Details and tickets come from the organiser (birmingham.gaycities.com). Check with them before you go. Facebook page ↗
Join The Change Project, and artist Steven Romeo in an open shoot for IAMHIV or Our Bodies. Our Lives. AIDS Alabama and The Change Project believe the best way to combat stigma is through visibility. This unique partnership allows the campaign to become viral in 7 of the states with the highest HIV rates in the country. These states are Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee. The photos captured will be shared through social media networks, advertised in print media, exhibited in national and local galleries, and published in program booklets for regional and national conventions. Our Bodies. Our Lives. - A conversation that has been missing in the movement for LGBTQ equality is one around humanizing queer people. Not assimilationism, but the idea that queer people are humans and should be treated as such, we are unique in our own identity. In addition, language that is currently used to define queer folks is often times negative, and centered around sex and deviance. This collection focuses on queer people claiming words that they want to be called, and sharing that with the larger southeast community. To see images and stories behind this collection visit: http://www.embodyprogress.org then click Our Bodies. Our Lives. (Shirtless/in a bra, or in a tank top is required) Come in black or dark colored shorts/pants that you are willing to get powder paint on. It will come out in the wash. If you are uncomfortable taking your shirt off, come in a white shirt. HIV-related stigma haunts the lives of people living with HIV. Stigma marks people as different and as disgraced. It denies an individual's dignity, respect, and right to fully participate in the activities of the community. Stigma manifests in discriminatory and sometimes violent treatment of people living with HIV, their families, and others affected by HIV. It can inhibit access to education, work, housing, and health care. It may restrict travel, prevent participation in religious or cultural ceremonies, and trigger verbal or physical violence, isolation, or complete ostracism. Stigma may also affect personal and family life, including the opportunity to marry and to bear and raise children. IAMHIV seeks to work toward the end of stigma by engaging people living with and affected by HIV in a viral photo campaign. This campaign intends to give a face to the virus - the familiar face of "everyday people just like you." As HIV doesn't discriminate, we intend to capture individuals from all walks of life - LGBTQ, veterans, previously incarcerated individuals, youth and young people, business professionals, persons with disabilities, healthcare providers, seniors, and all genders and ethnicities. Concept images can be seen at www.embodyprogress.org/iamhiv Come in black or dark colored shorts/pants that you are willing to get powder paint on. It will come out in the wash. If you are uncomfortable taking your shirt off, come in a white shirt.