SMART Youth's Co-Founder, Christina Rodriguez, was a panelist on "Prosecution vs. Prevention: A Community Forum on HIV Criminalization" held at the LGBT Center in NYC on May 24th. She spoke about her personal story concerning disclosure and how hard it is to tell someone their HIV+ status in an intimate relationship, a core element in current laws that vary from state to state. The evening was sponsored by QUEEROCRACY, The Sero Project, and The Center for HIV Law and Policy.
SMART & SASI women and SMART Action Youth (SAY!) are forming advocacy efforts surrounding the abolishment of these abhorrent laws that are intrinsically racist and homophobic and attacks basic human rights in this country. More importantly, and most sad, the laws pose a threat keeping people from testing and accessing optimal care and treatment for people living with HIV/AIDS.