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The Missing Faces of AIDS
Every minute:
- A child dies of an AIDS-related illness.
- A child becomes infected with HIV.
- Four young people aged 14—24 become infected
with HIV.
World AIDS Day is December 1. The theme for this
year's campaign is Stop AIDS: Keep the
Promise. This issue is especially important
for PTAs to recognize because around half of all
people who become infected with HIV do so before
they reach age 25 and die of AIDS before they are
35.
Started in 1988, World AIDS Day presents an
opportunity for individuals, communities, and
organizations to kick off activities for the coming
year that raise awareness and allow people to become
involved in the issues surrounding HIV/AIDS. It is
also a time to reflect, memorialize, and show
compassion for those infected or affected by
HIV/AIDS. World AIDS Day is important for reminding
people that HIV has not gone away, and that there
are many things still to be done.
According to estimates of the
UNAIDS: The Joint United Nations Programme on
HIV/AIDS, there were 37.2 million adults and 2.2
million children living with HIV at the end of 2004.
In addition, 4.9 million people became newly
infected with the virus in 2004.
Support World AIDS Day on December 1
National PTA has been involved in promoting
World AIDS Day since its inception because we
recognize the significant threat the disease
poses to our children. Through awareness and
action, the spread of HIV/AIDS can be reduced
and, hopefully, stopped. In that spirit, there
are many ways PTAs, schools, and individuals can
recognize World AIDS Day. For example:
- Set aside class time for a special
lesson or speaker on HIV/AIDS.
- Start a peer education program.
- Help plan a community "teach-in" to help
adults learn how to talk with children and
teenagers about HIV/AIDS.
- Create a web page with facts about
HIV/AIDS.
- Invite a person living with AIDS or
healthcare worker to talk with students
about the special problems of people with
HIV/AIDS, including discrimination.
- Create an HIV/AIDS writing assignment
for December 1 (or any day) by which
students can express their feelings or
knowledge about the illness in an essay,
poem, book report, brochure, poster, or
research report.
- Air public service announcements about
HIV/AIDS over the school's public address
system or cable TV program.
- Distribute red ribbons and information
about HIV/AIDS at an in-school exhibit.
- Make a long-term commitment to develop
and support HIV/AIDS prevention and
education in the context of a comprehensive
school health initiative.
- Decorate trees, school buildings,
classrooms, lamp posts, or fences with red
ribbons.
- Have older students from the local high
school who have had HIV/AIDS education
training talk to junior high or elementary
school students.
- Prepare a current-events bulletin board
for students to fill with newspaper articles
about HIV/AIDS.
- Bring the AIDS Memorial Quilt to your
school (Contact the National High School
Quilt Program, NAMES Project Foundation,
(404) 688-5500,
www.aidsquilt.org) .
- Role-play to make students aware of
instances of discrimination associated with
HIV/AIDS.
- Create a board game/quiz on HIV/AIDS
facts.
- Set up a pen-pal exchange between
students and HIV/AIDS-affected persons in
different cities and countries.
- Write a letter or article for the school
newspaper or website about HIV/AIDS.
- Obtain or create a video for teaching
parents the facts about HIV/AIDS.
- Show videos to children in which other
children talk about their personal
experiences with HIV/AIDS.
- Prepare a lesson that addresses how drug
and alcohol use impair judgment and
increases the risk of getting HIV.
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