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LOS ANGELES -- National Coalition of 100 Black Women (NCWB), National Council of Negro Women and the Black AIDS Institute are hosting the 2nd Annual It’s All About M.E.E.! (Mobilization, Education & Empowerment) Sistahs Getting Real About HIV conference is scheduled from Feb. 7-11, 2007 at the Omni Hotel, 251 S. Olive St., Los Angeles.

Invited hosts include Byllye Avery, Donna Brazile, Cong. Donna Christian-Christensen (D-VI), Dr. M. Jocelyn Elders, Dr. Helene Gayle, Tawanna Gordon, Cookie Johnson, Cong. Carolyn Cheeks Kilpatrick (D-Mich.), Cong. Barbara Lee (D-Calif.), Cong. Juanita Millender-McDonald (D-Calif.), Linda Johnson Rice, Bev Smith, Iyanla Vanzant, Cong. Diane Watson (D-Calif.), Pauletta Washington, and Cong. Maxine Waters (D-Calif..

The conference is sponsored by amfAR, MAC AIDS Fund and the U.S. Office on Women’s Health. The honorary host committee is Marcia and Michael Dyson, Dr. Dorothy Height, Jewell Jackson McCabe, Michelle and Marc Morial.

•AIDS remains one of the leading causes of death for African Americans in the United States. With regard to Black women in the U.S:
•AIDS is the leading cause of death for Black women between the ages of 24-34.
•Black women account for 69 percent of new HIV/AIDS cases among women.
•Black women are 19 times as likely as white women to have HIV/AIDS and 13 times more likely to die from the disease.

While race itself is not a risk factor for HIV infection, among African Americans, stigma, denial and the lack of culturally appropriate information and resources for support, all serve as barriers to early HIV testing, diagnosis and treatment. Involving Black women in education, empowerment and mobilization, and developing a network of women from diverse backgrounds that can speak “peer-to-peer” about the myths and the facts around HIV/AIDS is critical to ending the AIDS epidemic in Black communities.

WHAT TO EXPECT AT THE CONFERENCE
The purpose of this conference is to:
•Educate Black women across multiple sectors about the impact of HIV/AIDS in the Black community.
•Stimulate concrete and effective action to prevent the spread of HIV/AIDS among Black women in America.
Each day will focus on a different theme:
•Thursday is dedicated to treatment and prevention.
•Friday is dedicated those living with HIV/AIDS
•Saturday is dedicated to advocates.

The impact of HIV/AIDS on our community; women, men & youth. Health outcomes are influenced by many factors including genetics, behavior, use of health care services and the circumstances under which we live and work. While the pathways by which these factors exert their influence on health status are complex, they are all linked to the fabric of community. It’s All About M.E.E.! will focus on the critical role Black women play in raising awareness about he magnitude of HIV/AIDS in Black communities, and the need for reducing new infections, and increasing the number of Black people who know their HIV status.