-Pacific-Los Angeles Chapter. WFWP Chairwoman Heidi Iseda took part in one of two sets of panel speakers who were asked to cover issues related to women's rights, the role of women in education, and international human rights issues.
Actor, TV host, and producer Paul Ryan was the moderator and entertained over 100 people in attendance. Chairwoman Iseda presented the Women's Federation mission given by its founder, Dr. Hak Ja Han Moon, by sharing a quote on how current issues can be solved by the "logic of love" which also touched onthe important message of the role of women in the fight for world peace.
Two days later on March 10th, WFWP representatives along with 200 guests attended the "National Women and Girls HIV/AIDS Awareness Day," at the California Endowment in downtown Los Angeles. The program was co-sponsored by the Office on Women's Health and the Los Angeles Women's HIV Task Force, which is composed of 16 local community partners who provide appropriate HIV/AIDS services for educational purposes.
Dr. Jennifer Sayles of the Office of AIDS Programs and Policy opened the session with a statement by President Obama regarding the HIV/AIDS epidemic. She spoke about how one of the President's top HIV/AIDS policy priorities is the implementation of a National HIV/AIDS Strategies (NHAS). NHAS's primary goals are to reduce new HIV infections, increase access to care and improve health outcomes for persons living with HIV by intensifying the HIV prevention efforts in communities where HIV is most heavily concentrated, and to educate all Americans about the threat of HIV. She also gave a special focus on cases and statistics of HIV among women and how to prevent it from spreading.
Following Dr. Sayles, a panel of HIV positive women of various races and ethnicities (African American, Latina, API, and transgender) shared their deeply private and personal stories as HIV survivors. Some shared their life as an infected child through birth by a HIV positive mother, another through blood transfusion, one through sexual contacts, and one through being breastfed by an HIV infected mother.
Despite their difficult situations, these women shared their message that they were able to rise above the obstacles and lead as normal lives as possible. One of the speakers pointed out, "You have to know your worth as a woman, love and know yourself, and practice positive affirmations saying to yourself, "I'm a beautiful woman, and I am deserving of a beautiful relationship despite my situation." She concluded, "We need self-love" and "I wish I had it before."
"She reminded me of what we teach in schools through WFWP's abstinence education programs," said Chairwoman Iseda. "We empower our youth to value themselves so they can make positive choices."
