Black AIDS Mobilization Gains Momentum with Congressional Black Caucus Call...( -State of AIDS in Black America Repo...),Health

-State of AIDS in Black America Report Outlines Mass Response to Epidemic-

WASHINGTON, Sept. 26 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- A new national report by the Black AIDS Institute on the State of AIDS in Black America was released today at a news conference hosted by members of the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) at the Cannon House Office Building, Cannon Terrace.

(Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20070926/LAW114)

To retrieve a copy of the report click:

http://www.yousendit.com/download/cUJWckhkOW5samMwTVE9PQ

In conjunction with the report -- We're the Ones We've been waiting for: The State of AIDS in Black America and what we are doing about it!, the Congressional Black Caucus released an open letter calling for a mass Black mobilization to end the AIDS epidemic in black America and the development of a national AIDS plan in the United States.

This "Call to Action" is part of a national coordinated campaign and mass Black response to end the HIV/AIDS epidemic, being organized by The Balm In Gilead, The National Black Leadership Commission on AIDS and the Black AIDS Institute and includes a national HIV testing campaign with a goal of providing HIV screening for 1 million African Americans by Dec. 1, 2008 -- World AIDS Day.

CBC members present included:

Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (D-TX)

Rep. Barbara Lee (D-CA)

Rep. Diane Watson (D-CA)

Rep. Donna Christian Christiansen (D-V.I.)

Sixteen leading Black institutions from various sectors of the community have also joined the campaign, including faith, civil rights, media, entertainment, academia, and politics.

"The unfortunate reality is that to be Black in America is to be at greater risk of HIV/AIDS, and we are here today to reaffirm our commitment to changing that
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