Today I’m Rocking the Red Pump Because I Care

I care about the women and girls who will be diagnosed with HIV/AIDs. I care about the women and girls whose lives will be affected by HIV/AIDs. I care about the families who will be devastated by this preventable disease.

In the U.S. someone is infected with HIV every 9½ minutes.  And every 35 minutes a woman in the U.S. tests positive for HIV.  Staggering statistics, no? Women of color will be disproportionately affected by HIV/AIDs. In fact, AIDs is the leading cause of death for Black women between the ages of 25 and 34.

Sisters (of all colors), we have to protect ourselves. Make sure you:

• Know your status
• Practice safe sex
• Avoid risky behavior
• Talk about HIV prevention with friends and family
• Provide support to people living with HIV/AIDs

Today is National Women and Girls HIV/AIDs Awareness Day, an initiative established in 2006 by the Office on Women’s Health to raise awareness about HIV/AIDs infection among women and girls. To help raise awareness, I have dedicated today’s blog post to The Red Pump Project, a grassroots organization that raises awareness about HIV/AIDs prevention and offers support for those whose lives have been touched by the disease.  The Red Pump Project was started by Karyn of The Fabulous Giver and Luvvie of Awesomely Luvvie. The red pump symbolizes the strength and courage of women fighting HIV/AIDs or who have been affected by it both directly and indirectly.

I am honored to be an annual participant in the Red Pump Project’s Rock the Red Pump Campaign which encourages bloggers to rock red pumps and dedicate a post to raising awareness about HIV/AIDs.  Last year’s goal was to get 500 bloggers in 5o days, I think this year the campaign is over 1000 strong!