LGBTQIA+ - RED

Recognizing Transgender Leaders in Colombia for their Work in the AIDS Fight

Jeremy — Wed, 24 Jan 2024 22:38:57 +0000

A group of ENTerritorio health workers in Cartagena, Colombia | Photographer: Federico Rios

Though we’ve made tremendous progress in the fight against HIV/AIDS in sub-Saharan Africa, progress in Latin America is lagging tremendously. The region faces a range of issues, including limited access to healthcare in remote areas, stigma, and discrimination that discourages testing and treatment, and rising numbers of new infections among marginalized populations.

The AIDS crisis disproportionately affects members of the LGBTQIA+ community; transgender people are 14 times more likely to contract HIV. Widespread stigma and discrimination contribute to social exclusion, creating barriers to preventive care and testing, sexual health education, and life-saving treatment for those living with HIV. LGBTQIA+ communities often face higher rates of poverty and homelessness, which can also exacerbate the risk of exposure to HIV/AIDS.

During an impact trip to Colombia in May 2023, the (RED) team had the privilege of meeting Learsy Batista, a Trans Peer Educator at ENTerritorio who has devoted her life to increasing awareness of HIV and expanding access to testing and treatment.

Portrait of Learsy Batista | Photographer: Federico Rios

As a transgender woman, Learsy Batista knows firsthand the barriers LGBTQ+ people face when accessing life-saving health care and services. After learning she was HIV positive, Learsy turned to ENTerritorio, a (RED)-supported comprehensive health center in Cartagena, Colombia, for psychosocial support and medical care. Learsy described seeking help as a “long, hard process” but said her peers at ENTerritorio helped her find the strength to move forward.

After receiving the care she needed, Learsy channeled her energy toward helping others by stepping up as a Peer Educator. In her new role, Learsy helps detect positive cases of HIV and TB in her community and works to provide compassion, resources, and care to people seeking help at ENTerritorio. “Here, you have a hand to help you get back up. You’re not alone. You have a community, you have a friend, you have a sister,” Learsy explained.

Learsy said she enjoys being a peer educator because it has allowed her to develop new skills in entrepreneurship and has sparked a new passion for making her own clothes and textiles. She also emphasized the value of helping the community around her: “I like bringing the knowledge that I’ve learned in my day-to-day life to my community. I like knowing that people don’t feel alone, the same way I had support.”

LGBTQ+ Peer Educators at La Corporación Stonewall Antioquia, Colombia | Photographer: Federico Rios

Despite the obstacles she faces, Learsy has dedicated herself to changing the narrative around the LGBTQ+ community. Through her work at ENTerritorio, she’s making positive change possible.

“This support gives you the strength to move forward,” she said.

Learsy is a powerful reminder that community-led efforts are making a meaningful and positive impact in the fight against HIV/AIDS. We’re grateful for leaders like Learsy for the work they do to support their community members. To end the AIDS epidemic by 2030, we must allocate resources and support not only to sub-Saharan Africa but also to Latin America. Continued funding and comprehensive community-led strategies are vital to ensuring that the region can achieve its goals of reducing new infections, improving access to treatment, and ultimately ending the HIV/AIDS crisis within its borders.

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The post Recognizing Transgender Leaders in Colombia for their Work in the AIDS Fight appeared first on RED.

Why LGBTQ+ People Remain At Heightened Risk of Contracting HIV

Daniella — Fri, 10 Jun 2022 18:42:20 +0000

Updated June 29, 2023

HIV is both preventable and treatable, but stigma and discrimination allow the virus to continue to thrive. Despite significant progress, discrimination based on factors such as gender or sexual orientation continues to limit many people’s access HIV prevention and treatment services.

The LGBTQ+ community remains at heightened risk of contracting HIV because of this discrimination. Gay men are 28 times more likely to contract HIV than heterosexual men and transgender women are 14 times more likely to contract HIV than other adult women. Despite some global progress around health equity, being gay or transgender is still criminalized in many countries. Even in places where there are not laws outlawing homosexuality, people living with HIV that are LGBTQ+ still face many obstacles to living healthy, free lives.

“It’s so exhausting being a human being. But when you’re an LGBTQ human being – that’s really exhausting.” – Thulasizwe Buthelezi Sbongiseni Khumalo, the center’s program manager, agrees. Affectionately known as Sbo, he serves as friend and mentor to the young people coming to the center. He says: “Stigma isn’t just about reactions on the street. Some areas can be risky, some friendly. It’s more a structural issue in society. In religious communities, many are disowned for their sexuality. Civil society is building a bridge up from local structures, to district and ultimately the national scene to help change attitudes.” The center, established by Nonhlanhla ‘MC’ Mkhize, a leading activist voice from Durban’s LGBTQ community, provides testing, counselling and referral services. Last year, the center moved from Durban’s central business district to the residential neighborhood of Morningside. This changed the demographic of its users, which Nonhlanhla says is defined more by class than race: “There are lots of sex workers in this area, and so the girls also come to us for testing and support. Our trans community has also grown.” “As a new democracy, we’re at a point in time when 80 percent of the work we’re doing now is spent fighting human rights barriers, whereas previously, we were just fighting HIV as a disease.” – Nonhlanhla “MC” Mkhize She says: “Our progressive constitution helps us in South Africa, but it’s only 25 years old and most people don’t know their rights.” “What this center provides is not only services and support. We’ve given people the agency to go beyond these walls and change things. Lots of the talented young people that come here have become peer educators and motivational speakers. They’re doing interesting things.”

People like Sbongiseni “Sbo” Khumalo, an employee at the The Mosaic Lesbian and Gay Center in Durban, South Africa, have seen firsthand how stigma can be a barrier to crucial healthcare for many key populations. In his role as program manager, Sbongiseni serves as a friend and mentor to the young people who come to the center.

“Stigma isn’t just about reactions on the street. Some areas can be risky, some friendly. It’s more a structural issue in society. In religious communities, many are disowned for their sexuality. Civil society is building a bridge up from local structures, to district and ultimately the national scene to help change attitudes,” says Sbo.

By providing testing, counseling, and referral services, The Mosaic Lesbian and Gay Center acts as a lifeline for the LGBTQ+ community to access healthcare without feeling discriminated against or marginalized.

While the fight against HIV has advanced, and testing and treatment is more widely available, human rights barriers remain a major impediment to ending AIDS. Sbo and the Mosaic Lesbian and Gay Center are just one example of how the Global Fund invests in community leaders to overcome obstacles that prevent the LGBTQ+ community from accessing health care, including HIV prevention and treatment services.

This Pride Month, and every month, we are proud to support community leaders like Sbo and programs like The Mosaic Lesbian and Gay Center that are helping to ensure everyone, everywhere can safely and freely access the health care they need—regardless of sexual orientation or gender. Join (RED) and help fight for a more just and inclusive health system for all.