In observance of World AIDS Day, CNP joins in the global recognition of the lives lost to HIV/AIDS, the breakthrough scientific advancements, and the millions of people around the world who are living and thriving with HIV. At CNP, we believe great storytelling can change hearts and minds, which is why we incorporate HIV narratives into our work throughout the year. Today, we invite you to revisit these deeply personal stories of individuals and organizations working to end the HIV epidemic in America and beyond. 

Invisible No More: Black Gay Men Over 50 Are Finding The Silver Lining

“We are living our counter-narrative because the narrative was that we all had expiration dates, and then suddenly, I realized the good news was that the bad news was wrong.” - Nathan Townsend 

Weaponizing My Sex: How A Consensual Encounter Flirted With A Felony

“If you are HIV+, neither your silence nor your undocumented divulgence will protect you from criminal prosecution and jail time.” - Craig Washington 

A House On Fire: Unpacking The Trauma Of A Plague On The 40th Anniversary of HIV

“Many Black gay men who committed to early HIV/AIDS leaders carried a double stigma. They were outcast by the Black community, and the Black gay community was skeptical of their politics and motivations.” - Dr. Maurice Franklin

HIV Criminalization Laws and Race Combine To Make The Perfect Storm in Georgia

“Black people are not having sex that is considered more high-risk than anybody else. And so, the issue really is around systematic racism that has created disproportionality in systems and access.” - Eric Paulk

The Revolutionary Romance of Deontez and Jerald: How Faith and ‘U=U,’ Led To I Do

“This is 2016. Jerald didn’t know about PrEP. Jerald didn’t know about U=U. These public health messaging tools had not reached Jerald. And so for him to still have been there, it meant a lot.” - Deontez Wimbley 

Black women living with HIV deserve to thrive. Meet two women who are leading the way.

“I began to want to move again. I couldn’t cure myself of HIV, but I began to think, I can feel better through prayer and meditation, and yoga led me there.” - Venita Ray 

Turning The Tide Against HIV: 2022 NAESM Leadership Conference To Unite Black, Gay And Bisexual Men To Address Epidemic

“I am determined in this conference to make the connection between our ability to come up with COVID vaccines—plural—that are on the street in less than a year, and our inability so far to come up with a single HIV vaccine that has hit the street. It seems to me that we should have probably learned how to get it done.” - Dr. Alvan Quamina

Lifting The Burden: Georgia HIV Justice Coalition Is Committed to Criminalization Law Reform

“The coalition will continue to do education with legislators; education with folks in the community and be ready to take it to the Capitol if we need to advocate for getting us over the finish line. It is time. It is well overdue for us to reform the law.” - Eric Paulk 

30 Years Later: Magic Johnson, HIV, And The Press Conference That Changed The World

“Seeing celebrity disclosure is like bringing these materials to a site and leaving it there, especially for poor people. Give us context, or else it could hurt us, start a fire, or the kids will get tetanus from the rusty nails.” - Larry Walker 

Not to Pile On, But DaBaby’s Recent Comments About HIV Were Not Just Anti-Black, They Were Anti Hip-Hop

“What DaBaby did on stage wasn’t hip-hop, and it wasn’t rooted in Black liberation. I appreciate his apology, and at the same time, he isn’t absolved of wrongdoing. DaBaby needs room to grow from this.” - Johnnie Ray Kornegay III

AID Atlanta Executive Director Nicole Roebuck On Her 20-Year Career in HIV, Allyship To Black Gay Men

“As the epidemic got browner, there seemed to be different priorities. Suddenly, people dying wasn’t a priority anymore because of who was dying. It impacts everything.” - Nicole Roebuck

NAESM Men’s Health and Wellness Center: Meet The Nurses Who Are Reshaping How Black Gay Men Receive Care

“If I could see [HIV] gone in 2030, that would be phenomenal. I believe it’s possible. We have the tools. We have the means. We have the people on the ground.” - Brandi Pinckney-Green

The Queer Love Story of Alphonso & Ja’Mel

“From the very beginning it’s been about honesty and transparency. We don’t want to fall into the norms of what heterosexual relationships are like, not what gay relationships are like. We want to be what works for us.” - Alphonso Mills