The Black LGBTQ+-led, multiracial social justice organization Lighthouse Foundation held a Black Women and HIV: A Critical Conversation talk on World AIDS Day Dec. 1 at Gallery Guichard located in Chicago’s Bronzeville Art District, marked the fourth year that the organization commemorated World AIDS Day.
Lighthouse Foundation Black LGBTQ+ Caucus Leader Nicolette Metoyer led the Q&A with Chicago House Director of Residential Housing Evany Turk, who is also a prominent community activist and appeared in the documentary HIV and the Journey to Zero.
“Every year, we unite our community to honor lives lost, celebrate our resilience and raise awareness about the ongoing impact of HIV/AIDS … Black women are disproportionately impacted by HIV/AIDS, yet their voices are often overlooked in conversations about this epidemic,” said Metoyer, who added that about 50% of all women diagnosed with HIV are Black.
Black women also represent 24% of new HIV diagnoses among all Black people, which is a higher share than Latina and white women, according to Metoyer, who pointed out that women in general represent only 8% or PrEP users despite the fact that they make up 19% of all new HIV diagnoses.
Turk recalled that when she was diagnosed with HIV over 20 years ago (she is currently undetectable) she hid it from those around around her. But her resilience soon kicked in; not only did she start telling people she was living with HIV, she started being an advocate. She largely focused her work on how dismissively and disrespectful Black women are treated in healthcare spaces.
Turk said that the documentary was an interesting opportunity, giving her the chance to both tell the story about her diagnosis story and educate others about HIV/AIDS. She added, “The epidemic cannot end until there is a cure” and that the education component is working to reduce new transmissions.
Turk said being open about her HIV status has given her the freedom to be her most true and authentic self. She compared hiding her status “having multiple bricks” on her back; each disclosure to a new person was liking casting one of those bricks off.
Turk and Metoyer also discussed what Turk thinks of the medication she has to take, her arrest in Washington, D.C. protesting for universal healthcare during the first Trump administration and her current work with the Office of National AIDS policy.
The social determinants of health present themselves not as a “behavior issue—it’s a social justice issue,” Turk said. Those determinants must effect positive change, she added, because capitalist society and governmental structures are flawed and unwilling to do the work to meet this moment. She further discussed the misconception that Black women can simply fall back on inherent strength and easily “deal with” HIV—a misconception that leads to some people simply giving up.
Turk noted that one way she has intervened in the mental health space is the monthly brunches she holds with other women who are HIV-positive. She described her plans to open up a youth center on the South Side of Chicago for those who have been diagnosed with HIV, which will expand her main reach beyond the five teenagers she took in as a foster mother. She added that lots of Chicago children/teens call her mom.
Guests at the Dec. 1 event were also treated to afternoon tea led by Chicago chef Daniel Will of Daniel’s Test Kitchen.