20th Annual Women as the Face of AIDS Summit
Monday, May 5, 2025
THANK YOU FOR YOUR SUPPORT!!
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Bethel Gospel Assembly 2-26 East 120th Street (Between 5th and Madison) Time: 10 AM - 5 PM Tickets In- person general admission - $25 In-person PLWHA consumer - $10 Virtual general admission - $25 Virtual PLWHA consumer - $10 Doors open at 9 AM Breakfast - 9 AM - 9:45 AM 10:00 AM - Opening Remarks Ingrid Floyd, Executive Director, Iris House 10:10 AM - A Video Retrospective: “20 years of the Women as the Face of AIDS Summit” 10:15 AM - Theatrical Experience: "Not To Be An Alarmist, But...", By: Bridgette Picou 10:25 AM - Discussion with the Playwright and Performers 10: 40 AM- Opening Presentation: Update on Women, Girls & HIV Dr. Gina Brown, Gilead Sciences, Iris House Founding Board Member 11:45 AM - Plenary Panel: Legacy, Liberation, and Leadership Raniyah Copeland, Maria Davis, Debra Frazer-Howze 12:30 PM - Recognizing our Honorees: Dr. Uché Blackstock, Dr. Eishelle M. Hargrave-Tillery Raniyah Copeland, MPH & Alicia Diggs, MPH To learn more about these amazing and influential women click here.     12:45 PM - Plenary Closing Poem: Stacy Jennings, Love Your Life, A Program of Iris House
1:00 PM - Lunch Break Session 1 (2:00 PM - 2:50 PM; 40 mins presentation, 10mins Q & A) Biktarvy: Exploring an HIV Treatment Option - Gilead - BIKTARVY is a complete, 1-pill, once-a-day prescription medicine used to treat HIV-1 in adults and children who weigh at least 55 pounds. It can either be used in people who have never taken HIV-1 medicines before, or people who are replacing their current HIV-1 medicines and whose healthcare provider determines they meet certain requirements. Room 257 Bridging Generations: Healing and Empowerment in Women Living with HIV - Conversations with Kim and Bridgette Picou & The Well Project - This workshop aims to illuminate the diverse experiences of women aging with HIV, focusing on both older women living with the virus and younger women who acquired HIV perinatally or in childhood. By moving beyond the predominance of viral suppression in discussions about HIV, we seek to address the multifaceted medical, psychological, and social issues that impact the lives of women with HIV. Our objectives include fostering representation through storytelling and shared experiences, examining the socio-behavioral factors that shape the lives of women living with HIV—such as age, race, sexual and gender identity, trauma, educational status, and financial stability—and identifying solutions to dismantle barriers specific to women. We aspire to elevate community-driven healing strategies and advocate for a more comprehensive understanding of women’s lived experiences across the generational spectrum. Room 238 Love Your Life – Iris House - Since 2018, Iris House has been hosting Love Your Life — a national virtual support group for women of color loving with HIV. Throughout its 7 years of running, the group has reached hundreds of women across the United States. In this workshop, the Love Your Life group facilitators (Theresa Allen and Lepena Reid) will share the successes and challenges of facilitating a long-running, virtual support space. Participants from the Love Your Life group (TBD) will also share their experiences with the group and discuss the ways in which it has positively impacted their lives. Room 239 Overcoming HIV Stigma and Barriers that Affect Future Cisgender and Transgender Latina Leaders Living with HIV/AIDS – Voces Latinas - HIV-related stigma and structural barriers continue to disproportionately impact cisgender and transgender Latinas living with HIV/AIDS, limiting leadership opportunities and access to equitable healthcare and resources. This workshop explores the many challenges these communities face, including cultural stigmatization, socioeconomic disparities, and systemic discrimination. We will highlight innovative community-led interventions such as WILLOW and Ama Tu Vida that foster empowerment, leadership development, and advocacy to dismantle barriers. By centering lived experiences and explore intersectional approaches, this discussion aims to create actionable strategies for cultivating an inclusive and supportive environment that amplifies the voices of future cisgender and transgender Latina leaders living with HIV in this movement. Room 243 PrEP an Effective Tool for Women’s Sexual Health - Iris House NYC Office of Support and Affordable Housing, NYC - The objective of this workshop will be to discuss what is PrEP, how women can access PrEP, how to address the barriers women encounter with PrEP medication and gain a better understanding of why PrEP is an effective tool for women. With the increase of new HIV cases among Black and Latina women, today, more than ever, women need to consider PrEP as a tool that not only protects them from HIV but also allows them to live a healthier sexual life. Room 252 What's Your Role? Communicating and Connecting with Black Women about Sexual Health – ViiV - Join us in reframing “risk” to “reasons” for HIV prevention and care. Connect with other providers, public health practitioners, and members of organizations serving Black women to explore Risk to Reasons tools for your practice and programs. Together, we’ll reflect and reimagine your role in ensuring Black women receive the HIV prevention and care they need. Praise Chapel Breakout Session 2: (3:00pm – 3:50pm: 40 mins presentation, Q&A 10 mins) Deciding What to Hold on To and What to Let Go –Iris House - Party with a Purpose (PWAP) - a comprehensive peer-led HIV prevention, education, testing, and awareness program designed to address the social determinants of health (SDOH), improve health outcomes, identify, and eliminate barriers to healthcare, and develop HIV prevention strategies aimed at preventing new HIV transmission and decreasing health inequities among Black/African American cisgender women. The workshop will include guided discussions on stigma, disparities, and advocacy, encouraging participants to share and reflect. A hands-on creative activity—decorating tote bags—will serve as a symbolic exercise, allowing attendees to express their journey and take home a personalized reminder of their strength and resilience. Room 239 Empowering Choices: Updated Guidelines on Breastfeeding for Parents Living with HIV – The Well Project - The following objectives will be addressed during this workshop: 1. Increase Awareness: To disseminate updated infant-feeding guidelines and their implications for parents living with HIV to stakeholders, including healthcare providers and community members. 2. Support Shared Decision-Making: To emphasize the importance of shared, informed decision-making in infant-feeding options for parents living with HIV. 3. Identify Barriers: To explore existing barriers that healthcare providers face in supporting breastfeeding among parents living with HIV and to strategize on dismantling these barriers. 4. Promote Equity: To advocate for culturally responsive educational resources and institutional policies that support breastfeeding as a viable option for parents living with HIV. Room 243 “Hidden Figures” - The Work of Straight Women in the HIV and AIDS Epidemic – Victoria Noe The presentation will focus on the contributions of cisgender straight women in the HIV/AIDS community in New York City since the beginning of the epidemic. Examples of possible stories include: ACT UP/NY and the fight to change the definition of AIDS to include women; Iris de la Cruz and Iris House; amfAR and founders Mathilde Krim and Elizabeth Taylor; Ganga Stone and food delivery (God’s Love We Deliver); Cynthia O’Neal and Friends in Deed support group. Krishna Stone will follow with a first-person account of volunteering and working at GMHC since 1986. Praise Chapel Women & the Right to Adequate Housing - NYC Health Department - Stable housing is a key element in improving health outcomes among PWH. In NYC, housing is consistently reported as one of the greatest needs among PWH and the need for housing assistance remains high among both Black and Latina cisgender women PWH. This presentation will review the development and implementation of a Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program Part A housing program to support PWH who are homeless, unstably housed, or at serious risk of homelessness. This innovative housing program model incorporates the Housing as Healthcare approach through the use of multidisciplinary teams to provide access to housing and address related comorbidities to improve HIV and health outcomes. Room 252 Working with Communities of Faith to tackle the Stigma against AIDS - Latino Commission on AIDS - We will present how the LRLP program collaborates with non-traditional allies to combat HIV-related stigma. Our approach integrates key theoretical frameworks to create a comprehensive and inclusive model: Health Belief Model (HBM): Educates faith communities about HIV risks, stigma, and the benefits of supportive behaviors. Social Ecological Model (SEM): Engages individuals, faith leaders, and institutions to foster an inclusive, stigma-free environment. Leadership Approach: Empowers religious leaders to advocate for HIV awareness and stigma reduction within their communities. To conclude, we will facilitate an open dialogue, inviting attendees to share their experiences with the community and Faith-Based Organizations. Room 238 Exhibit Hour – Fellowship Hall (4:00 – 5:00 pm) |
Legacy Sponsors
Liberation Sponsor
Leadership Sponsor
Patron Sponsor
Support Sponsor
Ally Sponsors
2025 SUMMIT PLANNING COMMITTEE
Nadine Alexander NYCDOHMH Brenda "Bre" Azanedo Black Lives Matter - Patterson Ofelia Barrios Iris House Nichole Benjamin The Fortune Society Ciarra Covin The Well Project Dana Diamond Exponents Ingrid Floyd, Chair Iris House Millicent Freeman CUNY BMCC Lillibeth Gonzalez GMHC Crystal Mitchell Iris House April Browne Oronsaye Mt. Sinai Institute for Advanced Medicine Kimberly Richardson Iris House Toya Summers Iris House Paulette Zimmerman ACQC |
