San Francisco Chronicle - December 2, 2005
Christopher Heredia, cheredia@sfchronicle.com.

The 40 participants in the Oakland AIDS Walk joined World AIDS Day remembrances in the Bay Area and around the country. In San Francisco, 250 people including friends and family members of people who have died of the disease and others living with the virus gathered under tents at the AIDS Memorial Grove in Golden Gate Park.

At Lake Merritt in Oakland, most of the marchers were African Americans. They called for blacks to break the silence around HIV in the African American community. They carried posters that read "AIDS Sucks. Use a Condom," and "HIV-positive women, you are not alone." They chanted slogans such as "What time is it? Testing time."

In 1998, Alameda County declared a state of emergency when high rates of HIV were first reported among African American residents. Blacks, who represent 14.9 percent of Alameda County's population, continue to be the ethnic group most affected by the disease, according to county health data.

Of the 1,467 HIV cases reported in Alameda County between July 2002 and December 2004, 729, or 49.7 percent, were in African Americans. Whites represented 492, or 33.5 percent, of the latest cases, followed by 183 cases, or 12.5 percent, among Latinos.

"A state of emergency still exists," said the Rev. Valerie Brown-Troutt, pastor of the New Community Fellowship Church in downtown Oakland. "Our prevention strategies have failed. We need to talk with our children and in our families and churches and schools about how you acquire HIV and how to prevent it."

While marchers said they wished more people -- in particular local elected officials and African American residents and clergy -- had joined them Thursday, they were not discouraged from getting their message out. Several people in passing cars honked their horns and pumped fists in support of the marchers.

"Any amount of people is better than none at all," said marcher Robert Williams, deputy director of the Sexual Minority Alliance of Alameda County, an organization that works with young gay, bisexual and transgender Oakland residents.

"At least we're getting people to talk about HIV prevention and sexuality in a way that is not negative," said Williams, who is gay. "I've been lucky in that I have tested negative. I've been fortunate because in some instances I haven't protected myself. No one else but me is responsible for my decision to use condoms."

Maurice Tobin, a 24-year-old marcher from Oakland, said one of the ways he protects himself and others is by getting tested every six months. He and his boyfriend are in a monogamous relationship.

"I got knowledgeable," Tobin said. "I've been around the block. I haven't always been safe. Unfortunately, a lot of younger African Americans I talk to don't even know their status and don't want to know. Maybe we need to reach them with messages they will listen to, like music videos or a movie. I love myself too much, and now I always protect myself."

Alameda County Public Health Director Arnold Perkins said the county spends more on AIDS prevention and care than on any other disease, about $10 million a year. But he doesn't think community groups are reaching people who need help the most.

"These organizations need to be in the street with the people, out at the youth clubs and in the schools," Perkins said. "We have enough money. We have to find where the gaps are. We have to do prevention differently."

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