Email CCSD or Vis-à-vis | CCSD Home Page| Table of Contents (current issue)A 17-year-old woman calls. Her ex-boyfriend broke into her apartment and beat her. She is worried that her blood splattered on him. "Will he be OK? Is he at risk?" she asks.
Another caller says, "The last time I saw my friend before she died she was lying in the hospital wasting away. She had a black eye she got from her partner who was twice her size."
These women and many others like them contact various community services each day.
Some will disclose their HIV+ status, but many remain fearful of disclosing HIV status for fear of violence, discrimination or rejection. Time and again, HIV+ women state that the biggest barrier to health and support is the lack of supportive environments in their communities, in services and in existing community resources. Creating a supportive environment means reaching out to HIV+ women through visual cues (posters, pamphlets, etc.), advocating on health issues that affect HIV+ women and holding workshops and presentations on how staff and volunteers can better serve these women.
HIV+ women who have been abused have few options for support. Many AIDS organizations are oriented toward a gay male clientele and do not serve women well; many women's organizations do not have the necessary resources to provide services to HIV+ women, and have yet to recognize HIV/AIDS as a women's issue.
Women living with HIV/AIDS need to talk with other HIV+ women. They need practical and relevant information to help them make choices about their health and they need to talk with safe and knowledgeable people about other issues associated with HIV. They want to be able to talk about these issues in community organizations, rape crisis centres, shelters and counsellor's offices and with friends. The silence in organizations about violence, women and HIV/AIDS further isolates women who are often struggling alone and in shame. We can break this silence.
HIV+ women can be well served in our community organizations. Women have historically developed effective and innovative tools for education and support about a number of health and safety issues. HIV/AIDS highlights many of the issues that we have long struggled with: sexual safety, domestic violence and access to comprehensive health care and community- based services.
The Nova Scotia Women and AIDS Project aims to build a supportive community of HIV+ women through a range of health promotion initiatives such as regional retreats and skill- building workshops. We encourage the participation of HIV+ women as peer counsellors, educators and advocates. In collaboration with community groups, we have developed a comprehensive resource manual and training program, Fighting the Tide ... Changing the Current (see Resources, page) to help workers and volunteers acquire knowledge and skills in the areas of women and AIDS, health promotion, community development and learner-centred education.
Jane Allen is the coordinator of The Nova Scotia Women and AIDS Project. She can be reached at:5675 Spring Garden Road, Suite 300
Halifax, NS, B3J 1H1
Tel: (902) 429-7922, fax: 422-6200
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