21 July was International Zero HIV Stigma Day, held on the birthday of Prudence Nobantu Mabele (21 July 1971 – 10 July 2017), the first woman in South Africa to publicly disclose her HIV status.
Representatives from across Brighton & Hove’s HIV, LGBTQ+, health and wider communities came together for a joyous afternoon of speeches, music and placard-waving activism.
Hosted by the incomparable Mary O’Kart in Jubilee Square, speakers included the legendary Jonathan Blake, diagnosed with HIV in 1982, Terrence Higgins Trust’s inspirational Positive Voices, Cllr Mitchie Alexander, cabinet member for Communities, Equalities, Public Health & Adult Social Care at Brighton & Hove City Council, Gary Pargeter, director of the Lunch Positive charity and Eileen Nixon, co-chair of the Towards Zero Stigma Working Group.
Speeches were interspersed with performances by the brilliant Rainbow Chorus and the day ended with a whole square full of people, choir singing, signs held high, all of it for Zero HIV Stigma Day.
HIV stigma is still a real issue. It can stop people from going for an HIV test, accessing treatment and care, or speaking openly about their experiences. Stigma can also lead to isolation and have a lasting impact on both mental and physical health.
But stigma doesn’t survive when people show up exactly as they are and the people around them choose love not judgement. In Brighton & Hove, that’s what we do.
Thank you Lunch Positive, Martin Fisher Foundation, Brighton & Hove City Council and Terrence Higgins Trust for a wonderful afternoon.
