Pages tagged with "hivisnotacrime"

End Unjust HIV Criminalization

YouthCO is proud to endorse the Canadian Coalition to Reform HIV Criminalization's (CCHRC) Community Consensus Statement, released this World AIDS Day. As an organization, we stand against the criminalization of HIV non-disclosure, and the stigma and fear it perpetuates with its outdated evidence about how HIV is and is not passed. 

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Discussing ways to prevent transmission

Talking about sexual health is something everyone can do! At YouthCO, we believe that sexual health is a shared responsibility, and that each of us can take action! There are a lot of options to prevent passing or getting HIV, and while we might not use all of them, we can definitely find one that fits! For those of us who are HIV positive and undetectable, taking our treatment every...

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YouthCO stands against HIV non-disclosure

Thank you, PositiveLite.com, for publishing this article online here. When getting sexy with our partner(s), we all have an opportunity to talk about sexual health. Yet in practice, many of us are reluctant to start a conversation, bring up condoms, or ask about HIV and STIs. For those of us who are HIV-positive, not having one of these conversations means we may face charges of aggravated sexual assault. In fact,...

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HIV Is Not A Crime Video

Tess Arguile, one of our YouthCO volunteers, created this short video based on our position statement opposing the criminalization of HIV non-disclosure.   

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In Missouri and Canada, we believe HIV Is not a crime

We were disappointed to hear of yet another case of HIV-non-disclosure criminalization from Missouri this week where a young man was sentenced to 30 years in prison. Many people and organizations based in the United States are leading ongoing advocacy to oppose the criminalization of Michael Johnson. Media coverage in the United States has more details about this case.  

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Don't release photos of people living with HIV

YouthCO is frustrated and disappointed at the recent news that police in Peterborough, ON and Toronto, ON have released photographs of two separate people living with HIV when criminal charges were laid in relation to HIV non-disclosure. Consistent with our firm opposition to the criminalization of HIV non-disclosure (see our position paper here) and our commitment to challenging HIV stigma, we oppose decisions by the police and media...

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HIV Is Not A Crime Position Paper

  In 2014, YouthCO's staff, members and Board adopted a position paper formally opposing the criminalization of HIV non-disclosure. The position paper is available below. As an organization focused on peer education and support around HIV and Hep C, YouthCO is strongly opposed to HIV criminalization. We call on Canada’s justice system to make evidence-based decisions around HIV and join us in working towards eliminating fear and stigma and supporting those...

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