HIV/AIDS and Women of Color: Changing the Conversation

For the past decade, HIV/AIDS-related conditions have been the leading cause of death for African-American women ages 25-34 in the United States (CDC 1999). Over the past two decades, our local foundation has seen this national epidemic take root in our local community in Washington, DC, where we now have 10 times the rate of HIV/AIDS per capita compared to the rest of the country. Its impact is disproportionately felt in communities of color in our city, where nearly 7 percent of black men and almost 3 percent of black women are living with AIDS compared to about 3 percent for white men and less than 1 percent for white women. Black women now make up 90 percent of women living with AIDS (District of Columbia Department of Health 2009).