NEW YORK—The icy air over City Hall Park was filled with the names of those who died from AIDS. For 24 hours, five volunteers simultaneously read the names from separate lists, each name overlapping and reverberating with the last. The haunting vigil was part of New York’s World AIDS Day remembrance.
Dec. 1 marks the 20th anniversary of World AIDS Day. Hundreds of Housing Works staff took turns in the reading. Housing Works is the largest community-based AIDS service organization in the nation. They provide legal, health, and educational services for the AIDS community. A large part of their service is centered on the 150 low-income homes they provide to people living with HIV/AIDS.
“NYC is Still Dying”
At the vigil, volunteers sold gray sweatshirts with the words “NYC is Still Dying” on the front. They allude to the ongoing HIV/AIDS epidemic that is more prevalent in New York City compared to the rest of the United States.
The rate of new HIV infections in New York City are three times higher than the national average, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC). New York City is home to about 10 percent of more than one million Americans living with HIV/AIDS.
Compared to data from 2003, CDC estimates that more individuals with HIV/AIDS are living longer due to anti-retroviral medications, and more people infected with HIV are getting tested.
HIV/AIDS Worldwide
While improvements in HIV/AIDS prevention and care are being made, the United Nations estimates that globally, of every five people at risk of HIV, less than one has access to HIV prevention services. By the end of 2007, less than a third of those who needed HIV treatment had access to it.
In Africa, where the disease is most widespread, the average worker must spend several days’ worth of wages to buy needed treatments.
The World Health Organization has set a goal of universal access to HIV/AIDS treatment by 2010.
