Youth throughout the Chicagoland area can participate in a townhall meeting on Monday for World AIDS Day. The National Council of African Women and Prairie State College have partnered up to offer them a safe place to ask questions and figure out how social media can play a role in creating awareness about HIV and AIDS.
“A townhall meeting gives us some way of engaging the audience without lecturing because we want the students to raise questions,” said Gwendolyn Maxie-Brown the event’s organizer.
Students and their parents have been invited to participate in the event, but it’s open to the public. The discussion will take place at Prairie State College’s auditorium from 4-6 p.m. Panelists include Dr. Veronica Peppers, an educator, who will use the book “Girls Uncovered: New Research on What America’s Sexual Culture Does to Young Women” to discuss how HIV/AIDS effects youth. Lisa Wagner and DeeVon Dorsey are representatives of the South Suburban Council on Alcoholism and Substance Abuse, a council under the Cook County Department of Public Health. Spiritual leader Deborah Price will bring a different perspective by recommending abstinence over safe sex. There will also be a student from Top Teens of America-Top Ladies of Distinction from the South Suburban Chapter.
The focus will be on social media. Attendees will brainstorm together to develop how the tool can help resolve the problem of HIV/AIDS and STDs in the Black community.
Resources from the Department of Public Health and free testing will be available. There will also be information on scholarship opportunities in film making, video gaming and cartoon animation workshops, as well as information about computer technology career paths. Raffle prizes include gift cards, theater and skating passes.
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