Miami Herald - February 11, 2007
Robert Samuels, rsamuels@MiamiHerald.com

Then the ground rumbled.

Pierre looked down the street. The marching band from Edison High School was in full blast, its dancers twirling red banners. More than 200 people were behind them, some shouting, "Silence Is Death," "Fight AIDS" and "Know Your Status."

Within five seconds, three marchers gave Pierre fliers about the devastating impact of HIV and AIDS on the local black community. Her left hand fumbled to hold them all.

Wednesday marked National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day, created in 1999 to highlight the disease's effects on the black community nationwide.

"I've already been tested and, thank God, I'm OK," said Pierre, 53. "In Liberty City, the way that disease has been going around everybody knows to do that. But let them keep marching. If they can get one person to get tested, that's a good thing."

The march was among several events commemorating the day. The marchers started at the NFL/Yet Center at Northwest 71st Street, proceeded past the new Scott-Carver homes and ended at the historic Joseph Caleb Center on Northwest 54th Street. The march showed how far the community had come and called for residents to stop the spread of the disease.

"We're trying to mobilize the people," said Dr. Reynald Jean, deputy director of the county health department's HIV/AIDS division. "We hope that, as we walk, people will join us and march to fight against HIV and AIDS."

The most recent numbers from the health department paint a vivid picture of how the virus is disproportionately affecting blacks.

Statewide, blacks account for more than half the reported cases, although they are 14 percent of the population. In the county, one in 44 blacks has HIV or AIDS. Black men here are nine times more likely to have the virus or the disease than their white counterparts; black women are 10 times more likely.

The situation is grim but the outlook has bright spots, said Thomas Liberti, chief of the HIV/AIDS bureau for Florida's Department of Health. In 1999, Florida blacks were 12 times more likely to get the disease than whites.

Health experts cite many reasons for the difference. Lack of insurance, distrust of government services and homophobia are all contributory factors, Liberti said.

Liberti said the department recently appointed a staffer to deal specifically with HIV/AIDS awareness among blacks to ensure the infection rate continues to decrease.

Liberty City has one of the highest infection rates in the state, said Michael Cooke, a local AIDS activist. But Cooke said the neighborhood has many proactive prevention programs.

When Cooke contracted the virus in 1987, he said, he had few places to turn.

Now there are places such as the Villages and MOVERS Inc. -- nonprofits dedicated to education and treatment of people who have been infected and affected. The school district has set up HIV/AIDS programs.

Even politicians such as state Sen. Frederica Wilson, D-Miami, get tested to know their status, to encourage residents to do the same. Wednesday, Wilson was tested by the county Health Department as part of the observance of the day by more than 200 students in the 5000 Role Models of Excellence Project gathered in the auditorium of MAST Academy.

"The community has really opened up into learning about the disease," Cooke said. "But we can always do more."

So he marched.
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