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Interview length: 12 minutes
Who:
Ingrid Floyd, Executive Director of Harlem's Iris House
Her Mission: To educate the community, to increase awareness and keep the issue front and center.
Topic: Women as the Face of AIDS, Nature vs. Nurture: The Social Dynamics of AIDS, sponsored by Iris House, at the New York Academy of Medicine. The Summit brought together policymakers, funders, medical providers, community based organizations and people to discuss issues facing women living with HIV and AIDS.
About: Iris House, is the only organization in the nation that focuses  solely on women and families infected with and affected by HIV/AIDS. Iris House, based in East Harlem, offers practical, family-centered services that promote prevention and education through: food and nutrition counseling; mental health assessments; crisis management; individual and family counseling; life/skills training; prevention workshops; financial education; and housing, to meet the everyday needs of HIV positive women.
Why: Let’s take a quick look at some of the facts about HIV/AIDS. According  to the latest findings on the landmark GRACE study (Gender, Race and Clinical Experience), sponsored by Tibotec Therapeutics, a Division of Ortho Biotech Products, L.P., USA, the largest clinical study to date in treatment-experienced adult women with HIV to evaluate gender and race differences in response to an HIV medication: Today, women account for nearly one-third of new HIV diagnosis in the U.S., and rates of HIV infection are particularly high in women of color. African-American women, who represent only 13% of the U.S. female population, account for 64% of female AIDS cases. The New York Times published an article written by Sally Sara in May of this year, Despite H.I.V, Fighting to Maintain Health and a Positive Attitude, highlighting the work of Iris House, and cited a 2005 report by the CDC (Centers for Disease Control): “27 percent of people with AIDS were women, up from less than 5 percent two decades before, and African-American women were 23 times more likely to become infected. AIDS is the fourth-leading cause of death for black women older than 45 and Hispanic women aged 35 to 44, according to the C.D.C.; blacks and Hispanics make up 24 percent of the nation’s female population, but 82 percent of new AIDS diagnosis among women.”
Iris House Inspiring the World: Ingrid Floyd is on track. She was contacted by PeaceXPeace.org, a grassroots community of women who connect for friendship, mutual support and dialogue, across cultural and  geographic divides, to tell the story of Iris House to women around the world.Why was important to feature a woman from a Harlem-based organization on their website? “ I cannot emphasize enough how powerful it is to enable women who live under duress across the globe to see that even in the United States women often deal with the same issues of violence and intimidation. Something magical happens when these women connect across cultures to share practical tactics that have helped get them through the day or a difficult challenge,” said Linda Higdon, Chief Strategy Officer for Peace X Peace. “Whether they live in Africa, London, the West Bank or the Ukraine, there is an instant understanding and a sharing that gives these women the strength they need to get through a crisis.” ^^^CLICK on image to read PeaceXPeace Article.
Visit: IrisHouse.org and PeacexPeace.org
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