5 Must-See HIV/AIDS Films That Could Save a Life

"Endgame: AIDS in Black America" (2012) -- Directed by acclaimed AIDS documentarian Renata Simone, this PBS Frontline presentation takes an in-depth look at the disproportionate toll the HIV/AIDS pandemic has taken on African Americans. This program can be streamed on the Frontline page at www.pbs.org. PBS

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At-risk youths lack needed visible reminders of disease’s human cost

Media images surround us, and young people, especially, rely on such images to illustrate much of the world. That begs the question: When it comes to battling HIV/AIDS, can documentaries play a role in reaching a generation of at-risk youth by putting a face to the disease?

It’s a tough question to answer definitively, but some experts say the inability to put a face to the HIV/AIDS pandemic makes the realities of the disease surreal for too many young people ages 13-24. And with young black gay men having the nation's highest rate of new HIV infections, at least one sexual health expert bemoans the lack of consciousness that seems to run rampant in black teenage and young adult men when it comes to the virus.

“[Young people] don’t have a face to attach to the disease like there was in the late 1980s and through the 1990s,” Michele Luc told Loop 21 in an interview for Monday's story about the disconnect between HIV/AIDS prevention messages and young black gay men. “For me, as a black female, when Eazy-E died, when Magic Johnson came out [as HIV positive], these were people [my generation] knew and loved.”

Putting a face on and giving voice to a new generation of those living with HIV/AIDS has been the work of filmmakers behind some recent documentaries on the subject.

James Houston directed the 2009 film “Let’s Talk About Sex,” which explores Americans' attitudes toward sex education for adolescents and young people.

He says young black gay men -- if some do exhibit ignorance of the disease -- are taking their cue from the older adults around them and the society in which they were raised.

“Young people are a result of what’s going out there in the moment,” Houston said in the phone interview. “They are the product of parents, community leaders, churches that have been unwilling to really discuss these issues.”

[ALSO READ: What Is it That Young Black Gay Men Don't Get About HIV?]

Houston, 47, and a native of Australia, said he hopes his film helps educate and open viewers' minds -- which, in turn, could possibly save someone's life.

Check out the gallery above of Houston's and other critically acclaimed films about HIV/AIDS and sexual health. Listings include where the films can be found or streamed.

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10 Things You Can Do to Fight HIV and AIDS

Get tested, give your time and communicate

With World AIDS Day 2012 just recently observed, the time is right to up your game and contribute to the fight against HIV/AIDS. 

This is a time for action. Now and every day until this world is HIV/AIDS-free. Here are 10 things you can do to make a difference.

1.GET TESTED  Don’t be afraid and don’t be lazy. Knowing is better than not knowing. Getting tested isn’t like graduating from high school, or getting your wisdom teeth out. It’s not a one-time event. If you’re engaging in high-risk endeavors like unprotected sex, then you need to get tested often. Finding out earlier can absolutely help you live longer. It’s also easy, free and confidential. If you’re not sure where to get tested then click here and find a place near you.

You can also text your ZIP code to “KNOWIT” (566948), and you will receive a text back with the location of a testing site near you. If phoning is your cup-of-tea, just call 800–CDC–INFO (800–232–4636) and they’ll give you a list of testing areas in your neighborhood. 

Also, it might not sound sexy, but go get tested with your partner and show each other the results. Make it a date. Or stay in. But make it happen. No matter what. Get tested. It can sometimes be scary, but not knowing is much scarier.

[ALSO READ: To Be Young, HIV+ and Black]

2. GET EDUCATED  There are many places you can get information on HIV/AIDS, but like anything out there, be sure what you’re getting is accurate. A couple of good places to start are amfAR and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The Atlanta-based health heroes boast a rich resource bank that can answer just about any questions you have about HIV/AIDS. They can also provide you with incredible tools to stay HIV negative or stave off sickness if you’re already infected.  

If you’re thinking globally,  then another great resource is UNAIDS, or the Joint United Nations Program on HIV and AIDS, which is striving to achieve universal access to HIV prevention, treatment, care and support. It’s info rich and tech savvy with tools like an iPad app that shows how HIV and AIDS affects different parts of the globe and a data tool that lets you explore AIDS related info in an easy and graphically stunning way.

To Be Young, HIV+ and Black

As Dec. 1 marks World AIDS Day, examining how we can fight the epidemic claiming our youth.

After then 19-year-old LaQwanna Finkley complained about a headache for the umpteenth time, her mother sent her to the clinic. It was a visit that would change everything.

“The doctor gave me a full physical and blood work, and she asked if I wanted to take an HIV test,” the Bronx, New York, native says. “I said, ‘Sure, no problem.’ A week later, she told me that everything came back negative, except for my HIV test.”

Finkley’s response to the news doesn’t at all surprise those who know the upbeat, pragmatic young woman: “Okay. What do I have to do next?”

Finkley, born legally blind and often bullied as a child, viewed the diagnosis as just another challenge to overcome. “I knew that this was a task that God had for me; that He needed me to do something for Him. Even if I am scared, I’m still gonna use this situation to glorify God,” she explains.

She believes she contracted the disease from unprotected sex with a philandering ex-boyfriend, but her diagnosis hasn’t stopped her from living her life. Five years later, the relatively healthy 24-year-old is in a loving relationship with the man she was dating when she found out her status (he’s HIV-negative and gets tested every six months). Finkley spends her days working with at-risk teens in New York City’s Young Adult Internship Program, where her straight-talking tendencies are put to great use educating a rotating class of teens to the realities of the disease. “I tell them that some people don’t get a second chance; my second chance is for you not to become positive,” she says.

To say it’s necessary work is an understatement; young black men and women are contracting HIV at an unprecedented rate. According to the Centers for Disease, Control and Prevention, 26 percent of all new HIV infections occur in youth ages 13 to 24. But while blacks ages 13 to 19 make up just 15 percent of the teen population, they represent 60 percent of new teenage HIV infections. And because the risk of contracting the disease is increased in communities where a higher percentage of people already have it, black teens are more likely to join the ranks of the infected.

[ALSO READ: Obama: Know Your HIV Status]

Why are the numbers so heartbreakingly high? Poverty, for one. A 2010 CDC study found that “poverty is the single most important demographic factor associated with HIV infection among inner-city heterosexuals.” Nationwide, 35 percent of African Americans are living at or below the poverty threshold, which the Census Bureau defines as $22,811 for a family of four. Accordingly, the president’s National HIV/AIDS Strategy focuses resources in socioeconomically depressed areas.