Transcripts For WABC Here And Now 20151213 : vimarsana.com

WABC Here And Now December 13, 2015

She now uses those same skills polished as a hiphop music promoter to get the word out about hiv and aids. Joining us today, maria davis. Hi. Thank you. So nice to meet you. And its very nice to meet you, too. And thank you for coming on this afternoon. Thank you for having me. You know, reading your story, you know, first you get angry, you know, about how you contracted the virus from a man that you loved. Mmhmm. And then you want to stand up and cheer because you really did not let it define your life. Absolutely. Absolutely. Im gonna you were doing something that you really loved the Music Industry. Youve said that it was in your blood. Yes. And then you got this diagnosis that im thinking, at the time, you felt was a death sentence. Yes, it was. I did feel like it was a death sentence, because when i was first diagnosed in 95, i found out through a Life Insurance policy, and i didnt think that i had the virus because then we thought it was a gay white mans and, you know, lo and behold, so many africanamerican women today and africanamericans we make up the we are very impacted by hiv and aids. I mean, more than 50 of the cases. New cases of hiv aids are young africanamerican men and women. Yes, absolutely. And, you know, i couldnt talk about it then, you know . Everybody said it was a monster. And, really, you didnt even know where to go to talk about it. At all. And there were really no outlets at all. How did you what did you finally do . What made you finally say, okay, i got to get it together here. I just cannot let myself wither away and die . What was the catalyst . My two children. Excuse me. My two children. You know, i didnt get in on a treatment plan immediately, and so i was involved with an Organization Called friends in deed. Mmhmm. And they took me into crisis said to me, miss, if you do not start having a doctor in your life, if you dont start accepting this diagnosis, you will not see your children. And thats when it hit me. And i said to myself, wow. Not seeing my children . I hadnt even thought about that. That was the simplest thing, but i never thought about it. Well, you were too, really, focused on just this disappointment and heartbreak, really. Yes. Absolutely. Now, your hiv morphed into yes. Mmhmm. So, i was diagnosed in 95, and then by 1998, i contracted what they call an opportunistic infection, and i had five tcells, so i spearheaded right into being diagnosed with aids. I was very, very sick for a long, long, long time. So, it was kind of part of my journey, you know. People can look at it either negative or positive, but i looked at it positive because im a better person today. And it helped me become the spokesperson. I had the Music Industry thought that god wanted me to be on, he really was setting me up to be on this stage to talk about hiv and aids and empower people. And, you know, im working with a very wonderful project called i design. Its the mercks national hiv campaign to empower People Living with hiv to speak out and have a voice. And i understand the focus of this campaign is really to put people in charge of their own lives and their own cares, even when they talk with their doctors. It helps you to know what questions to ask, how to ask not only about the virus but some of the other opportunistic illnesses that come along with having the virus. And, you know, because we im a longtermer. Thats what they call me. 20 years now. And so, my concerns have shifted into now ive been here 20 years, so my focus is not so and we just conducted a survey that also talked spoke to that, that people with hiv are now who are living 10 years or better, now their focus is their other health issues. Yes. That come along. You know, im over 50. That come with the virus and the hiv. Absolutely. So, im over 50. My concern is arthritis. My concern is menopause. You know, and other peoples concerns are different, because, you know, hiv is not one set. Its not fit. Its differently for everyone. Now, you have maintained industry. Yes. And has that helped you industry . Been . Well, you know [ chuckles ] its a funny thing. [ both laugh ] i dont want to say, you know, that people were banging on my doors, like, maria, let me help you, you know. It was very trying. You know, eazye was the only that had passed on from complication of aids. Magic johnson was who we knew that contracted hiv. So there were not a lot of africanamerican and there were not a lot of women that were talking about it. Yeah. We had it, but we werent talking about it. So it wasnt like anyone was banging my doors down to come and help me be the voice, so i had to kind of get, you know, the anger, my compassion, really is what spearheaded me into, guess what . This message is very important. Its a preventable disease. You need to know your hiv status, and not only your own status, but your partners status. You know, whoever youre dealing with, whatever sex you want, you know, that you deal with, you need to know your status. Is it easier to get that message out today, and are more people, you know, 20 years later, and are more people more willing to help . Im gonna be honest with you. Mmhmm. Become so complacent, because the people are living with it. Because people are living longer. Youre not seeing those scary images that they saw back then in the early 90s and the 80s. Youre not seeing people looking like they were zombies. So, people do not take it seriously. Like, when i go and i speak to young people about hiv and aids and i tell them im living with aids, theyre like, stop lying, miss davis. Youre not living with aids. Get out of here. Nothings wrong with you. They dont take it serious because of the way that i look. But it does make them sit up and listen once you start telling your story. Yes. Can i ask you . And were running out of time. Theyre giving me the you got to go, you got to go. [ laughs ] 20 years later, was that diagnosis a blessing in your life now, obviously . Absolutely. Absolutely. Because im still doing the Music Industry. Im at a club in harlem called the shrine. Influential with me, partnering with me, and getting the message out to the harlem community. And then being a spokesperson for the i design campaign. And all of this together has really empowered me to be able to do the work that im doing today. All right. Maria davis, such a pleasure to meet you, to talk to you. Best of luck. Projectidesign. Com. Yes. All right. Best of luck to you. Thank you. Up next, Actress Sheryl Lee Ralph working to erase the stigma of hiv and aids africanamerican men are eight times more likely to become infected with hiv than whites, and thats according to the centers for Disease Control and prevention. For 25 years, the diva foundation, founded by actress and hiv activist Sheryl Lee Ralph has focused on hiv and aids awareness, erasing stigmas and providing testing. Joining us today, tony award Sheryl Lee Ralph. Welcome back to here and now. Thank you. It is good to be here with you right now. Always a pleasure to see you. And youre always so much energy and looking beautiful. Thank you very much. I think i owe it to myself to be the best me i possibly can be. I look in that mirror, and ive got to love what i see. [ laughs ] and we love what we see. Oh, thank you very much. Now, weve just marked another World Aids Day this month. 27th. 27th annual international aids day. And i looked on three major newspapers, and nothing not a red ribbon, not a mention nothing. That. Well, it was big news here in new york. There was a lot of talk, a lot of reminders the state put forth a lot of money toward educating. 24 million. Yeah. 200 million hes gonna actually ask the legislature for in january. I love it. 2. 5 million the state has already focused on the issue. To eradicate it by 2020. Yes. Which is very, very possible. And, of course, you jumped in early on, as we said, 25 years ago, the diva foundation. Yes. Divinely inspired, victoriously aids aware. I love to hear you say it. Thats why i never say it. I love to hear you say it. Thank you. And you really said you got involved in this fight because you lost so many dear friends. Oh, my goodness. You remember there was a time when folks had a phonebook . You had a phonebook and you would write peoples names and numbers names, address, and number in it. Well, it got to a point for me where i just could not cross out one more friends name. I just couldnt. It was so sad for me to hold this constant reminder that they were all no longer here. And so many of them died under stigma and shame. And there was so much silence around it, and the silence and it was horrible. And i was a young woman, and i just thought to myself, you know, we can do better than this. Judge not, lest ye be judged. And are you happy with what youve managed to accomplish in that 25 years . I mean, i know that you have worked at getting at this issue through the arts. You know what . I believe in the transformational power of the arts. You know, people may not listen to a speech. They may not listen to somebody preach. But they will they Pay Attention to a singing, bighaired diva with attitude to match, you know. And when we started with divas simply saying, that was, you know, using the arts to change peoples minds. When we created the diva tshirt, diva with the red ribbon, and, you know, really got people to understand that you could be divinely inspired, victoriously aware, alive, awesome, in celebration of raising awareness around hiv aids. Create those kind of movements that continue, i feel good. Mmhmm. But at the same time, when i hear of another young person, you know, becoming infected with any std, you know, which includes hiv, im like, oh, dear god. Whos not getting the message when another young person dies, you know . Im still. Ooh and i dont know why i take it so personally, but i do. And it just hurts my feelings, you know. Two years ago, it was what . 30,000 . 30,000 new hiv infections in america . This year its 50,000 so it is still the issue is still out there. One of the ways that youre hoping to get peoples attention is this first home rapid hiv test. Its called oraquick. Oraquick is doing. You can go right down to the cvs, the walmart, and pick up the oraquick athome hiv test kit. People are afraid, you know. They dont want to prick their fingers, draw blood or anything like that. Swab your mouth with, like, a fat, flat, rough qtip. Swab your mouth, put it in the solution, and in 20 minutes, you can have your own, in the privacy of your own home, results. If you come up negative, we want you to do everything to stay negative. If you come up positive and youre a little bit shaken, you dont have a connection to a doctor or healthcare, there is a number in the box right there for you to connect to, to get help 24 7. We want people to realize that knowledge is power, and knowing your status, your hiv status, is very important. Now, i know youre working down south. Youve worked with quite a few than aids campaign. Were partnering with oraquick Orasure Technologies or with the oraquick test and greater than aids. I am going to make sure that we get 10,000 test kits distributed throughout the south, where people are being hindered by poverty, lack of access, lack of healthcare, lack of receiving the proper information, and i want them to see this test and know that i love you so much and you matter so much. Youre important. Take the test. Know your status. Sex should be something that people enjoy, enjoy in a wonderful way. cause when its good, its good, right . [ laughs ] but it should not be hindering your life. It should not be cutting your life short. It should not be giving you health problems. Know your status. And if you come up positive, get into treatment. Thats what early treatment, early testing, Early Intervention looks like. It can happen. Yeah. Your message is great, and thats why were always so great to have you, happy to have you back. Before we let you go, just fill us in on your projects. Oh, listen, life has been good. Instant mom with tia mowry and myself one of the best familyoriented shows out there. We will be on air until the end of the year. I encourage people to just tune in saturday nights at 8 00. You can find it on your cable channel. Great show. My musical that im producing with Kendrell Bowman and Anthony Wayne mighty real. Should say. Well, thank you. Sylvester. Sylvester was the sylvester was the original disco queen, and he was amazing. The show is doing well. We thank all of our broadway angels who have been helping us on kickstarter to keep moving were gonna do it our way, and we are going to do it. Mmhmm. I think god sees us back on what . Broadway, baby [ laughs ] all right. And we expect to see you back on here and now, as well. Show. Im glad you all are here. Thank you so much. Thank you. Sheryl lee ralph, always a pleasure to see you. Thank you. Still to come on here and now, empowering young women of color. A Leadership Academy with ivy league connections. Stay with us. What makes this simple salad the best simple salad ever . Heart healthy california walnuts. Heart healthy california walnuts. The best simple dinner ever . Heart healthy california walnuts. Great tasting, heart healthy california walnuts. So simple. At the well conferences focuses on empowering young women, especially those of color. Its young womens Leadership Academy held in the summer on the campus of Princeton University offers a curriculum to High School Girls that encourages Critical Thinking and problem solving and stresses academics. Joining us this afternoon is the founder, jacqueline glass, and two students, sorvina carr and ashley codner. Welcome to all of you. Thanks for having us. So happy to see you. Jacqueline, such a great program. Weve heard such wonderful things about it. What was your inspiration behind thats a very good question. The inspiration for starting it, the program, actually it began out of some hardship. I was looked over for promotion at a job that id held for maybe 30 years. Mmhmm. And instead of being negative about not being promoted, i took that energy and put it into the Nonprofit Organization at the well conferences so that i can pour into others that were younger so that they wouldnt have to feel the way that i felt. And, you know, they would have more opportunities. So that was the inspiration for at the well conferences. And then i know that you started out, i guess, focusing on women, and you quickly decided that girls, young girls, particularly high school age, could really use this kind of encouragement that you were offering. And so this academy was born. Its a twoweek academy in the tell us about that. What is it that you, in that two weeks, youre hoping to instill in these young women . Well, the academy was born from at the well conferences. In 2009, we hosted a sort of a womens conference along with the component of a teenage girls conference. And the teenage girls, it was just such a need to do more. So, from 2009, our focus primarily has been on young girls. 2011 was the first year the inauguration of the summer program, and we have 32 girls. And sorvina carr was with that first group. She was a talented she is a talented, but she was in eighth grade. [ laughter ] she was an eighth Grade Student that we took earlier because, you know, of what she represented. But i want to focus because we have a short amount of time during this conference, its two weeks, what are the things that you work with these young ladies on . Okay. And i havent forgotten about we work with them on standardized exam preparation. The approach is interdisciplinary. We do critical reading, writing, college level. The work is hard. We are, you know, very tough academically, which im sure the girls can agree to that. Shes right. Yep. But we also want to build them up as young women. We want them to know that theyre not alone in the world to be smart, to be beautiful. Oftentimes, theyre the only minority in their class. Theres no one that gives them, you know, confidence, and theres no one that they can relate to, sometimes. So, to be in an academy with 75 girls that are bright, brilliant, you know, its inspiring. We had one young lady who was at a camp at one of the Ivy League Schools in the south, and she came to us and she just blossomed. And its just so many Success Stories from the girls in terms of the impact that the program makes, and we you know, we that were doing. And you two guys are two of those Success Stories. Sorvina, ill start with you. Youve attended the academy twice. Yeah. Tell me, what do you think is the difference in sorvina before and after being a part of this . Well, the camp just stresses a lot about leadership. When i went in, i was young, and being a young black woman, growing up in, you know, america today, you dont learn the things that you might have to do differently than others or ways that you might have to advance yourself in order to promote yourself and to, you know, be the young, proud, beautiful, strong woman you can be in this country. So, coming in, i was freshminded, and leaving, i left with an incredible perspective, my brain, knowledge, just everything blossomed so much. More confident . Oh, yeah. 100 more confident. And gears i needed to know to make it. And, ashley, you attended the academy for the first time this past summer. Yeah. Yeah, last summer. And what are you enjoying most about being, you know, for two weeks, with a bunch of girls you didnt know but girls that, like sorvina, are as smart and brilliant and as beautiful as you are . Coming into it, i guess, i was feeling sort of deprived, you could say. I wasnt learning about queen nzinga in class or ella baker. But i go to at the well, and im learning about all these amazing women and im learning about them with amazing young women that have kind of its not only, i guess, the content, but the character that im building and the company that im keeping. I think thats really what made the difference. Well. [ chuckles ] make you feel good to hear the girls say this . Absolutely. Now, i want to ask you, because we want to make sure we get the information out. You are going to start taking youre taking applications for does that start in january . January 1st. We begin taking applications for 2016. Our focus is on current students grades. Okay. And we will be introducing a week

© 2025 Vimarsana