We All Have AIDS
This photo is from a Kenneth Cole ad campaign from a few years ago. I loved it. It’s so good that I actually wish they would bring it back. At the time it was somewhat controversial, and I never really understood why. In fact I bought one of the “We All Have AIDS” t-shirts for my then 14-year-old daughter. She loved it too. To me the message is simple and accurate. If one of us, one of God’s children, has AIDS we all do.
Heal the sick, raise the dead, cure those with leprosy, and cast out demons. Give as freely as you have received! Matthew 10:8
We are called to serve the weak, sick, and unrepentant. It doesn’t matter how the virus was contracted, all that matters is how we respond. It matters whether or not we choose to respond.
I choose to serve.
I choose to love.
I have mixed feelings on this issue to be honest about it. It seems at times that AIDS is the trendy bandwagon disease for celebrities to jump on or have fundraisers to use to find a cure. My son has autism and the rate of autism is growing exponentially. Right now in the US there are thousands more children with autism than with AIDS. In ten to fifteen years the amount of families having to care for their now adult children with autism will be significantly more than those dealing with AIDS. Where’s Kenneth Cole to do a campaign for autism research? Where’s Will Smith or Tom Hanks to volunteer their likenesses for an autism awareness campaign?
I’m not at all trying to downplay the horrors of AIDS or the impact it has on the lives of those inflicted with it and their families. I just get a little tired of what seems to be a significantly increase level of attention for that versus other diseases that have as much if not more impact on society as a whole.
Hey Jason, I totally agree that Autism is misunderstood and severely underfunded. Our son has Asperger’s so I get it. I will say that as a clinician I have some of my own opinions about the increased diagnosis of Autism but don’t want to go on a tangent so I’ll save it for another time.
As for HIV/AIDS, here’s my two cents: I’m sure there are some celebs and socialites who think that AIDS is a flashy, sexy cause to support. There are posers everywhere, not just when it comes to AIDS activism. That said, I am grateful for anyone who shines even a pen light on this disease as it’s effects on the developing world, specifically Africa, are so beyond devastating it keeps me up at night. I feel the same way about extreme poverty, malaria, and clean water. A few US dollars spent on anti-viral meds saves lives, a few hundred can save a village of children from being orphaned. As for “society as a whole”, well I can’t even measure the significance of that type of impact.
I’m thrilled by Kenneth Cole’s campaign in support of World AIDS Day the same way I am thrilled with Ralph Lauren’s Pink Polo T-Shirt campaign during Breast Cancer Awareness Month. And I’m thrilled about the advocacy that Jenny McCarthy and Jim Carrey do to support World Autism Day and that VH1′s Rock Autism Campaign (for which celebs including Dave Navarro, Steven Tyler, and Holly Robinson have volunteered their likenesses) does to raise funds for Autism research, services and advocacy.
Thanks for your comment! Still friends?
Friends? No! I hate you! ;)
I’m grateful any time someone with a platform uses it to genuinely help other people. Bono’s a terrific example of someone who does that.
Just don’t get me started on the VH1 Rock Autism thing…sometime we’ll have to talk about what happened when I approached them to use their PSAs to promote a fundraiser for Autism Speaks. :) But I don’t want to autism up your comments here. :)
God bless you, Nicole :)
Jason, we do need to talk sometime for real… and not just about Autism. Jesse and I were saying the other day that we should skype with you guys sometime.
I see this ad and immediatly branch off to the Body of Christ… If a brother has fallen, we all have the responsibilty to carry the ‘burden’ of the attack and fight to restore him. I know it’s not what you’re saying but I have a one track mind. ;) ha!
Love you, Nicole!
Serena, That’s why I love you girl :) Excellent point!
Honestly, I don’t get it.
I thought you were going to tie in sin or something…you know, we all have AIDS (sin analogy?).
Sorry!
Leave it to me, Sarah Mae. Ha!
i love it. it catches people’s attention and gets them to pause long enough to read on. and it’s true. AIDS is a global problem. it’s a crisis that affects people who are far-removed from the everyday reality of it it because the effects are so far-reaching and long-lasting. living and working in the poorest region of south africa, every single person i come into contact with has been infected or affected by HIV. it’s mind-blowing. i think in america it’s too easy to forget. or to look at it as “africa’s problem”. it’s not. it’s OUR problem. and we need to do something about it.
[i am SO glad you did a special post for world AIDS day. thank you!]
Sarah – I didn’t get the sin analogy thing so we’ll call it a draw ;)
Alece – Thank you so much for your comments. I’ll be swinging by Grit to read you AIDS day posts this week for sure. Thank you so much for all you do. I’m honored that you stopped by my blog :)