Stigma, when associated with HIV, another medical condition, mental illness or disability, prevents a person from seeking evaluation and treatment, disclosing the diagnosis to those most likely to provide support, and following treatment guidelines. Health related stigma destroys human dignity.
The 16th Annual International Conference on Stigma will be held from November 18 to November 20th, 2025. Our theme is Beyond the Labels: Living and Thriving. Registration and more information are coming soon.
Submit Art HERE for annual art contest.
Submit Stigma Stories at hupeds@howard.edu
Submit Abstracts at HU.Stigma.Conference@gmail.com
Visit the resource page for our Black Women and HIV Project. CLICK HERE
Howard University has been funded, along with partner nonprofit HealthHIV, to address HIV Prevention in Black Women through a new project entitled, “Black Women and HIV- Empowerment through Engagement, Education, and Enrichement.”
CLICK HERE to read the Press Release
By Afrekete*
Recently, when my trusted doctor retired, it stirred emotions that I was not prepared for. As a Black woman aging with HIV, losing a provider who had become part of my healing journey felt like a gut punch, because I did not always have compassionate care.
After I was first diagnosed, I was under the care of a highly regarded White male doctor. His reputation was stellar, but for more than three years, I never reached undetectable. Every month, my labs T-cell count hovered between 365–400, and it felt like a countdown I could not control. I lived in fear of falling below 200—the number that marks an AIDS diagnosis. I feared dying.
