Editorial, Opinion Piece Push For Community Awareness About HIV/AIDS

"We cannot write often enough about the terrible toll that HIV/AIDS is exacting on the United States," a Washington Post editorial states, adding, "More than 56,000 Americans become infected with HIV every year," and in Washington D.C., the "'generalized and severe epidemic' threshold is crossed when 1 percent of a local population is living with HIV/AIDS." According to the Post, "These are the statistics that motivate a White House push for a desperately needed national AIDS strategy." The editorial urges residents to participate in community forums focused on HIV/AIDS organized by the White House and to visit www.aids.gov to gain "access to the latest information on the epidemic, prevention, testing and treatment" (8/25).

Separately, Lorraine Teel, executive director of the Minnesota AIDS Project, in the 'Your Voices' section of the Minneapolis Star Tribune initiates a dialogue urging readers to post their opinions on the best ways to raise HIV/AIDS awareness in the community. She writes that "we need education so we know how to make informed decisions" (Teel, 8/24).