Cascade AIDS Project Celebrates National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day

In honor of National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day (NBHAAD), Cascade Aids Project (CAP) will host its 2nd Annual NBHAAD celebration from 12 p.m. to 4 p.m. Feb. 11 at The Sunrise Center in the Rockwood neighborhood. Founded in 1999 as a national response to the growing HIV and AIDS epidemic in African American communities, the NBHAAD initiative leverages a national platform to educate, bring awareness, and mobilize the Black and Diaspora communities.

This year’s event is scheduled to include free haircuts (provided by Packasso Grooming & Barbershop), music, food, games and prizes (including a family 4 pack of zoo tickets and a $100 Nike gift certificate). CAP We will also be providing visa gift cards as incentives to individuals participating in our free and confidential HIV testing (with results in minutes).

The focus of NBHAAD is to educate members of the Black and Diaspora communities about the basics of HIV and AIDS. NBHAAD has four key focus areas which encourage people to:

• Get Educated about HIV and AIDS;
• Get Involved in community prevention efforts;
• Get Tested to know their status; and
• Get Treated to receive the continuum of care needed to live with HIV/AIDS.

According to the Center for Disease Control, the Black and Diaspora communities have the most severe burden of HIV of all racial/ethnic groups in the United States. These communities face a higher rate of poverty than other racial/ethnic groups which results in decreased access to high-quality health care, housing, and HIV prevention education—directly and indirectly increasing the risk for HIV infection and affecting the health of people living with and at risk for HIV.