Denver is a HEALING VORTEX

I am so honored to have been asked to be a feature
at the event giving homage to the Native Womyn and
Girls HIV/AIDS Awareness Day!
Honestly, when I was asked to come out, I was a bit
nervous because I felt as if I was not fully versed in
HIV/AIDS within the Native community. I can tell you
about HIV/AIDS in the South Bronx, but not in the
Native lands.
According to the National Native AIDS Prevention Center,
\"HIV/AIDS is a growing problem among American
Indians and Alaska Natives. Even though the numbers of
HIV and AIDS diagnoses for American Indians and Alaska
Natives represent less than 1% of the total number
of HIV/AIDS cases reported to CDC’s HIV/
AIDS Reporting System, when population size is
taken into account, American Indians and Alaska
Natives in 2005 ranked 3rd in rates of HIV/
AIDS diagnosis, after blacks (including African
Americans) and Hispanics [1]. American Indians
and Alaska Natives make up 1.5% (4.1 million
people) of the total US population [2]. The rate
of AIDS diagnosis for this group has been higher
than that for whites since 1995.\"
I witnessed Native families give their testimonies about
how they were the not even taken into account when HIV/AIDS
started to come out heavy in the '90's. That they were just watching
their families vanish and had no idea what what happening. Watching
grown Native men cry, moved me! It reminded me of the warfare on my
indigenous people of Puerto Rico/ Boriken, the Taino Indians. I can see
it so clear, when the Spaniards came to colonize the land and came
with small pox and other diseases. I got a flash, a real bright flash and it
showed me how HIV/AIDS is the same form of warfare on the Natives and people
of color in the United States.
I am glad that now I am aware of what is happening regarding HIV/AIDS with the
Natives. I will disseminate the information to others through my social media
outlets. Thats is my commitment to the Native community.
Please mark your calendars : March 20th is National Native HIV/AIDS Awareness Day!
Please spread the word!

\"If the Natives aren't being taken care of, what makes you think that as an immigrant to
this land you have any pull?\"- Lah Tere

Shout out to all of the organizations that collaborated to put this event together,
and a special shout out to the young womyn of Girls Inc, Denver. :) <3