The Global AIDS Initiative is planning a series of events with
the theme of "AIDS Around the World" to give attention to the global
AIDS epidemic, featuring concerts, artwork and displays by several
groups including the Association for India Development. The full text
of the article can be found at The Digital Collegian.
One of the largest pieces of "living" artwork will be on display
tomorrow at the HUB-Robeson Center to commemorate World AIDS Day. Each
12-foot-by-12-foot panel of the Memorial AIDS Quilt founded in 1987 by
the NAMES Project is made up of patches created by friends and family
of people who have died of AIDS. "[It's] a huge piece of living
artwork," said Liz Podowski, Global AIDS Initiative coordinator for
World AIDS Day.Global AIDS Initiative President Katie Koehler said
bringing awareness to the campus community is the biggest reason for
commemorating the day, as many students do not take the time to learn
about the issue of AIDS. "World AIDS Day lets [students] know it does happen here," Koehler said. The
Global AIDS Initiative is planning a series of events tomorrow with the
theme of "AIDS Around the World" to give attention to the global AIDS
epidemic and how it affects a variety of cultural and ethnic groups. "We really want to focus on how AIDS affects people globally," Podowski said. The
international aspect of the AIDS epidemic will be reinforced through
several different displays by student groups from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.
tomorrow in the HUB. Some of the groups with displays include
Project Haiti, Rescue Childhood, College Democrats and the Association
for India's Development. Daniel Beachler, president of Project
Haiti, said the group would have a poster with statistics and the AIDS
occurrence rate in Haiti. Beachler said that while the epidemic is not overwhelming in Haiti, raising awareness is still critical. "Our group goes down to Haiti every spring break, and we've met people with AIDS," Beachler said. Throughout all events tomorrow, there will be resources on hand to give out to students about AIDS awareness and prevention. "It's always nice to let people know what resources are available," Podowski said. The
dance group Nommo will also be performing in Alumni Hall at 3:30 p.m.
tomorrow, and Alpha Nu Omega is hosting a speech by Carolyn
Jenkins-Pineda, who has lived with AIDS for 21 years and is the founder
of AIDS Survivors Knitted United Standing. She will be speaking in the
Schwab Auditorium at 7:30 p.m. tomorrow. To kick off all the
events tomorrow, a World AIDS Day Kickoff Concert will be held at the
Tall Shiva Hookah Lounge, 224 W. College Ave., at 9 tonight. The concert will have a suggested $3 cover for donation to the Global Fund, and any additional donations are appreciated. Ronnie Bull For The Collegian |
