Who's Positive

I could recount numerous tales of the different stigma that I have faced but really does it matter? Do the ignorant, mean, hateful things others say really matter? If you allow them to, yes!

Now I am far from being the total zen master but I strive to not allow the negative energy of others affect me and honestly it is because I think enough negative things about myself to allow what others say to matter. The difference is that no matter how critical I am of myself I like who I am flaws and perfections, so if and when people say the negative things that people say I know that regardless of whether there is any truth to what is said it doesn't matter because it is already something that I most likely have acknowledged about myself.

When people ask how did you get HIV or how were you so naive I can now stand tall and be one hundred percent honest about the who, what, when, where, how, and why of what happened in my becoming infected. After that honest dialogue is opened up and there is room for the comments that can be and are some times supposed to be hurtful that is when I as an individual can decide how I will react. The wonderful thing about knowing yourself and liking yourself is that even when someone may do something hurtful toward you you can use their actions to be a teaching moment. You can use their hate and ignorance to teach them and even if they still choose to remain in their state of ignorance and refuse to open up to some sort of acceptance then in the end it is their loss, but when you love yourself it is not hard to be okay with that.

I know the road to loving one's self may be a very difficult one and it definitely has been for me, I have to thank the people that have chosen to approach me with hate, with misunderstanding, with stigma because those individuals have enabled me in finding a true and genuine love of who I am and because of that self love I have self understanding and acceptance.

So I say the next time someone says something ignorant and prejudiced to YOU, educate them (if you can), treat them with the love they so obviously lack, and then thank them for motivation!!!

(Charlottesville, VA) Who's Positive is proud to have been invited by Advocates For Youth and the Elton John AIDS Foundation to have founding director of Who's Positive and Infected Affected; Real Stories Real People speaker Cree Gordon (http://whospositive.org/ogt_tour/ogt_cree.php) speak directly after the July 5th showing of the Tony Award winning Broadway show The Normal Heart.

Tom and Cree will join Daniel O'Neill, co-founder DC HIV Prevention Working Group and the ToolK!t Campaign along with Angel Brown of Metro TeenAIDS on the stage of The Normal Heart directly after the show as a part of the show's TalkOut Series. This is a series of talkbacks that underscore the themes and historical context of the play.

A block of 250 seats have been reserved for the July 5th showing on Broadway in New York City by the Elton John AIDS Foundation to host 250 LGBT youth and youth advocates. "It's an honor to be invited to speak at the request of Advocates For Youth and the Elton John AIDS Foundation. I can only imagine the impact this show will have on so many impressionable youth, and to think we'll have an opportunity to impact this experience further speaks volumes", says Tom Donohue founding director for Who’s Positive.

About The Normal Heart –

Tony®-winner Ellen Barkin (Ocean's Thirteen), Patrick Breen (Next Fall), Mark Harelik (Mrs. Warren's Profession), Tony®-winnner John Benjamin Hickey (The Big C), Joe Mantello (Angels in America), Luke Macfarlane (Brothers and Sisters), Lee Pace (Pushing Daisies), Jim Parsons (Emmy® Winner, The Big Bang Theory), Richard Topol (The Merchant of Venice) and Wayne Alan Wilcox (Coram Boy) head the all-star cast of Larry Kramer’s Tony® winning play THE NORMAL HEART, directed by Joel Grey and George C. Wolfe. Hailed by the critics as "a great cathartic night at the theater!" (The New York Times), "A stunning, pulse-pounding revival" (Time Out New York) and "A breathtaking achievement" (Daily News), this groundbreaking story of love, rage and pride will play on Broadway through July 10 only.

The story of a city in denial, THE NORMAL HEART unfolds like a real-life political thriller—as a tight-knit group of friends refuses to let doctors, politicians and the press bury the truth of an unspoken epidemic behind a wall of silence. A quarter-century after it was written, this outrageous, unflinching, and totally unforgettable look at the sexual politics of New York during the AIDS crisis remains one of the theatre’s most powerful evenings ever. It has received five Tony nominations, including Best Revival of a Play and Best Director for Joel Grey and George C. Wolfe.

Dear friends and colleagues

Who’s Positive is currently sampling a survey question which we expect to present before the FDA and would like your help in taking just a minute (its only 3 questions) in answering and passing onward throughout your networks.

Given the following Scenario please answer the following question - Within the packaging of the test, information would be provided which would offer a 24 hour professional counseling hot line, linkage to care through website, FDA approved, reasonably priced.

The Question: If approved by the FDA - Would you support a mouth swab, rapid, over the counter HIV test which could be purchased at a retail store?

** GO TO** http://www.whospositive.org/survey

Would you please take a moment to answer this and feel free to Twitter/Facebook or forward off through your networks. We are hoping to get a sampling of 1000 and are just about half way there. If you do, we just ask that you please post this disclaimer – “As to not influence others we ask that you do not discuss your thoughts in any open forum. You’ll be given an opportunity to offer your additional thoughts within the survey. Thank you – Who’s Positive”

Thank you for your help,

Tom Donohue

Founding Director, Who’s Positive

http://www.whospositive.org
http://www.tomdonohue.org