Events

Commemorate Black Lives Lost to AIDS

Published

11 years ago

February 5, 2015

Black History Month is a time when we can reflect on the lives of the loved ones we have lost to AIDS.

In Black America, HIV continues to be a crisis. Feb. 7 marks the 15^th annual observance of National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day (NBHAAD).

In San Francisco on Friday, Feb. 6, there will be a town hall meeting, “Our Health Matters,” at Glide Memorial in the Freedom Hall, starting at 6 p.m., 330 Ellis St. The event is free and refreshments will be provided.

In Oakland on Saturday, Feb. 7, a free luncheon and town hall meeting will be held on the state of HIV/AIDS in the Black community from 9:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. at Preservation Park’s Ginn House, 660 13^th St. The event is free but requires pre-registration at eventbrite.com.

The overall theme, “We are Our Brother’s/Sister’s Keeper,” emphasizes that – regardless of sexual orientation, economic class or educational levels – we each can play an important role in solving the HIV epidemic in Black communities. No one is coming to save us – we must save ourselves.

To end the epidemic, we have to address the spread of HIV in Black America. In 2000, the CDC marked a U.S. AIDS milestone. Seventeen years after the beginning of the epidemic, cases among Black Americans exceeded those among whites.

Black AIDS Awareness Day was established in 1999 to encourage more Blacks to get tested, to get educated on the importance of HIV prevention, and how crucial early detection and treatment is.

Today, Black Americans account for half of the more than 1 million Americans living with HIV. African Americans continue to constitute nearly half of the new HIV infections in the country, and half of those who die from AIDS each year.

Young Black men, particularly our gay and bisexual youth, continue to be the hardest hit with continuing diagnoses of new infections occurring more often in this group than any other in this country.

However, there is some good news. Infections among Black women started declining in 2013 for the first time in over a decade. We can continue to reduce these numbers of infections among Black women and begin to do so for Black men.

We know that HIV is preventable and there are things we can do to protect ourselves and our partners. The journey starts with educating ourselves, our friends, and neighbors in the community about HIV.

With new advances in HIV treatment and prevention, an AIDS-free generation is possible. Everyone knowing their status is a crucial step. African Americans are more likely to get tested for HIV than others, yet two out of five Black people living in the U.S. still have not been tested.

New infections are happening through people unaware of their status. When one knows their status, they are more likely to protect their partners. If infected with HIV, early treatment can lower the level of virus in the body, help people with HIV live longer, healthier lives and lower the chance of passing HIV to sexual partners.

Stigma and homophobia continues to prevent too many African-Americans from seeking treatment, testing and support. We must begin to talk openly about HIV, speaking to our children, our peers, and our partners about it, pushing through discomfort or denial.

For further information, contact mrjessebrooksii@gmail.com or (510) 575-8245.

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Activism

Oakland Post: Week of July 1 – 7, 2026

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of July 1 – 7, 2026

Published

2 days ago

July 5, 2026

Oakland Post

To enlarge your view of this issue, use the slider, magnifying glass icon or full page icon in the lower right corner of the browser window.

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Arts and Culture

Prescott Circus Theatre Presents Free Summer Performance Series

Now in its 41st year, the Prescott Circus Theatre is a nationally recognized performing arts education program for Oakland youth. The circus offers safe environments that challenge Oakland youth, through circus arts training, to develop the skills and confidence to thrive on stage, in school, and in life.

Published

2 weeks ago

June 26, 2026

Oakland Post

Prescott Circus showcase pathways pyramid. Photo courtesy of Prescott Circus.

By Post Staff

The Prescott Circus, Oakland’s longest-running youth circus, is returning this summer with its free shows. Join the Prescott Circus’s young stars as they share their joys and talents through stilt-dancing, tumbling, juggling, and more.

At the heart of this one-hour show, which demonstrates teamwork, pride, and joy, are Oakland Unified School District students ages 8 – 17 from more than 10 different schools

This is accomplished through no-cost school and community programs for more than 300 Oakland youth each year. Performing company members from Prescott, where the program began, perform and make appearances at as many as 40 Bay Area events each year.

The summer program is funded in part by Oakland Fund for Children and Youth, California Arts Council, Port of Oakland, and the West Davis & Bergard Foundation.

Performances will be held Tuesday, July 14, 11 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. (ASL interpreted) and Wednesday, July 15, 11 a.m., at the Malonga Casquelourd Center for the Arts, 1428 Alice St., Oakland. For free reservations go to

https://PrescottCircusSummerShows.eventbrite.com

For group reservations for camps, childcare centers, senior centers, go to www.prescottcircus.org

A community show will be held Saturday, July 18, 2 p.m. to 3 p.m., at DeFremery Park,1651 Adeline St., Oakland.

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Activism

Inaugural Juneteenth Awards Ceremony Celebrates the Fillmore’s Black History, Leadership and Resilience

Addressing more than 100 Black and Asian attendees, San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie stated “San Francisco is reliant on the Black community, and we must invest in this community.”

Published

2 weeks ago

June 26, 2026

Oakland Post

District 5 Supervisor Bilal Mahmood, Rev. Dr. Amos Brown, Pastor Emeritus of Third Baptist Church, SF Mayor Daniel Lurie. Photo by Linda Parker Pennington.

By Linda Parker Pennington

The Fillmore Community Ambassadors held its first annual Juneteenth Wesley Johnson White Horse Awards ceremony on June 19 inside the newly reopened Fillmore Heritage Center.

The event featured awards for former San Francisco mayors London Breed and Willie Brown, along with Third Baptist Church Pastor Emeritus, Rev. Dr. Amos Brown.

The Koret Heritage lobby at the newly reopened center at 1330 Fillmore St. held a standing-room-only, culturally diverse and multi-generational audience while the art gallery featured photos of Fillmore community members in action, red Japanese lanterns, art and calligraphy, and Chinese artwork, giving the space a multicultural feel.

Addressing more than 100 Black and Asian attendees, San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie stated “San Francisco is reliant on the Black community, and we must invest in this community.”

District 5 Supervisor Bilal Mahmood acknowledged that “the Fillmore community has had a difficult history. Thanks to Rev. Amos Brown’s continuous focus on accountability and resistance, you hold us accountable and continue to inspire us.”

Mahmoud is referring to the Fillmore’s Japanese residents who were forced from their homes and sent to concentration camps during World War II. Black people occupied those homes until the return of their Japanese neighbors and then gave them back, while homes that had been unoccupied were lost. The presence of the Asian community on Juneteenth is a testament to that shared history.

In receiving his honor, Amos Brown elicited a powerful spontaneous call-and-response, where members of San Francisco’s many Black churches proudly shouted out the names: “Bethel AME! Providence Baptist! Jones Memorial! Glide!”

Awards program Master of Ceremonies Shawn Richards of Brothers Against Guns warmly introduced Breed, highlighting her many accomplishments, particularly on “March 16, 2020, when she became the first mayor to shut down a major U.S. city due to COVID-19, saving thousands of lives.”

The audience was captivated by Breed’s emotional speech touching on past traumas, present conditions, and future hopes for the neighborhood where she grew up.

She recalled another trauma of the neighborhood during the City’s redevelopment era in the 1960s, where Black residents were forced to move with a promise of being able to return that was largely unfulfilled.

“We remember when this land was just a field because they bulldozed hundreds of Victorian homes that Black people owned. They built the Fillmore Center, where most Black people can’t afford to live or start their own business. But we are still here.”