The United Nations estimates that 40 million people in the world are living with HIV/AIDS. Sixty-five percent, or 26 million, of them live in Africa, and Africans account for about 75% of AIDS deaths worldwide each year. In Ontario, as in the world, Africans comprise a disproportionate number of people living with HIV/AIDS. African immigrants — the majority of whom live in Toronto — make up less than 1% of the province’s population, yet they accounted for approximately 5 - 6% of HIV diagnoses in 2002. The number of people from Africa infected with HIV nearly doubled between 1998 and 2003. And these numbers are probably low. The stigma attached to HIV/AIDS in Toronto's African communities, as in Africa itself, discourages people from getting tested for HIV. If they have been diagnosed, they tend not to disclose their HIV status, even to those best able to provide them with care and support. The linguistic and/or cultural barriers they face as newcomers to Canada compound the problem, limiting their access to relevant information about safer sex and to services for people living with HIV/AIDS. As a result, HIV infections go undiagnosed , AIDS-related illnesses go untreated, and infection rates increase. In terms of HIV prevention, education, and support, the needs of Toronto’s African communities are complex. Attitudes towards HIV/AIDS within these communities differ from those of other at-risk groups. Currently, the AIDS Committee of Toronto (ACT) works with the Black Coalition for AIDS Prevention (Black CAP), Africans in Partnership Against AIDS (APAA) and other African and Caribbean groups in Toronto to organize community forums, develop educational materials, and host a monthly Women's Community Kitchen for women of colour living with or at risk for HIV/AIDS. But if larger AIDS organizations such as ACT have a role to play in the provision of culturally appropriate services, either directly or as community partners, we must commit ourselves to understanding how religion, traditional gender roles, homophobia, and poverty complicate the decisions Africans in Toronto make about their sexual health. What better way to deal with these issues than by drawing on the wisdom and expertise of African AIDS organizations? In April and May, ACT staff member Tyler Stiem will travel around Malawi, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, and Zambia on a Rotary International-funded professional exchange. He will visit NGOs, government, and clinics and meet with HIV/AIDS educators, health workers, and people living with HIV/AIDS. Over the past several years, ACT has successfully collaborated with AIDS organizations in Brazil on HIV prevention for Toronto’s Portuguese-speaking communities. The southern Africa trip is an opportunity for ACT to build similar relationships with African AIDS organizations. It’s an opportunity to discuss HIV/AIDS as it affects both Africans and Toronto’s African communities and work towards more effective programs and services. Finally, as one of the host community organizations at the 2006 International AIDS Conference in Toronto next year, ACT has a role to play in organizing events for conference delegates from around the world. With the input of African AIDS organizations, ACT will be in an excellent position to create training modules and forums that meaningfully address the needs of developing world ASOs. ACT’s trip to southern Africa coincides with the launch of the African and Caribbean Council on HIV/AIDS in Ontario (ACCHO), an umbrella organization created to coordinate action on HIV/AIDS in the province’s African and Caribbean communities. ACT will work with ACCHO to develp conference curricula and to connect Toronto’s African-Caribbean organizations with their southern African counterparts. HIV/AIDS is a global epidemic and Toronto is a global city. Solidarity is the key to our success. |