Standing Up and Talking OUT Loud

The Living Corporation Back Talks on Video Share

by Cornelius Mabin

 

On behalf of The Living Affected Corporation, As the Chief Operating Officer I would like to engage those bloggers, webpages and other media outlet whom forwarded a video piece in reference to an educational outreach on the campus of UCA last. week. These sites such as The Weekly Standard, Townhall. com and Godfatherpolitics.com have attempted to characterize and or twist that effort into an assault on our committed HIV/ AIDS prevention work across the state, as well as, our role as educators around the Affordable Care Act. I abhor the notion that the usage of condoms at the conclusion of the presentation was intended as "prizes" for those in attendance or any incentive for participants to enroll in the program. Nothing could be further from the truth.

 

Furthermore, using a 240 second video snippet of a 90 minute presentation should not distract from the value of the overall presentation and the important information being disseminated concerning the Affordable Care Act from a licensed In-Person Assister vetted by processes set up by the Arkansas Insurance Department.

 

I will not stand by and let those who have nefarious agendas of their own to distract or dissuade The Living Affected Corporation from its mission to transform communities through advocacy and education or educating individuals on the ACA enrollment process itself. Moving forward the organization will actively distribute accurate information through the lenses of indisputable truth and integrity to which we affirm is our organizational foundation. Over the past five years this agency has survived and endured a range of attacks and disparaging rhetoric that has pained us but never deterred us from keeping our laser focus on researching the intersections of health disparities and social determinants especially those involving HIV and AIDS among Black Gay Men.

 

Undoubtedly, the facts speak for themselves. In 2012 on the UCA campus, there were several reported cases of individuals infected with HIV. The Living Affected Corporation was requested to counsel campus health officials on developing official policies and procedures to assure that those persons be adequately counseled and linked to a treatment regimen. This culminated a three year associated collaboration with the Black AIDS Institute's statewide testing tour using our state certified testers to meet their expectations. It would seem with this type of incidence situation would be cause to blanket the campus with condoms provided by private sources.

 

Also in 2012, this community based organization was at the forefront of data gathering and instrumental in the creation of the Arkansas Jurisdictional Plan which outlines necessary strategies needed in creating high impact programming and risk reduction interventions to change sexual behaviors. That plan was adopted and concurred by the Arkansas HIV Planning Group in conjunction with its work with the Arkansas Department of Health.

 

Meanwhile, our publishing arm produced the first ever LGBTQ Health Journal, OMNIBUS which highlighted an array of health issues ranging from hypertension to mental health. This journal was groundbreaking to the fact that no such publication of this nature had ever in existed in the state nor pursued to address health concerns in this population.Additionally that periodical allowed  our agency to share personal testimony wrapped into items that featured experts and clinicians.

 

 Our creative expression also included producing, "Our Lives, Our Stories," The Untold Story of Women with AIDS, which again charted a new frontier with personal accounts from women whom had languished in the shadows of insecurity, social isolation and stigma. Circulated to clinics, AIDS service organizations and service providers this book offered not only insight to women dealing with this health crisis but served as a vehicle to inform and educate those seeking information. Those featured in the book also were afforded the opportunity to develop their entrepreneurial talent in assisting in marketing the book through a multi city micro-tour that educated women about their sexual health.

 

Our body of work has soared through valuable collaborations with entities such as Better Community Developers, HIV Arkansas, Arkansas AIDS Foundation, American Healthcare Foundation and a cadre of other allies and funding supporters.

 Currently our contract work with the Arkansas Insurance Department has allowed us to add another "link" in our lifeline to our clients and many others whom embrace our work in transforming communities. 

 

We believe that the Affordable Care Act will be a vital tool for those newly diagnosed, living with HIV and the overall population desperately seeking affordable coverage to assist them with being responsible for their health. On World AIDS Day 2013, our organization will launch our RZN2LV campaign that ventures into sharing our prevention messages utilizing the social media revolution.

 

I encourage all of our allies, supporters, friends and those whom we have directly assisted to join us in this fight to make it known that we are a premier entity in addressing health disparities in the LGBTQ population and other marginalized communities. I pledge that we will make it crystal clear that we will not retreat but defeat those who misinformed and or dare to minimize our impact in Arkansas. May I encourage you to support our work with a donation on our website (www.livingaffected.org ) to help us increase our effectiveness and reach in to hard to reach communities.