“I can’t believe that I straight raw dogged that girl with no condom! Maybe if I had not I would not be sitting here sweating and wondering if I am going to test positive or not. Damn….” Scary as it may sound, this thought is a reality for many people.As I observed the numerous students that passed through the doors of the MSC ballroom to participate in the free H.I.V. testing on Monday March 9, I couldn’t help but notice there were more students outside socializing at SGA’s Fresh Mondays than getting tested. Maybe it wasn’t advertised or publicized enough on campus I thought. Maybe students do not like the idea of knowing if they have contracted the virus or not within 20 minutes with this new test.
How many people on this campus are sure that they are safe? Alternatively, maybe some just don’t want to know. Whatever the reason, for the number of students who came out to get tested made an incredible example of what it means to have respect for self.
Amber David of Bread of Life says, ” I have been testing students on Prairie View’s campus for two years and I’ve never personally tested an H.I.V. positive student here. Students at Prairie View are very, very, receptive. They are surprisingly honest about their sexual history, and ask excellent questions during the one on one counseling that we provide.” As he made sure to remind me of the other organizations that made it possible to hold this event, (which by the way was the NAACP, Family Under Urban and Social Attack or FUUSA) along with the organization that he represented, Bread of Life, David informed me that he wanted to be a part of the fight against H.I.V. in the African American community since the death of his close friend almost a decade ago due to the illness.
As I listened to David, I thought it was more than honorable of Bread of Life and FUUSA to devote their time and effort to such an alarming issue. David also made a valid point regarding this modern day epidemic. He stated, “Everyone needs to be aware of their status so that so we can dispel myths about H.I.V. and educate about risk reduction, i.e. monogamous relationships, the usage of condoms, and abstinence.”
I wonder how many students are aware of their status. People can easily say they have been tested because it sounds good but do they really go and get tested. How many students on this campus are actually H.I.V. infected and furthermore are they going to respect themselves enough to inform their partners? What if….what if… that person was you?