About 50 visitors, staff and prisoners gathered in the San Quentin Garden Chapel to mark World AIDS Day.
The ceremony was held “in loving memory of the more than 685,000 people who have died of AIDS-related deaths in the United States and in support of the more than 1,200,000 people living with HIV in the United States and their families,” according to the event program.
“Shame is one of the greatest impediments to getting tested inside of the prison system,” said prisoner Allen Ross. “Many youngsters that come into prison view HIV through a stereotypical lens. That prevents young men from getting tested.”
Centerforce peer health educator Tommy Ross said when he was growing up, HIV/AIDS was seen as something only affecting people like actor Rock Hudson — White, rich and gay. Later, he said, “I saw the rapper Eazy-E being Black, rich and heterosexual. What I discovered is that it’s not who you are; it’s the behavior. After that I got tested.”
There is no reason not to get tested, said T.J. Lee from Positive Force, a program run by the San Francisco AIDS Foundation.
“I was at a U.S. conference on AIDS, where there was a weird undertone when I mentioned being positive for 16 years to a group of African-American men. After my admission, one friend came out and said he had been positive since he was 12. He was 24. Then they all started admitting it,” said Lee.
San Quentin’s Dr. George Beatty, whose HIV/AIDS work has spanned over 25 years, stated that “there are 896 incarcerated people known to be HIV-positive, maybe another 150 that may be infected that don’t know it.”
Beatty said HIV has been greatly reduced within the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation.
“CDCR has concentrated people with HIV where the experts are. The vast majority of HIV cases here are doing great.” Guys are “doing better here than people on the outside, probably because we have a group of people that are into rehabilitation and taking responsibility for their lives.”
“Everyone with HIV should be on treatment. There is no excuse for going undetected, no excuse for getting sick,” concluded Beatty.
Nurse Practitioner Ingrid Nelson, who works with Dr. Beatty at the HIV clinic at San Quentin, attributed better care to medication regiments that are far less complex than in the early era of HIV/AIDS.
“When I started practicing, medications were a lot more toxic. They’re better, easier meds now, and we are a lot smarter about how to use them. We have one pill once a day regiments. If they miss a dose, it could make the meds not work anymore. Stay on medications,” she urged.
The ceremony included performances by musician and prisoner David Jassy and spoken word artist Bri Blue.
Blue said she was humbled by performing for the cause. “I have family members who have died of AIDS … My dad was an inmate here. It just gives me a clear view and level of understanding of what people go through,” said Blue.
The event was sponsored by Centerforce, LCA Monitoring Success, San Francisco AIDS Foundation, Project Inform, AIDS Project East Bay, Eden I&R, Inc., and Christopher Noceti.
“We all have an HIV status,” said Centerforce peer health educator and host Angel Falcone. “One in eight people live with HIV and don’t know it, One in four 13-24 year olds pass it on. Find out your status. Get tested. The time to act is now.”
–Rahsaan Thomas contributed to this story
