A Renewed Partnership to Eradicate HIV and Inequities

by Jordyn White

In May, we announced the renewal of our partnership with Gilead Sciences, Inc. (Gilead). This grant from Gilead will enable us to expand our efforts to eradicate the stigma surrounding HIV in Black and Latiné communities and work to end the HIV epidemic by 2030.

Last month we hosted a fireside chat highlighting the renewed partnership and underscoring the continued need for organizations like Gilead and us to partner in efforts to prevent and eradicate HIV. Hosted by Tori Cooper (she/her), Director of HRC’s Transgender Justice Initiative, the event featured a one-on-one conversation between HRC President Kelley Robinson (she/her) and Deb Telman (she/her), Gilead’s Executive Vice President of Corporate Affairs and General Counsel. Ms. Cooper also facilitated a discussion on community engagement between Darwin Thompson (he/him), Director of Public Affairs and Corporate Giving for Gilead; Vanessa Castro (she/her), Deputy Director of HRC’s HIV & Health Equity Program; and Ahmea Pacheco-Branch (she/her), 2023 ELEVATE leadership program fellow and Community Engagement Coordinator for the Philadelphia Department of Health, Division of HIV Health.

In May, we announced the renewal of our partnership with Gilead Sciences, Inc. (Gilead) to eradicate the stigma surrounding HIV in Black and Latiné communities and work to end the HIV epidemic by 2030. We hosted a fireside chat highlighting the renewed partnership and underscoring the continued need for organizations like Gilead and us to partner in efforts to prevent and eradicate HIV. Hosted by Tori Cooper (she/her), Director of HRC’s Transgender Justice Initiative, the event featured a one-on-one conversation between HRC President Kelley Robinson (she/her) and Deb Telman (she/her), Gilead’s Executive Vice President of Corporate Affairs and General Counsel.

Health inequities fueled by racism, homophobia, transphobia, stigma, and other discriminatory beliefs and practices persist through the mishandling of global pandemics and public health emergencies. These inequities lead to increased disparities that place an undue burden on Black and Latiné LGBTQ+ communities, especially individuals living with HIV and those seeking gender-affirming care. Through the renewed partnership with Gilead, we aim to leverage community power to mobilize leaders, address health inequities, advance LGBTQ+ rights, and end HIV for good.

The three pillars of this work include:

  1. advancing peer-to-peer leadership development opportunities for those from communities most impacted by HIV with a deepened, regional focus in the South;
  2. eradicating stigma through storytelling and public education rooted in community and sex-positivity;
  3. driving system change through the development of a new benchmarking tool measuring HIV services and addressing health inequities particularly impacting BIPOC LGBTQ+ communities.

Through this partnership, we can make a measurable, lasting impact to end HIV and create a healthier and more equitable world for LGBTQ+ people.

Humanizing Our HIV Advocacy Work

Over the last two years, we’ve reached and educated 14 million people through in-person and digital efforts on HIV, health equity, and health positivity.

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