Internalized stigma, it means I have to focus on who I am. Not do what other people say. I’ve been positive since ’93, so living with HIV I had to partner with myself, and quit dealing with people who were negative towards me and start dealing with people who had a positive attitude.
[You have to] live your life, and keep on living.
Some people are still judging people…human beings are people. If you like guys, if you like women, that’s your prerogative, and nobody else’s, because you don’t have to answer to no-one, only to God.
The fact is, we need to put out more things to say, “This is the life that you could live in, and once you live in it, stay in it.” Whenever a person says a negative thing towards you, just say, “Hey, OK, all right,” and just walk away, because this is your life that you have to live with, not theirs.
If a church put on a program, I’d be happy to help… I’d focus on the HIV. I’d put HIV+ people in prayer.
This is the tree of all the families living with HIV and AIDS. My best friend & I did this at Friends For Life at Feast for Friends.
Before he died, we used to sit around and laugh and talk about the trees and stuff and the leaves and talk about How it feels to be living with HIV?
Snap Out Stigma 