Sunday, August 25, marks National Faith HIV/AIDS Awareness Day 2024, promoted online with the hashtags #NFHAAD and #FaithHIVDay. Observed the last Sunday of August, the effort urges faith-based communities and religious leaders to engage in the global fight against HIV and AIDS.
The awareness day includes Muslim, Christian, Jewish, Buddhist, Sikh, Hindu, Bahá’í, Indigenous and other faiths, as illustrated in previous promotional materials for National Faith HIV/AIDS Awareness Day:
“Faith Fighting for Freedom and Fairness!” #NFHAAD #NFHAAD2023
Posted by National Faith HIV & AIDS Awareness Day on Monday, August 28, 2023
“All faith traditions include exhortations to honor the dignity and worth of every person and care for the sick, poor, and needy,” write the organizers on FaithAIDSDay.com. “While many faith traditions may include laws and teachings forbidding traditionally stigmatized behaviors such as extramarital sex and substance use that can put people at risk for acquiring HIV, most faiths also emphasize forgiveness, mercy, and grace in reconciling human frailty with religious and spiritual teachings.”
This Sunday is National Faith HIV/AIDS Awareness Day, highlighting the vital role faith communities play in supporting people with #HIV. Together, through compassion, education, and outreach, we can end stigma and promote person-first care. #NFHAAD #EndHIVStigma pic.twitter.com/evaKO66TOB
— National Clinician Consultation Center (NCCC) (@AETC_NCCC) August 23, 2024
The event was launched in 2017 by leaders at RAHMA (Reaching All HIV+ Muslims in America). Search the hashtags above online to find related events and social media messages. For example, on Saturday, August 31, the Salvation Army Community Center in Fort Lauderdale will host a panel discussion titled “Intersection of Faith and Health: Empowering Faith-based Communities to Promote Healthy Coping Skills.”
Next month’s United States Conference on HIV/AIDS in New Orleans will include a September 11 interfaith preconference titled “Moving Faith Forward in the South to End the Epidemic.”
Register for the USCHA Interfaith Preconference! #USCHA #USHAFC #SouthernJoy #Faith2EndHIV https://conta.cc/3LEnc4g
Posted by National Faith HIV & AIDS Awareness Day on Thursday, July 25, 2024
In related news, check out POZ’s September cover story, “Now Is the Time,” an interview with Bishop Stacey S. Latimer who has been living with HIV since the 1980s and speaks about long-term survivorship and faith.
To learn more about other HIV awareness days and to access a calendar you can download and print, check out the POZ feature “2024 HIV and AIDS Awareness Days.”
Comments
Comments