I’ve been involved in HIV activism since 1991 and HIV work since 1993. I’ve participated in the AIDS Walk since 1994. Even when I haven’t walked myself, I’ve supported walkers and organized teams of walkers to support my chosen AIDS organizations. Many of my friends and lovers have died from HIV disease. I walk in their memory, and to prevent another generation of black gay men from experiencing the deaths that we did. 

This year's AIDS Walk celebrates my 30 years working in the HIV arena. The rapid and successful global response to COVID-19 showed me what's possible when we have the will to tackle an infectious disease. NAESM is committed to increasing its advocacy and policy work to see an HIV vaccine hit the streets. We're committed to engaging in community based participatory research to understand better, and dismantle, the barriers that folks face when seeking to protect their health and maximize their quality of life. We are committed to protecting the most vulnerable in our community--especially our sisters and brothers of trans experience. And we have undertaken a campaign to acquire housing stock so that we can provide safe and quality housing to those in our Black LGBTQ community that landlords routinely reject.

As we undertake this expanded work, please support me with a donation. Your gift makes a direct impact on my goal to save lives right here in Atlanta from the devastation of HIV, and to support similar organizations around the nation in doing the same in their communities. Together, we are making a difference!