$1,6M each for 2 MSM Internal interventions from AMFAR

amfAR, The Foundation for AIDS Research, is one of the world’s leading nonprofit organizations dedicated to the support of AIDS research, HIV prevention, treatment education, and the advocacy of sound AIDS-related public policy. Since 1985, amfAR has invested nearly $325 million in its programs and has awarded grants to more than 2,000 research teams worldwide. It has funded Jamaica Forum for Lesbians and Allsexuals and Gays before on a two year cycle which ended some time ago with half of what was on the schedule not met but diverted to crisis interventions in particular as many homophobic cases required some serious financial interventions.

There were hardly any forumatic activities and direct linkages to the community (i.e. ordinary battyman and lesbians) to discuss or educate persons on issues relevant at the time. We have heard of so called empowerment interventions that were to go on stream but never got off the ground, many skills training programs started but were either stalled or discontinued all together.

The announcement was made recently and awarded to two Jamaican entities unnamed but more than likely Jamaica Forum for Lesbians and Allsexuals and Gays, JFLAG and Jamaica AIDS Support for Life JASL, why they choose to remain anonymous is anybody's guess.

Here are the two awardees' expected activities as they appeared in the amfAR release:

Name Withheld by Request (Kingston, Jamaica) - $US20,000

¡Living Out Loud! Empowering Proud Identities

The project will support ¡Living Out Loud!, Jamaica’s first internet intervention by and for LGBT youth. Utilizing a virtual safe space, ¡Living Out Loud! provides information, skills, social support, counseling, and referrals for young MSM and other LGBT adolescents and youth. Online peer educators cover HIV and AIDS transmission, treatment and care, sexual orientation, gender identity, human rights, sexual and reproductive health, among other issues.

Name withheld by request (Kingston, Jamaica) - $US20,000

Expanding Outreach to Hearing-Impaired MSM in Jamaica

The project, building on a previous amfAR grant, will provide HIV prevention, treatment and care services, including psychological support, to the hearing-impaired MSM community in Jamaica.

The project will continue support groups for hearing-impaired MSM in Kingston, and will extend these services to four new groups in Mandeville, Savannah-la Mar/Westmoreland, Montego Bay, and Brown’s Town. Project staff and beneficiaries will also advocate for inclusion of hearing-impaired MSM services in local health centers.

ENDS

More notes

We hope that those funds will be spent appropriately although it is difficult to track, we have seen over the years funds dispersed for some activities but have to be diverted to somewhere else as a necessity or for other reasons, on the face of it to think that there are other persons in their own right who have access to the community or are doing the fieldwork already but for whatever reasons are not engaged and fresh projects are started from the ground up ignoring or conveniently overlooking those persons who can bring some impact to bear on advocacy or community development.

Then a united front is presented to the funding community as if there aren't dissenting voices around on the kind of hypocrisy and institutional bigotry that now exists. Thankfully it is not lost to the powers that be and many pertinent questions are being asked in some places that were easily swayed or massaged by the continued smooth over. With the unfortunate sudden passing of one Jamaica's most respected minds in the advocacy/interventions arena who was also seen by some as a major hindrance to grass roots LGBT advocacy development there are expectations in some circles that things are about to take a change for the better and that other individuals and groups can cover the slack for the inadequacies that the J cannot and have not been able to clear properly such as homelessness, resident counselling among other things.

Let us see if the sections of the community that these funds have been awarded to benefit from will really get it with a view to improving the overall levels in the family.

Peace and tolerance

H