| July 01, 2009 | |
In Today's In-Brief:
Mary's Story: AIDS, Violence & HIV Law Project Mary (name has been changed) was born in West Africa and came to America with her three children to be reunited with her husband and their father. Mary’s husband, who had immigrated years earlier and became a citizen, was finally able to sponsor the family for a visa. Shortly after their reunification as a family, however, Mary’s husband became physically and emotionally abusive toward her and the children. Mary was hospitalized a few times as a result of the injuries caused by her husband. By using his “knowledge” of immigration law and by controlling her activities, Mary’s husband was able to intimidate her into remaining in the home with their children. When Mary became pregnant with their fourth child and learned that she was HIV positive, the violence in the home escalated. After the baby was born, Mary’s husband threatened to kill her and, with help from a local church, she and the children moved out. However, Mary’s husband took their immigration and identification documents, refused to continue with the immigration petition process, and threatened to have them deported. HIV Law Project was able to assist Mary in receiving HASA (HIV/AIDS Services Administration) benefits while her immigration status was being figured out. Based on the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA), an HIV Law Project staff attorney prepared and filed a self-petition for an immigrant visa for Mary and her children. VAWA allows a non-citizen married to an abusive U.S. citizen spouse to apply for an immigrant visa based on the abuse they suffered, without requiring cooperation from the U.S. citizen spouse. Recently, after some procedural delays, the petition for Mary and her children was finally approved. Their applications for legal permanent residence are currently being processed and Mary and her teenage children have already received their Employment Authorization Document (EAD) cards. Mary will now have access to HIV medications and treatments not available in her country of origin. With treatment, Mary can work and live a long, healthy life. Mary has hopes of seeing her newborn son enroll in college just like his older sister did this summer. There are many, many families like Mary and her children who need free legal assistance. Your support makes it possible for HIV Law Project to help people like Mary to exercise their legal rights. Summer Advocacy Institute for HIV-positive Women HIV Law Project’s Center for Women and HIV Advocacy (CWHA) is hosting an eight week Advocacy Institute, beginning July 7. We are thrilled that the number of women who have signed up has exceeded our expectations. The course will provide an introduction to basic advocacy skills for women living with HIV/AIDS. The Advocacy Institute resurrects the legacy of the Women’s Leadership Institute, and provides an important complement to our LawTAP classes which focus more on substantive know-your-rights issues. This year’s Advocacy Institute is timed to coincide with the break in the state legislative session, when our local advocacy work is put on hold. Many of CWHA’s Steering Committee members will participate in the trainings to strengthen the advocacy skills they apply to our on-going campaign for comprehensive sexuality education. The course will cover a variety of topics, including the power of grassroots organizing, cutting an issue and developing a strategy, relations of power, legislative and media advocacy, designing an effective action, and working in coalition. We hope that program graduates will embrace their role as advocates, and that many will join in our current fight for comprehensive sex ed. For further information, click here >>US Government Moves Toward Ending HIV-Positive Travel Ban HIV Law Project applauds the federal government for taking the long-awaited steps towards finally ending the ban on HIV-positive individuals visiting or moving to the United States. The Department of Health and Human Services announced yesterday that they will issue proposed regulations that would remove HIV from the list of “communicable diseases of public health significance” that prevent foreign nationals from entering the country or applying for permanent residence. Subsequently, the agency withdrew the notice, stating that they had “inadvertently submitted an incomplete version of the proposed regulation.” Nevertheless, an early peek at the proposed rule revealed that it eliminated HIV as a ground of inadmissibility for both temporary travelers and immigrants seeking to settle permanently in the United States. HIV Law Project is monitoring this quickly evolving situation and will submit comments to the proposed rule once it is published. Simple HIV Test Can Save Lives By Dr. Kevin Fenton Every 9½ minutes someone's brother, mother, sister, father, or neighbor becomes infected with HIV in the United States. That's 56,000 people every year. But there's something we can all do to help protect ourselves and our partners from this disease -- get tested for HIV. In the fight against HIV, I can tell you that few things are more important than testing. It's an essential step in reducing the number of new HIV infections and extending the lives of those who are infected. Put simply, HIV testing saves lives. We must remember that AIDS still kills in this country -- more than 14,000 people die every year. Yet we have the tools to diagnose an HIV infection early, to begin life-prolonging treatments to prevent progression to AIDS, and to ensure a strong quality of life for HIV-infected people. But without a test, there is no diagnosis -- and no treatment. The fight against HIV here at home is far from over. But too many mistakenly believe that HIV in the United States is no longer a serious problem. In fact, a recent survey by the Kaiser Family Foundation found a troubling decline in awareness and concern about the domestic HIV/AIDS crisis, in the general population and among those at greatest risk. To help combat this complacency, the White House recently joined CDC and the rest of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to announce a new communication campaign, "Act Against AIDS." The campaign is working on a number of fronts to refocus national attention on the U.S. epidemic, and to increase the number of Americans who get tested for HIV. Although HIV/AIDS continues to pose a serious threat to the nation's health, HIV testing is a powerful weapon against the disease. By increasing the number of people who know their HIV status, we can decrease the number of new HIV infections, and help save thousands of lives. What you don't know can hurt you. In fact, it can kill you. But a simple test could change your fate and the fate of others. That's why today I urge all Americans to take the test -- and take control. To learn more about HIV/AIDS and where you can receive a confidential HIV test, visit hivtest.org, call 800-CDC-INFO, or text your ZIP code to "Know It" (566948). For comprehensive information about HIV prevention, visit the Web site for the first phase of CDC's recently-launched Act Against AIDS campaign. *HIV Law Project is a 501(c)(3) organization. Donations are 100% tax-deductible. To find out more about HIV Law Project work, please visit www.hivlawproject.org. HIV Law Project is exempt from tax under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of the United States and qualifies for the maximum charitable contribution deduction by donors. BE SURE TO RECEIVE OUR IN-BRIEF EMAILS. MAKE HIV LAW PROJECT YOUR BUDDY! Some Internet Service Providers like AOL, Yahoo! and Hotmail use email filtering software that allows you to add email addresses to a "buddy," "trusted," "safe," or approved list. Please add news@hivlawproject.org to your list so that our messages don't end up in "junk mail" or the "trash." HIV Law Project |
Join Us !Facebook
Facebook
Twitter
News feeds from HIV Law Project (RSS)
|
